Lakovic delivers Warriors OT win, 2-0 series lead on Wheaties

Brayden Yager had a goal for the Warriors on Saturday.

Lynden Lakovic ensured the Moose Jaw Warriors held serve at home.

On Saturday night, the Warriors found themselves locked in a 4-4 draw in overtime taking on the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings in Game 2 of a first round series in the WHL Playoffs between the two sides. Just 2:15 into the extra session, Warriors 19-year-old right-winger Rilen Kovacevic stole the puck from a Wheat Kings defenceman in the left corner of the Brandon zone.

Kovacevic backhanded a pass to the front of the Brandon net to Lakovic. The 17-year-old sophomore left-winger made no mistake burying the overtime winner to deliver the Warriors to a 5-4 victory before an elated 3,557 spectators at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.

The win allowed the Warriors to take a 2-0 series lead in the best-of-seven set. Moose Jaw claimed Game 1 on home ice Friday by a 7-4 score.

In Saturday’s clash, Warriors star centre Brayden Yager gave the host side a 1-0 lead in the opening frame. Later on in the first, Wheat Kings import centre Dominik Petr and 17-year-old centre Roger McQueen scored goals six second apart from each other to give the visitors a 2-1 advantage.

With 3:42 remaining in the first, Warriors star 20-year-old centre Atley Calvert potted a short-handed goal to even the score at 2-2.

In the second, Wheat Kings 19-year-old Rylen Roersma tallied a short-handed marker and McQueen potted his second of the contest to give Brandon a 4-2 advantage.

Inside the final two minutes of the second, the Warriors scored two goals 23 seconds apart coming from the sticks of star centre Matthew Savoie and left-winger Pavel McKenzie to even the score at 4-4.

The two sides played through a scoreless third period leading up to Lakovic’s winner. The Wheat Kings got the first four shots on goal in overtime before Lakovic tallied on Moose Jaw’s first shot on net of the extra frame.

Jackson Unger stopped 30 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Warriors. Carson Bjarnason turned away 34 shots to take the setback in net for the Wheat Kings.

Calvert collected a pair of assists to go with his goal putting up a three-point night for the Warriors. Savoie had an assist to go with his goal. Warriors 20-year-old defenceman Brenton Lucas picked up a pair of assists in the win.

Roersma had an assist to go with his goal for the Wheat Kings.

The series now shifts to Brandon for Games 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively for a 7 p.m. local start time on both nights at Westoba Place.

The Warriors finished second overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference in the regular season with a 44-21-0-3 mark. They are the third seed in the conference for the first round of the playoffs due to not finishing first in a division. The Wheat Kings placed sixth in the Eastern Conference with a 33-28-6-1 record.

Broncos outlast Hurricanes 4-3 in Game 2

Josh Filmon scored for the Broncos on Saturday.

The Swift Current Broncos are showing early signs that they might be giving their fans another spring to remember.

On Saturday before a sellout crowd of 2,890 spectators at the InnovationPlex, the host Broncos took a 4-3 thriller over the Lethbridge Hurricanes in Game 2 of a best-of-seven first round series in the WHL Playoffs between the two sides. With the win, the Broncos take a 2-0 lead in the set. Swift Current took Game 1 of the series 3-0 win on home ice on Friday.

In Saturday’s encounter between the two sides, the Hurricanes took a 1-0 lead early in the first period on a goal by 18-year-old right-winger Leo Braillard.

The visitors held their lead until the 14:24 mark of the second when Broncos star left-winger Josh Filmon tallied on the power play to even the score at 1-1.

Just under three minutes later, Hurricanes 20-year-old centre Sean Tschigerl popped home his first of the post-season to give the visitors a 2-1 edge heading into the second intermission.

At the 2:38 mark of the third, Broncos 20-year-old defenceman Ryan McCleary netted the equalizer that forced a 2-2 tie. Just under three minutes later, Broncos star 19-year-old right-winger Connor Hvidston scored on the power-play to put the host side in front 3-2.

The Broncos then appeared to have iced the game when star centre Conor Geekie scored into an empty-net with 2:14 remaining in the third to push the host’s advantage out to 4-2. Just four seconds later, Hayden Pakkala scored for the Hurricanes to cut the Broncos lead to 4-3.

The Hurricanes weren’t able to find the equalizer after that.

Reid Dyck made 29 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Broncos. Harrison Meneghin turned away 32-of-35 shot to take the setback in net for the Hurricanes.

Left-winger Luke Mistelbacker had a pair of helpers for Swift Current.

The Broncos are making their first appearance in the WHL Playoffs since their WHL championship winning season in 2018. They topped the Central Division this season posting a 40-22-4-2 mark.

The Hurricanes finished seventh in the WHL’s Eastern Conference with a 33-28-7 record.

The series now shifts to Lethbridge for Game 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively to be held at 7 p.m. local time both nights at the Enmax Centre.

McKenna powers Tigers past Rebels, other notes

Gavin McKenna had a goal and two assists for the Tigers.

Gavin McKenna broke out the biggest post-season outing of his young WHL career to power his Medicine Hat Tigers to a big rebound win.

On Saturday night, the Tigers star 16-year-old rookie left-winger scored 21 seconds into Game 2 of the Tigers first round series against the Red Deer Rebels. McKenna picked up assists on the Tigers two goals in the second frame as they down the visiting Rebels 3-1 before an appreciative crowd of 4,175 spectators at Co-op Place.

The win allows the Tigers to even the best-of-seven series with the Rebels at 1-1. In Game 1 at Co-op Place on Friday, the Tigers jumped out to 4-0 only to see the Rebels rally back and claim a 5-4 victory in double overtime.

In Game 2 on Saturday, McKenna gave the Tigers a 1-0 lead scoring 21 seconds into the game potting a rebound at the right side of the Rebels net from a shot taken by linemate Hunter St. Martin.

At the 9:22 mark of the second, McKenna and Tigers 18-year-old star left-winger Andrew Basha combined to set up 18-year-old offensive-defenceman Reid Andresen for his first goal of the post-season to push Medicine Hat’s advantage out to 2-0.

