Blades D Jackson Caller, left, engages with Rebels C Michael Spacek. |
It was a rare rowdy Saturday night at the SaskTel Centre
that saw tensions escalate between the Saskatoon Blades and the visiting Red Deer
Rebels.
The 4,211 spectators in attendance got to witness all sorts
of fireworks in the third period of a WHL contest between the two teams that
included a shouting match between the each clubs’ coaches from the edge of
their benches, a couple of big collisions that resulted in two Blades players
being helped off the ice and a big scrum at game’s end.
When the dust settled, the Blades skated away with a 4-2 victory, which ended a four game losing streak.
When the dust settled, the Blades skated away with a 4-2 victory, which ended a four game losing streak.
“For us, it is about winning,” said Blades head coach Dean
Brockman. “It is about the composure. We stopped the four-game losing streak,
and really, that is what we should be talking about.
“For us, it is a huge win. Hopefully, we haven’t lost too
many pieces of the puzzle. We’ve fought through that adversity all year.”
Rebels HC, GM and owner Brent Sutter yells at the Blades bench. |
The replay in the building showed that Kustra slipped and
was placed in a vulnerable position, when he was trying to avoid Hausinger’s
hit.
As Kustra was being tended to on the ice, Rebels head coach,
general manager and owner Brent Sutter hopped up on the edge of his team’s
bench to engage in a shouting match with Blades assistant coach Ryan Keller and
Brockman. Building security moved in to ensure the spectators didn’t get
involved.
Blades AC Ryan Keller and HC Dean Brockman yell at the Rebels bench. |
With 29.6 seconds to play and Saskatoon holding a 4-2 edge, Rebels
defenceman Colton Bobyk nailed Blades star winger Braylon Shmyr with a high hit
dropping Shmyr to the ice. Saskatoon defenceman Evan Fiala tried to engage
Bobyk, but was only able to get in a slash before the officials jumped in. Both
rearguards were given 10-minute misconducts, and Fiala received a minor for
slashing.
After being tended to by the trainers, Shmyr managed to
leave the ice for the Saskatoon dressing room under his own power.
“Anytime you see one of your own guys go down whether it be
a clean hit or not it is always tough to watch,” said Blades centre Jesse
Shynkaruk. “We’re on the bench there, and it is tough seeing Kusy (Kustra) get
dragged off and Shmyrsie (Shmyr) too.
A scrum occurs by the Rebels net in the second period. |
“It was a little tense. We kind of got into it with the
other team there. We just have to draw attention back to the game and finish
off the last 10 minutes.”
The game ended with a big scrum ensuing by the left corner
boards in the Saskatoon zone. The highlight was a jawing match between Rebels
centre Michael Spacek and Blades defenceman Jackson Caller.
The officials broke the scrum up before it could escalate,
and no penalties were assessed.
As far as scoring went, Shynkaruk scored twice and had an
assist for the Blades, while Shmyr and Gage Ramsay netted singles. Austin Glover
and Evan Polei responded with singles for the Rebels. Polei was involved in a
second period fight with Blades winger Lukus MacKenzie.
Blades S Evan Fiala mixes it up with Rebels captain Adam Musil. |
Riley Lamb stopped 20-of-21 shots playing in relief for Red
Deer.
“All of us were definitely worked up when Kusy (Kustra) got
hit,” said Flodell. “I think we settled down and played pretty well.
“We got the win and killed off the penalties. It was good.”
After the game, Brockman was still trying to piece together
the shouting match with Sutter.
“I am not even sure exactly what started or what happened,”
said Brockman. “Tempers are pretty high at that point. It is obviously a pretty
emotional game and that can happen.
The Blades celebrate their victory over the Rebels. |
“To be honest, I am looking down my bench to see who I have to put out next. I didn’t see the first hit, and I didn’t see the hit on (Braylon) Shmyr either.”
With the win, the Blades move into eighth place and
currently hold the final playoff berth in the WHL’s Eastern Conference. They
sit a point ahead of the Calgary Hitmen (19-24-7-2), but the Hitmen have a game
in hand.
The Blades return to action this coming Friday, when the
host the Moose Jaw Warriors at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre. The Rebels return
home to Red Deer to host the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Wednesday.
Suspensions could be on the horizon
The WHL office could possibly issue suspensions for actions
that went down in Saturday’s clash between the Blades and Rebels.
The major penalty for checking to the head given to
Hausinger and the double minor for high sticking assessed to Fantillo will be
automatically reviewed by the league for further discipline.
The Blades could send a tape to the league office asking for
supplemental discipline for Bobyk over his high hit on Shymr, which wasn’t
penalized.
From what I saw on the replays, I don’t believe Hausinger or
Fantillo will be suspended, but there could be a suspension to Bobyk for head
contact. With that said, the league has access to various camera angles besides
the replays that were shown in the building, so any outcome is possible.
Richard Doerksen, who is the WHL’s vice-president of hockey,
is usually pretty bang on when it comes to issuing or not issuing suspensions.
If you have any comments you would like to pass
along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.