It was a triumphant return for former Ice head coach Cory Clouston, whose Brandon Wheat Kings squeaked out a 1-0 win against Kootenay last night at the Rec Plex.

In a tight defensive game chock-full of missed opportunities on both sides, the Wheat Kings rode a one goal lead from the first period to the end of the contest to earn some revenge after getting spanked 7-3 at the hands of the Ice last Saturday in Brandon.

The star standout for the night was opposing goaltender Curtis Honey, who sweetened his stats by earning his first career WHL shutout, turning away 34 shots the Ice put in his direction.

Equally the best player for the Ice, stopper Nathan Lieuwen stood on his head to keep the game within an agonizing one-goal difference, doing more than his share to keep his team in the game.

Lieuwen was only beat once in 28 shots, when Kevin Sundher put a shot past him late in the first period during an offensive push from the Wheat Kings.

It was Sundher's first goal as a Wheat King since getting shipped to Brandon from the Victoria Royals at the WHL trading deadline.

The win, while not necessarily pretty, was the response the Wheat Kings needed after being outworked by the Ice in Brandon, said Sundher.

"We were harder on pucks, we were harder on them on their defense; we were putting it into their zone," said Sundher. "Obviously, we had really good goaltending today, but just a little more effort, a little more oomph-that made the difference."

Clouston, who was hired by the Wheat Kings in the off-season after the Ottawa Senators released him at the end of the 2010/11 NHL campaign, agreed, saying his club was a lot more focused this time around.

"We knew that maybe one or two goals was going to be the difference, especially with Lieuwen in net," said Clouston. "We knew once we got that first one, we were going to have to play responsible defensively, as Kootenay did."

The Ice had some good pressure within the first few minutes forechecking away in the offensive zone. Elgin Pearce had the first solid chance, going coast to coast, but Honey turned away his wrist shot.

The Ice had a few good scoring opportunities in the second period; Max Reinhart had a great chance when he cut across the crease in front of the net and tried to tuck the puck inside the goal post, but Honey kicked out his left leg to close the gap.

Joe Antilla was also robbed on the powerplay when he picked up a rebound at the side of the net, but Honey again threw out his leg and made the save.

Both teams struggled on the special teams, as the Ice were stymied five times on the man-advantage, while the Wheat Kings couldn't generate anything in four opportunities.

The third period didn't fare much better, although the Ice did show some spark near the end of the game, playing with some desperation as time ticked down.

"Today the bounces went their way and we couldn't get much going, we had a lot of chances, but they had a hot goalie tonight," said Ice defenseman Jeff Hubic, who filled in up front on the fourth line forward unit. "We were trying to pepper him early and again, you can't do much with a hot goalie."

Kootenay has eight defensemen, but with Luke Paulsen out with a concussion, the defensive corps could spare Hubic, who also played up front in Brandon, and still have three defensive pairings.

"It's different, but I played some forward throughout minor hockey, so I'm not a total stranger to it," said Hubic. "I definitely enjoy it and I'm happy to contribute in any way I can."

The Wheat Kings had one win in seven games after losing to the Ice in Brandon, which was a game where the team didn't pounce on its chances, said Clouston.

"We were embarrassed in our own building last game and they took it too us; we felt like we had some opportunities that we didn't capitalize.

"To me, this is more of a game on pride and just getting back to how we have to play."

The Ice have to shake off their performance and focus on the game tonight, as they head right into Lethbridge for its second game in two evenings.

The Hurricanes will be well rested after swinging through the B.C. division for a weeklong road trip, going 2-3-0-0 in the process.

The Ice's loss ties them with the Medicine Hat Tigers for third in the Eastern Conference, but Kootenay has the edge with one game in hand-pending the results from Wednesday night's game.