Working on the power play with 4:32 remaining in the second, Basha and McKenna combined to set up sophomore star centre Cayden Lindstrom, who turned 18-years-old in February, for his first of the playoffs. Lindstrom’s tally pushed the Tigers lead out to 3-0 going into the second intermission.

After 40 minutes, the Tigers held their 3-0 edge while building a 23-13 advantage in shots on goal.

The Rebels came with a big push back in the third holding an 18-3 edge in shots on goal for the frame. The visitors were only able to get one goal coming from the stick of sophomore centre Ollie Josephson coming at the 6:32 mark of the period.

Zach Zahara stopped 30 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Tigers. Chase Wutzke turned away 23 shots to take the setback in net for the Rebels.

As a rookie, McKenna led the Tigers in regular season scoring with 97 points coming off 34 goals and 63 assists. His 97 points are a Tigers team record for most points scored in one season by a 16-year-old.

He finished 12^th in the WHL’s scoring race. Due to being born in late December, McKenna isn’t eligible for the NHL Entry Draft until 2026.

The Tigers finished fourth overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference in the regular season with a 37-23-6-2 mark. The Rebels were fifth overall in the conference with a 33-26-3-6 record.

The series between the Tigers and Rebels now shifts to Red Deer for Games 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively at 7 p.m. both nights at the Peavey Mart Centrium.

• On Saturday in Prince George, centre Riley Heidt had three assists as his host Cougars downed the Spokane Chiefs 7-4 in Game 2 of their first round series. Layton Feist scored twice for the Chiefs. The Cougars, who finished second overall in the WHL regular season with a 49-15-1-3 mark, lead the series 2-0.
• On Saturday in Portland, the host Winterhawks dumped the Victoria Royals 5-1 in Game 2 of their first round series. James Stefan had a pair of goals and an assist for the Winterhawks, while Gabe Klassen picked up three assists in the win. The Winterhawks, who finished third overall in the WHL’s regular season standings with a 48-15-4-1 mark, lead the series 2-0.
• On Saturday in Everett, the host Silvertips got a pair of goals from Austin Roest to down the Vancouver Giants 2-1 in Game 2 of their first round series. Brett Mirwald made 53 saves taking the setback in goal for the Giants. The best-of-seven series between these two clubs is tied 1-1.
• On Saturday in Wenatchee, the host Wild fell 3-1 to the Kelowna Rockets in Game 2 of their first round series. Caden Price picked up assists on all three goals for the Rockets. The best-of-seven series between these two squads is tied 1-1.
• On Friday, the WHL announced Brandon Wheat Kings 19-year-old physical left-winger Matt Henry has been suspended eight games for a first-time violation of the CHL’s Anti-Doping Policy. Henry appeared in 37 regular season games for the Wheat Kings this season collecting one assist and 100 penalty minutes.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Return of the Broncos

Swift Current makes charge at first in Central Division

The Broncos have been enjoying goal celebrations and wins.

The Swift Current Broncos appear set to jump over a few humps in a big way.

Way back in the 2017-18 campaign, the Broncos went all in on a quest to win the WHL championship. They finished second overall in the WHL regular season standings with a 48-17-5-2 mark. In an epic post-season run, the Broncos captured their third league title in team history and appeared in the Memorial Cup tournament that determines a CHL champion held in Regina in May of that year.

Since that campaign, the Broncos haven’t been able to return to the WHL Playoffs until clinching a post-season berth in the current campaign.

They suffered heartbreaks in each of the past two seasons when it came to capturing a WHL post-season berth. Last season, the Broncos needed to win their last regular season game in regulation against the Tigers in Medicine Hat to make the playoffs.

In that contest played on March 25, 2023, the Broncos jumped out to a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes. The Tigers responded by scoring four straight goals and ultimately held on for a 4-3 victory.

Medicine Hat finished eighth in the Eastern Conference capturing the conference’s final playoff berth with a 30-29-8-1 record. Swift Current finished three standings points back of the Tigers with a 31-33-1-3 mark.

In the 2021-22 campaign, the Broncos needed to claim victory in their last regular season game played against the visiting Prince Albert Raiders to lock away a post-season berth. The Raiders came away with a 4-1 victory in that contest played on April 15, 2022 to end Swift Current’s campaign.

The Raiders took eighth place and the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference with 28-35-4-1 mark. The Broncos finished two standings points behind the Raiders with a 26-35-5-2 record.

Conor Geekie has been a big addition to the Broncos.

For most of the current campaign, the Broncos were holding a playoff spot in the standings. The team’s management decided to strengthen their roster with a couple of trades in early January in an attempt to ensure a playoff berth wasn’t a question.

On January 4, the Broncos acquired 19-year-old star centre Conor Geekie in a trade with the Wenatchee Wild. In return, the Wild received 18-year-old defenceman Sam Ward, defenceman Josh Fluker, who turned 18-years-old on January 3, rookie 17-year-old left-winger Maddix McCagherty, first and second round selections in the 2025 WHL Prospects Draft, a first round selection in the 2026 Prospects Draft and a seventh round selection in the 2027 Prospects Draft.

On January 10 before the passing of the WHL’s trade deadline, the Broncos acquired overage defenceman Tyson Galloway from the Calgary Hitmen in exchange for a second and a third round selection in the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft.

To make room for Galloway, the Broncos dealt overage right-winger Tyson Laventure to the Victoria Royals for a fifth round selection in the 2026 Prospects Draft.

At first, it didn’t appear the moves were going to do much to improve the Broncos fortunes. On January 28, they dropped a 3-2 decision in overtime to the Blades in Saskatoon. Following that result, the Broncos record sat at 22-18-3-2, and they sat third in the Central Division 11 standings points behind the first place Tigers.

Since that overtime setback, the Broncos have gone 13-2-1 in their last 16 outings to improve to 35-20-4-2 to officially clinch a berth in the WHL Playoffs. They sit one point behind the Tigers (35-22-5-2) for first in the Central and have three games in hand on the Medicine Hat side.

