After registering games in the loss and tie columns, the Home Hardware Midget AAA Legionnaires finally tallied one in the win column at the Mac's Midget AAA Tournament this afternoon.

The Legionnaires won 5-2 over the previously-undefeated Knights of Columbus Pats out of Edmonton.

"When we started, we knew these guys were undefeated and it was going to be a hard game," said Legionnaires head coach Darren Evjen. "We thought the biggest thing is we needed to get off to a good start, and not chase the game like we had done in the two games prior to that."

Swift Current grabbed their first lead of the tournament when, with 38 seconds left in the first period, Reed Jacobson and Jacob Piller connected with Hunter Lamb, who scored his first goal of the Mac's tournament.

The Legionnaires carried the 1-0 lead into the first intermission and extended it to a two-goal margin nearing the midway mark of the middle frame.

Piller scored his fourth goal in two games with 11:45 on the clock, as this time Lamb and Jacobson were credited with the helpers.

Then, for a section of the second period, the Pats managed to take control of possession. Pats defenceman Cordell Coleman solved Legionnaires netminder Cody Levesque to cut the lead to one.

"They get a goal back, and create some momentum," Evjen said, noting the culmination of that timeframe ended favourably for his team. "Really, they probably took it to us for about six minutes before we block a shot, get a 2-on-1 off it and score a goal."

The goal came off the stick of defenceman Lucas Ochitwa on the man-advantage.

"That 3-1 lead kind of gave us a little bit of separation," Evjen added.

Swift Current didn't have to wait long to see the lead grow to three goals, as Piller polished off a potent two-game stretch with his fifth goal. The 4-1 lead came just 21 seconds into the final frame.

The alternate captain says despite the offensive onslaught through games two and three of the Mac's, nothing out of the ordinary has changed in the routine.

"My linemates are getting me the puck, I'm just shooting it and it's going in... getting rebounds, that kind of thing," Piller shared.

The three-goal lead enabled Swift to tighten up in the defensive zone, swarming the Pats' skaters.

"The third period we really locked it down and created a couple of goals off it," said the Legionnaires' bench boss. "We were good defensively - they scored a late power-play goal, but we really controlled the game."

Knights of Columbus scored that power-play goal with 4:16 left in the game, and Hunter Lamb restored the three-goal lead with an empty-netter - his second of the game - for the 5-2 win.

Levesque stopped 32 of 34 Pats' shots to get the W in net.

The victory moves Swift to 1-1-1 on the tournament through three out of four round-robin games, with the fourth coming against the winless Carolina Jr. Hurricanes.

Facing off with the squad from south of the border is an experience that isn't lost on Evjen and his team.

"In the Mac's tournament that's what it's all about. You get an opportunity to play an American team, maybe a European team - that's what drives everybody to want to get here so badly," he said. "It's huge for our guys to get in there and play the Carolina Jr. Hurricanes. It's just a different atmosphere when you go play a team from the United States - it's exciting and we'll be ready for it."

It's a short turnaround for the Legionnaires, as puck drop is scheduled for 10 a.m. Saskatchewan time between Swift and the Jr. Hurricanes.

"For sure it's a must-win, so we'll get some sleep tonight, and we'll get back at it in the morning," Piller said, echoing his coach's thoughts on preparation. "We'll make sure we're ready to play - we can't take these guys lightly."