Owen Pickering has 38 points for the Broncos this season.

On Saturday, the Broncos drew their first sellout crowd of 2,890 spectators of the season to their home rink in the InnovationPlex for a 6-3 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. The game was a rough one with Broncos 20-year-old defenceman Ryan McCleary being given a double minor for checking from behind in the second period for a hit he threw on Wheat Kings captain Brett Hyland.

The contest ended with a line brawl that saw Dawson Gerwing and Petr Pavelec of the Broncos and Charlie Elick and Carter Klippenstein all being assessed fighting majors. The fight between Gerwing and Klippenstein was tabbed as being a second fight starting after the one between Pavelec and Elick.

Also during that contest, one of the spectators in the crowd threw a big plastic trash can inside the Wheat Kings bench.

As of Monday night, there hasn’t been any news if any disciplinary action will be handed out by the WHL office.

Aside from the extra-circulars, the Broncos have a solid squad. Geekie leads the team in scoring recording 86 points coming off 37 goals and 49 assists to go with a plus-46 rating in the plus-minus department in 48 games played between the Broncos and Wild.

Sophomore left-winger Clarke Caswell is having a breakout season recording 21 goals, 46 assists and a plus-10 rating appearing in all the Broncos 61 games so far this season. Star left-winger Josh Filmon is having another solid campaign posting 26 goals, 35 assists and a plus-12 rating in 58 games for the Broncos.

Offensive-defenceman Owen Pickering tops the Broncos in blue-line scoring with 38 points coming off six goals and 32 assists to go with a plus-15 rating.

Reid Dyck has rounded out as a solid starter in net posting a 22-6-2 record, a 2.66 goals against average, a .911 save percentage and two shutouts.

Josh Filmon has 26 goals and 35 assists for the Broncos this season.

If the Broncos are able to finish first in the Central Division, they will be a tough out in the post-season. The InnovationPlex is traditionally raucous in the post-season giving the Broncos one of the best home ice advantages in the WHL.

The Broncos will try to keep their roll going over their final seven regular season games. They travel to Prince Albert to face the Raiders (30-27-2-3) on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre.

Following that contest, the Broncos face the Tigers in a huge home-and-home series. The two sides meet at the InnovationPlex on Friday at 7 p.m. and on Saturday at Co-op Place in Medicine Hat at 7 p.m. local time.

When the WHL post-season comes around at the end of the month, it might feel like the spring of 2018 for the Broncos.

Blades on cusp of Eastern Conference clinch, other notes

Brandon Lisowsky had a penalty shot OT winner on Saturday.

It is almost academic that the Saskatoon Blades will lock up first place in the WHL’s Eastern Conference, but a little more work is required when it comes to finishing first overall in the WHL.

The Blades lead the WHL standings with a 45-12-2-3 mark. They need to collect just one standings point in their final six regular season contests to lock up first in the Eastern Conference. Their first chance to obtain that one standings point comes on Tuesday when they host the Brandon Wheat Kings (30-27-6-1) at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

Finishing first overall in the WHL is another matter. The Blades need to obtain nine standings points over their last six games to lock up top spot overall in the circuit.

Saskatoon sits five points ahead of the Western Conference leading Prince George Cougars (43-15-1-3), who sit second overall in the WHL. The Portland Winterhawks (43-15-2-1), who are second in the Western Conference and third overall in the WHL, sit six points behind the Blades. The Winterhawks have a game in hand on both the Blades and Cougars.

Of course, the amount of points the Blades need to collect in the standings to finish first overall in the WHL could change depending on results involving games with the Cougars and Winterhawks.

The Blades have won their last three games in a row. In their last outing this past Saturday, the Blades downed the visiting Edmonton Oil Kings 2-1 in overtime at the SaskTel Centre. Blades star left-winger Brandon Lisowsky pulled of a rarity scoring the winner on a penalty shot just 42 seconds into the extra session.

That contest saw the Blades retire the #39 of the team’s all-time great in Frank Banham. Banham played four seasons for the Blades from 1992 to 1996 appearing in 278 career regular season games collecting 190 goals and 180 assists for 370 points. He is the Blades all-time leader in career goals and points.

The last time the Blades finished first overall in the WHL was when they posted a 56-13-1-2 mark in the 2010-11 campaign, which is the club’s all-time best record for one regular season.

• On Monday, the WHL handed out its weekly awards for the week ending on Sunday. Kelowna Rockets right-winger Andrew Cristall was the player of the week, Kolby Hay of the Edmonton Oil Kings was the goaltender of the week, and right-winger Terik Parascak was the rookie of the week.
• Spokane Chiefs centre Berkly Catton is having an outstanding sophomore season. The Saskatoon product, who turned 18-years-old in January, sits fourth in WHL scoring with 105 points coming off 49 goals and 56 assists to go with a plus-11 rating. Catton is a top prospect to be selected in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft to be held June 28 and 29 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
• Medicine Hat Tigers 16-year-old rookie left-winger Gavin McKenna is going to need a big game or two in his team’s final four regular season outings to hit the 100-point plateau. McKenna has 90 points coming off 31 goals and 59 assists. McKenna is trying to become the fifth 16-year-old in the history of the WHL to record 100-or-more points.
• Saskatoon Blades 20-year-old captain Trevor Wong lead the WHL with 79 assists. He also had 13 goals to go with a plus-20 rating.
• You have to love the battle of the Edmonton Oil Kings. They have been eliminated from playoff contention and are playing out the string with a 23-36-3-1 mark. Still, they are playing every contest like it is Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final.
• It is great to see Dave Dawson serving as the play-by-play voice of the Edmonton Oil Kings. He officially became the Oil Kings play-by-play voice on February 1 after former Oil Kings play-by-play voice Andrew Peard took a new role with OEG Sports and Entertainment with the Edmonton Oilers communications department.  Dawson is one of the good guys in broadcasting who has more than paid his dues. It would be cool if this turned into something big for him.
• On Saturday, I had new content appear on the Howe Happenings blog that supports the Gordie Howe Sports Complex. I put together a feature on young right-handed softball pitcher Emma Frisky, who was named to Softball Canada’s Under-18 Women’s National Team. That piece can be found by clicking right here. I also put together a photo roundup that showed the winter season in its stretch run with the spring season peaking around the corner. That post can be found by clicking right here.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Minten rescues Blades in OT

The Blades celebrate an OT winner from Fraser Minten.

Fraser Minten skated into hero’s role for the Saskatoon Blades.

On Sunday night with his Blades locked in a 2-2 tie in a WHL regular season contest with the visiting Swift Current Broncos at the SaskTel Centre, Minten shot into the highlight reels. Taking the puck behind his own net from veteran defenceman Ben Saunderson, Minten went coast-to-coast with the puck.

After crossing into the Swift Current zone, Minten passed the puck to himself through Broncos winger Mathew Ward to get a break in alone on the visitor’s net. Minten proceeded to slip a nifty backhand shot between the legs of Broncos netminder Reid Dyck for his second tally of the night to lift the Blades to a 3-2 victory to the delight of the 3,919 spectators in attendance.

Fraser Minten scored two goals on Sunday for the Blades.

The win allowed the Blades, who are rated second in the CHL’s Top 10 Rankings, to continue to top the WHL’s overall standings improving to 33-9-2-3.

The victory was a gutty one for the Blades due to a scheduling quark. The Blades, who wore special fan designed jerseys on Sunday, were playing their third game in three nights. The Broncos were playing their first contest in eight days have last skated on Saturday, January 20, when they dropped a 4-3 decision to the Warriors in Moose Jaw at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.

The Broncos record moved to 22-18-3-2 with the extra time setback to remain sixth overall in the Eastern Conference.

Conor Geekie scored twice for the Broncos on Sunday.

In Sunday’s clash, the Broncos got the jump on the Blades scoring at the 8:12 mark of the first period. Broncos star centre Conor Geekie swept home a shot from the front of the Blades goal to give the visitors or a 1-0 edge.

After Geekie’s tally, the Blades started to find their legs. While working on the power play, Blades star left-winger Easton Armstrong, who is playing his final season of WHL eligibility, scored a gritty goal whacking home a backhand shot from the front of the Swift Current net to even the score at 1-1 with 1:32 remaining in the opening frame. The Blades outshot the Broncos 14-6 in the first period.

The Blades kept rolling in the second but were kept at bay by Dyck. With 2:55 remaining in the second, Minten wired home a low midrange snapshoot past from the front of the Broncos goal past Dyck to give the Blades a 2-1 lead. Saskatoon held a 10-6 edge in shots on goal in the second.

In the third period, it appeared fatigue was setting in for the Blades as the frame marched on, and the Broncos seemed to be able to free wheel a little bit more. 

The Blades celebrate their OT win on Sunday.

With 5:13 remaining in the third, Geekie drove down the left with of the Blades zone with the puck, cut across the front of the Saskatoon net and slipped a backhand shot home to even the score at 2-2 and ultimate force overtime.

That set the stage for Minten to come through with his third game-winning goal of the campaign.

Austin Elliott made 20 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Blades. Dyck turned away 31 shots to take the extra setback in net for the Broncos.

Armstrong had an assist to go with his goal for a two-point night.

The Broncos return to action on Wednesday when they host the Lethbridge Hurricanes (7 p.m., InnovationPlex).

The Blades also get back at it on Wednesday when they host the 17-23-4-2 Regina Pats (7 p.m., SaskTel Centre).

Spencer allows Pats to escape Calgary with OT win

Tye Spencer had the OT winner for the Pats on Sunday.

Tye Spencer’s three-point night allowed the Regina Pats to steal an overtime victory in Calgary.

On Sunday playing before 7,851 spectators at the Scotiabank Saddledome, Spencer collected a pair of goals including the overtime winner as the Pats downed the host Calgary Hitmen 4-3 in a WHL regular season clash. At the 3:33 mark of overtime, Pats captain Tanner Howe sprung Spencer into the Calgary zone on a breakaway. The 19-year-old right-winger tucked home a backhand shot to deliver victory to the Regina side.

The Pats victory was aided by the fact netminder Ewan Huet had a huge night making 49 saves.

Regina jumped out to a 2-0 lead on a pair of goals coming from left-winger Sam Oremba. Oremba netted his first goal at the 3:07 mark of the first period and his second tally 44 seconds into the second frame with the Pats working on the power play.

Just 53 seconds after Oremba’s second marker, Hitmen offensive-defenceman Carter Yakemchuk scored the host side’s first goal to cut the Regina lead to 2-1. The Pats would hold on to their 2-1 advantage heading into the second intermission despite the fact the Hitmen held a 33-20 edge in shots on goal after 40 minutes.

At the 4:29 mark of the third with the Pats working on the power play, Spencer scored his first goal of the contest to push the visitor’s advantage out to 3-1.

Just 2:11 after Spencer’s power-play goal, the Hitmen cut the Regina lead to 3-2, when Yakemchuk potted his second goal of the contest, which was his 20^th goal of the season.

With 3:41 remaining in the third, Hitmen 16-year-old rookie right-winger Ben Kindel scored on a wraparound to tie the contest up at 3-3 and force overtime.

That set the stage for Spencer, who is from Saskatoon, to come through with his overtime winner.

Alex Garrett turned away 30 shots to take the setback in goal for the Hitmen.

Howe finished the night recording three assists for the Pats. Kindel had an assist to go with his goal.

The Hitmen’s record moved to 19-18-6-1 with the setback and allowed them to move to sit alone in eighth place and hold the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference with 45 standings points. Calgary sits one point ahead of the Prince Albert Raiders (20-23-1-3) with three games in hand.

The Pats improved to 17-23-4-2 with the win. They sit 10^th overall in the Eastern Conference and five points back of the Hitmen. The Hitmen have two games in hand on the Pats.

The Pats return to action on Wednesday when they travel to Saskatoon to face the 33-9-2-3 Blades (7 p.m., SaskTel Centre).

The Hitmen get back at it on Friday when they travel to Edmonton to take on the Oil Kings (7 p.m. local time, Rogers Place).

Rivalry Series match on for Feb. 7 in Saskatoon, other notes

An Emily Clark hockey card.

For the first time since 2018, the SaskTel Centre will get to play host one of the greatest rivalries in all of sports.

On Wednesday, February 7 at 7 p.m., Canada’s senior national women’s hockey team will face the United States in Game 5 of the Rivalry Series. The U.S. leads the 2023-24 edition of the seven-game series 3-1 heading into Game 5 in Saskatoon.

Canada took Game 4 of the set 3-2 after a tiebreaking shootout back on December 16, 2023 at the Progressive Auto Sales Arena in Sarnia, Ont. Last season, the U.S. won the first three games of the series, but Canada rallied back taking the last four contests to capture the series win.

Canada’s roster will feature power forward and 28-year-old Saskatoon product Emily Clark. Clark has one goal over the first four games of the series. She is an assistant captain with Ottawa’s team in the PWHL and has played two games with the Ottawa side.

Clark is an alumna of the Saskatoon Stars Female Under-18 AAA Hockey Team.

The last time Canada and the U.S. played against each other in Saskatoon was back on November 10, 2018 in the championship game of the 4 Nations Cup tournament held at the SaskTel Centre. The U.S. claimed a 5-2 victory in that encounter.

Clark wasn’t able to play at that 4 Nations Cup due to an injured left leg.

• Be prepared to be bombarded with everything Taylor Swift for the next two weeks as the NFL’s post-season nears a close. With the Kansas City Chiefs defeating the Ravens in Baltimore 17-10 in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday, that means you will hear all sorts of talk about Swift and her boyfriend Travis Kelce, who is the Chiefs star tight end. The Chiefs, who are the defending Super Bowl champions, will play the San Francisco 49ERS in Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sunday, February 11. It will be the most watched Super Bowl of all-time.
• Riding a four-game winning streak, the Portland Winterhawks sit alone in first place in the WHL’s U.S. Division with a 31-11-2-1 record. The Winterhawks are two standings points ahead of the 30-15-1-2 Everett Silvertips. Portland has three games in hand on Everett. The Winterhawks downed the visiting Seattle Thunderbirds 4-1 on Sunday.
• I was back in the pages of the Prince Albert Daily Herald this past week. On Wednesday, I was in the Daily Herald with a column on how the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders started to fall in the standings when 17-year-old star right-winger Ryder Ritchie went down to injury due to a knee-on-knee hit. That piece can be found by clicking right here. On Friday, I was in the pages of the Daily Herald with a piece featuring Prince Albert Northern Bears alums Kate Ball and Jasper Desmarais, who now play for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Hockey Team. Ball and Desmarais reflected on a magical 2016-17 season with the Bears where they won the Saskatchewan Female Under-18 AAA Hockey Championship and appeared in the Esso Cup female national championship under-18 AAA championship tournament. The piece on Ball and Desmarais can be found by clicking right here.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Wild focus on reload as WHL trade deadline draws near

Conor Geekie in action for the Winnipeg Ice in 2023.

So who would have had Kenta Isogai being the face of the Wenatchee Wild a year ago on their bingo card as being a thing in the WHL?

The 19-year-old left-winger Nagano, Japan, is playing through his first year in the WHL leading the Wild in scoring with 56 points coming off 20 goals and 36 assists to go with a plus-23 rating in the plus-minus department. Entering play on Tuesday, he sat ninth in the overall scoring race for the circuit.

Isogai is not a rookie junior. He played the last nine seasons with the Youngstown Phantoms of the United States Hockey League helping the Phantoms win the USHL title last season.

The Wild claimed Isogai’s CHL rights by selecting him in the first round and 60^th overall in the CHL Import Draft held on July 5, 2023. The Phantoms proceeded to allow Isogai to be released to the Wild.

Of course, the Wild franchise in the WHL was formerly the Winnipeg Ice, who fell in last year’s WHL Championship Series to the Seattle Thunderbirds. The Ice were sold to David and Lisa White of the Shoot the Puck Foundation, who owned the junior A Wenatchee Wild franchise that has played in the British Columbia Hockey League since 2015.

This column of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click right here.

Raiders good, not consistent enough for WHL leading Ice

Winnipeg prevails 4-3, deals big blow to P.A. playoff hopes

The Ice celebrate a goal from Graham Sward, centre.

PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – The Prince Albert Raiders came out hot, but the skill of the WHL leading Winnipeg Ice ultimately prevailed.

On Tuesday night at the Art Hauser Centre, the Raiders jumped out to a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes over the visiting Ice. At that point, Ice star 18-year-old centre Conor Geekie dished out three assists like he was Wayne Gretzky allowing the Winnipeg side to roar back and pull out a 4-3 win in the WHL regular season clash to the disappointment of most the 2,427 spectators in attendance.

“What we did in the first period we didn’t do in the second,” said Raiders head coach Jeff Truitt. “We turned pucks over.

Conor Geekie had three assists for the Ice on Tuesday.

“We tried to get cute through the neutral zone. They turned pucks over and got into their transition game. They’re an explosive team.

“We told them they were going to be better in the second period, and they were.”

When the dust settled on Tuesday, the Ice won their fifth straight improving to 53-9-1 to lead the Seattle Thunderbirds (50-9-1-2) by four points for first overall in the WHL. The Ice have five games remaining on their regular season schedule, while the Thunderbirds have six contests remaining on their regular season slate.

Winnipeg equaled its franchise record for regular season wins in a campaign, which was set last season after the Ice posted a 53-10-3-2 mark to top the WHL standings. Geekie was pleased his Ice, who are rated third in the latest CHL Top 10 Rankings, regrouped to pull out a fifth straight win on Tuesday.

Matthew Savoie had two goals for the Ice on Tuesday.

“I think it was a hard-fought game,” said Geekie. “You can never come into this building and expect to win.

“They came out hard, but I think we pieced together and kind of pulled together for the win.”

The Raiders fell to 26-34-3 and will now scoreboard watch on Wednesday to see where their slim chances at earning a post-season berth sit before they return to action on Friday, when they travel to Brandon to face the Wheat Kings (7 p.m. local time, Westoba Place).

The Raiders sit 11^th in the WHL’s Eastern Conference and are five standing points behind the Wheat Kings (26-29-8), the Swift Current Broncos (28-30-1-3) and the Calgary Hitmen (26-27-5-3) who are all tied for eighth and the final playoff berth in the conference with 60 points. The Wheat Kings have five regular season games remaining, the Broncos have six regular season contests left and the Hitmen have seven regular season matches left to play.

The Raiders celebrate a goal from Cole Peardon, centre.

All three of those squads are in action on Wednesday with the Wheat Kings traveling to Regina to take on Connor Bedard and the Pats, the Hitmen host the Lethbridge Hurricanes and the Broncos host the Saskatoon Blades. 

A win by either the Wheat Kings, Hitmen or Broncos will push the Raiders, who have five regular season games left to play, that much closer to mathematical elimination from playoff contention.

Raiders 16-year-old rookie centre Cole Peardon said he will be doing some scoreboard watching on Wednesday night, but when the Raiders return to action on Friday, he said his team will focus on the task at hand in attempting to get a win.

Sloan Stanick (#23) celebrates scoring the Raiders second goal.

“I think we just have to keep it simple that is the biggest thing,” said Peardon. “I think we got away from that, and that is what hurt us in the second.

“(If we) just keep it simple we should be good.”

As for Tuesday’s contest between the Raiders and Ice, the Raiders came out flying in the opening 20 minutes holding a 13-9 edge in shots on goal and jumping out to a 2-0 lead. Peardon opened the game’s scoring at the 6:24 mark of the second tipping home a shot by star 20-year-old offensive-defenceman Landon Kosior.

With 55.3 seconds remaining in the first, Raiders star 19-year-old left-winger Sloan Stanick potted his 24^th of the season to put the hosts up 2-0. Kosior picked up his second assist of the contest on that tally.

Landon Kosior had two assists for the Raiders on Tuesday.

“I was really happy about the way that we generated speed,” said Truitt about the opening 20 minutes. “There wasn’t a lot of turnovers through the neutral zone, because we just made simple plays.

“We didn’t over pass the puck. We didn’t over think things. We just got pucks in deep and started to go to work.

“I thought that really kept the flow for us going in the first period.”

Early in the second, the Raiders went on the power play, but it turned out to be the opportune time for the Ice to get back into the contest. While on the penalty kill, Geekie got the puck on the forecheck in the left corner of the Prince Albert zone.

The Raiders and Ice scrum it up late in the second period.

Geekie centred the puck to Ice 20-year-old star right-winger Connor McClennon, who was all alone in from of the Prince Albert net. McClennon put a short-handed goal past Raiders import netminder Tikhon Chaika to cut the Raiders lead to 2-1.

Just 48 seconds later with play back at even strength, Ice star centre Matthew Savoie got in alone on the Prince Albert goal and put home his 36^th goal of the season to even the score at 2-2. Savoie’s opportunity was created by another nice pass by Geekie.

Graham Sward scored with 2.3 seconds remaining in the second.

After a scrum occurred by the Raiders net with 1:23 remaining in the second, the Ice used their skill to take advantage of the four-versus-four situation. Geekie had the puck by the right boards deep in the Prince Albert zone.

He fed a pass to the front of the net to a pinching 19-year-old defenceman Graham Sward. Sward fired home a goal with 2.3 seconds remaining on the clock to put the Ice in front 3-2.

“I think we just started playing a little more simple,” said Geekie. “We really focused on our D-zone, and maybe caught them in transition a few times.

“I think we buried on our chances, and obviously, the scoreboard shows it. Obviously, I think they are all real important goals for us. I think Connor (McClennon’s goal) was kind of a momentum changer.

Raiders C Aiden Oiring, left, battles Ice C Matthew Savoie.

“Obviously, he has some pretty sick hands, so he knows how to put it in the back of the net.”

At the 3:15 mark of the third, Savoie potted his second of the contest where he broke his stick on a backdoor tap at the left side of the Prince Albert net to increase the Ice advantage to 4-2. Savoie converted a beauty pass from Ice star 20-year-old left-winger Owen Pederson.

Any thoughts of a Raiders comeback appeared to be dashed, when centre Hayden Pakkala was given a high sticking minor with 2:01 remaining in the third.

With 69 seconds remaining in the third, Raiders 17-year-old rookie centre Aiden Oiring sprung 20-year-old captain Evan Herman into the Winnipeg zone on a breakaway and Herman buried his 17^th of the season to cut the Ice lead to 4-3.

Owen Pederson set up the Ice’s winning goal.

On the ensuing faceoff, the Ice got control of the puck and pretty much kept possession of the puck for most of the remaining 69 seconds to hold on for the victory.

Chaika turned away 31 shots to take the setback in net for the Raiders. Daniel Hauser stopped 22 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Ice, who improved to 41-0 when leading after two periods.

Injury troubles caused the Ice to play with 17 skaters on Tuesday. The Ice injury list includes highly touted prospect centre Zach Benson (upper body, day-to-day), right-winger Carson Latimer (lower body, month-to-month) and defencemen Wyatt Wilson (lower body, day-to-day) and Carter Prosofsky (upper body, week-to-week). Associate player call up Landon Young, who has been with the Edmonton Junior Oilers under-18 AAA team, played his sixth game of the season for the Ice.

Evan Herman scored the Raiders third goal on Tuesday.

The Ice get back it on Saturday when they host the Raiders (7 p.m. local time, Wayne Fleming Arena). That will be the second of a stretch where the Raiders play three games in three nights. The Raiders and Ice will face each other on Sunday in Winnipeg (5 p.m. local time, Wayne Fleming Arena).

For now, Truitt said the focus is on getting ready for the Wheat Kings on Friday.

“There will be quite a bit of video work tomorrow, and we’ll go through what we did well in the first and what we didn’t do well in the second,” said Truitt. “We’ll talk about consistency in our game.

The Ice celebrate their win on Tuesday.

“We didn’t get it here tonight. We still have to sell 60 minutes here and play the way that we need to play to win to give ourselves the best chance.”

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Ice set to win now, Oil Kings paying price going all in

Connor McClennon zips up ice for the Winnipeg Ice.

The Winnipeg Ice are the team to beat in the WHL, while the Edmonton Oil Kings are showing the consequences of going all in.

As all the teams in the WHL approach their respective 10-game marks, it is starting to become clear which clubs will be the teams to beat. The Ice top the list of the teams to beat, and they happen to be listed first in the CHL Top 10 rankings.

Last season, the Ice finished first overall in the WHL regular season standings with a 53-10-3-2 record. They advanced to the WHL Eastern Conference Championship series falling in five games to the eventual WHL champion Oil Kings.

The Ice roster is stocked with returnees from last year like Matthew Savoie, Zach Benson, Connor McClennon, Conor Geekie, Ben Zloty, Carson Lambos and Daniel Hauser. They have solid youngsters like defenceman Jonas Woo, who turned 16-year-old in November and played every game in the Ice’s playoff run last season.

This column of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click the link right here.

Ice, Oil Kings - Recipe for classic WHL conference final

The Ice celebrate scoring a goal on March 23.

The seemingly inevitable clash of WHL titans in 2021-22 is going to happen, and it could deliver a classic post-season series.

Throughout the 2021-22 campaign, the Winnipeg Ice and Edmonton Oil Kings seemed destined to be on a collision course to meet in the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship series. The two squads pretty much sat either first or second in the overall league standing throughout the 2021-22 regular season.

When the regular season came to a close, the Ice finished first overall with a 53-10-3-2 record, while the Oil Kings were second overall with a 50-14-3-1 mark. The final CHL Top 10 rankings released on April 20 saw the Ice rated second overall, while the Oil Kings were listed third overall.

The Eastern Conference Championship between the Ice and Oil Kings was finalized on Friday night. That occurred when the Ice downed the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors 6-3 in Game 5 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series at the Wayne Fleming Arena.

The victory allowed the Ice to take the best-of-seven series with the Warriors 4-1.

Game 1 of the series between the Ice and Warriors is set for this coming Friday at 7 p.m. local time at the Wayne Fleming Arena. Game 2 follows one night later on Saturday, May 21 at 7 p.m. local time.

Dylan Guenther led the Oil Kings in regular season scoring.

The schedule for the rest of the series is still to be announced. The series will be played in a two-three-two format thanks to the lengthy travel distance between the two cities with the Ice holding home ice advantage.

As the 2021-22 campaign motored along, it was easy for opinion to swing back and forth on which club was the best team.

The Ice were an impressive 18-1-1-1 in their final 21 regular season contests leading into the post-season. The Oil Kings were 6-3-1 in their last 10 games heading into the playoffs.

At that point, it appeared the Ice would be the favourites, if the two sides met in the playoffs.

In the WHL Playoffs, the Ice took out the Prince Albert Raiders 4-1 in a best-of-seven first round series and proceeded to eliminate the Warriors in one Eastern Conference semifinal.

The Oil Kings swept the Lethbridge Hurricanes 4-0 in a first round series and got the brooms out again for an impressive 4-0 of the Red Deer Rebels, who had a 45-19-2-2 regular season record. Including play in the regular season, the Oil Kings have won their last 12 straight games.

The two sides met four times in the regular season with the Oil Kings claiming three of those encounters. With that said, it would be hard to forecast a winner off those results.

Out of those four encounters, three of them occurred before Dec. 31, 2021. The last clash came on Feb. 21, where the Oil Kings posted a 6-3 victory on home ice at Rogers Place. That contest was also a lengthy time ago.

Zachary Benson had a big season for the Ice.

At this point, determining a favourite in a series between the two sides might be a tossup.

Both clubs have exciting rosters to watch.

For the Ice, the strength in their roster might be in their youth. Centre Matthew Savoie, right-winger Conor Geekie and netminder Daniel Hauser are eligible to play three more full campaigns each in the WHL. Centre Zachary Benson could potentially suit up for four more seasons of eligibility in the WHL.

Jonas Woo, who is a 15-year-old defenceman, plays regular minutes on the Ice’s back end through all the club’s 10 games to date in the 2022 post-season. He joined the Ice on a full-time basis after his Winnipeg Bruins under-18 AAA team was eliminated from their provincial playoffs.

Savoie led the Ice in regular season scoring with 90 points coming off 35 goals and 55 assists to go with a plus-54 rating in the plus-minus department. Geekie had 70 points in the regular season coming off 24 goals and 46 assists to go with a plus-49 rating.

Hauser appeared in 40 regular season games for the post recording a 34-3-1 record, a 2.00 goals against average, a .914 save percentage and eight shutouts.

Benson skated in 58 regular season games with the Ice posting 63 points coming off 25 goals and 38 assists to go with a plus-40 rating. He leads the Ice in post-season scoring with 18 points coming off eight goals and 10 assists to go with a plus-12 rating.

Kaiden Guhle was a huge addition to the roster of the Oil Kings.

Woo as a 15-year-old regular on defence has one goal, one assist and a plus-five rating skating in all of the Ice’s 10 post-season games to date. He appeared in 15 regular season games with the Ice recording one goal, two assists and a plus-18 rating.

The Ice have a number of star and standout veterans too in Connor McClennon, Mikey Milne, Jakin Smallwood, Benjamin Zloty, Jack Finley, Carson Lambos and seemingly the rest of the roster has made big contributions at some point during the campaign.

Zloty, who could return next season as an overager, led the Ice in defenceman scoring in the regular season posting 64 points coming off eight goals and 56 assists skating in 62 regular season games. He also had a plus-38 rating in the plus-minus department.

Ice head coach James Patrick and has staff have done an outstanding job ensuring the Winnipeg side place consistent on a nightly basis.

The Oil Kings head into the series with the Ice with an older roster. Edmonton is carrying 10 players who are skating through their 19-year-old campaign along with the allowed three overagers each WHL club can have.

The Oil Kings roster has eight players who have been a selection in the NHL Entry Draft. Edmonton’s notable acquisitions going all-in on the trade front for this season include centre and Florida Panthers draft selection Justin Sourdif, defenceman and Montreal Canadiens draft selection Kaiden Guhle and rearguard and Nashville Predators draft selection Luke Prokop.

Benjamin Zloty had 64 points in 62 games for the Ice.

Management for the Edmonton side made the aggressive moves with the team having lost two potential long post-season runs in 2020 and 2021 due to the WHL Playoffs and the CHL Championship Tournament – the Memorial Cup – being cancelled in each of those years due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

Right-winger Dylan Guenther, who can potentially return for two more WHL campaigns, led the Oil Kings in regular season scoring with 91 points coming off 45 goals and 46 assists to go with a plus-51 rating. Guenther tops the Oil Kings in post-season scoring with 12 points coming off nine goals and three assists to go with a plus-eight rating.

Overage import defenceman Simon Kubicek led all Oil Kings blue-liners in regular season scoring with 41 points coming off 14 goals and 27 assists to go with a plus-29 rating.

Star 19-year-old netminder Sebastian Cossa, had an outstanding regular season posting a 33-9-3 record, a 2.28 goals against average, a .913 save percentage and six shutouts in 46 appearances.

 The Oil Kings have plenty of other stars and standouts like captain Jake Neighbours, Josh Williams, Carter Souch, Jalen Luypen and Jakub Demek. Neighbours only appeared in 30 regular season games, but he posted 45 points coming off 17 goals and 28 assists to go with a plus-24 rating.

Head coach Brad Lauer guided the Oil Kings to the Eastern Conference final in 2019 when they fell to the eventual WHL champion Prince Albert Raiders. Lauer and his staff will do their best to ensure their club gets past the conference championship round this season.

The Oil Kings celebrate a goal on Jan. 1.

The Ice and Oil Kings potentially have a series that would be great to showcase the WHL on a national television sports network.

For ticket buyers in Winnipeg and Edmonton, they will be in for treat with what they see in the rink.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Ice return to top of WHL

Winnipeg wins ninth straight, ready for post-season grind

The Ice celebrate a goal from Jack Finley (#26).

The Winnipeg Ice jumped back on top of the WHL mountain and showed they are ready for the post-season grind.

On Wednesday night before 2,808 spectators at the SaskTel Centre, the Ice won their ninth straight contest downing a game Saskatoon Blades side 4-2 in a WHL regular season clash. The Ice jumped back to the top of the overall WHL standings with a 45-9-3-2 mark having picked up standings points in 13 straight contests posting 11 wins, one overtime loss and one shootout setback over that run of games.

Winnipeg sits two points up on the 45-12-2-1 Edmonton Oil Kings for top spot overall in the WHL with one game in hand.

Ice centre Zachary Benson (#9) battles to the puck from his net.

During their nine-game winning streak, the Ice are showing they have the depth and they are capable of grinding out wins in tight checking contests. They are doing their best to show they are ready to make a long run through the WHL playoffs.

The most impressive part of the Ice victory on Wednesday was the fact they picked up a win without their two best players in the lineup.

The Ice were without star centres Matthew Savoie and Conor Geekie, because they were in Kitchener, Ont., taking part in the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game. Savoie and Geekie are both in their 17-year-old seasons, and both are pegged to be selected early in the next NHL Entry Draft.

Jack Finley scored the first goal for the Ice on Wednesday.

Savoie leads the Ice in scoring with 78 points coming on 28 goals and 50 assists in 56 games. He is also a plus-39 in the plus-minus department.

Geekie sits fourth in team scoring recording 59 points coming on 19 goals and 40 assists in 54 games, while posting a plus-33 rating.

Besides beating the Blades, the Ice slipped past the Prince Albert Raiders 3-2 in overtime at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert without Savoie and Geekie.

In Wednesday’s clash with the Blades, the Ice got out to a hot start.

They had the game’s first big scoring chance at the 7:26 mark of the opening frame. Ice star left-winger Mikey Milne got in alone in front of the Saskatoon goal, but he was robbed on a backhand shot thanks to a glove save by Blades overage star netminder Nolan Maier.

Jakin Smallwood had the second goal for the Ice on Wednesday.

Just before the midway point of the first, the Ice broke through on the scoreboard as power forward Jack Finley blasted home his 21^st of the season off a midrange shot to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.

The Ice kept the pressure coming. A few minutes after their opening goal, Ice centre Evan Friesen had a dangerous scoring chance off a rebound, but he was turned away on a kick save by Maier.

With 2:10 remaining in the first, Ice right-winger Jakin Smallwood set up in the left slot and one-timed home a setup pass from linemate Zachary Benson to increase the Ice’s advantage to 2-0.

In the finals seconds of the opening frame, the Blades had a quality scoring chance from import right-winger Egor Sidorov. Working on the power play, Sidorov drove a shot from the left boards on goal, but he was denied by the glove hand of sophomore netminder Daniel Hauser.

Tristen Robins had the Blades first goal on Wednesday.

The Ice held a 13-4 after 20 minutes and could have had a bigger lead had it not been for the play of Maier.

In the second, the Ice showed they could withstand a pushback from a quality foe, as the Blades came out with some fire. With 7:14 remaining in the second, Blades star overage centre Tristen Robins netted his 31^st goal of the season to cut the Ice lead to 2-1.

Inside the final 76 seconds of the second, the Blades had a couple of big chances to even the score while working on the power play. Blades standout left-winger Brandon Lisowsky was denied on a drive from the left slot.

Chase Wheatcroft scored the third goal for the Ice on Wednesday.

In the dying seconds of the frame, Blades sophomore left-winger Vaughn Watterodt had a point blank chance, but he was stopped by Hauser.

At the 2:06 mark of the third, the Ice extended their lead to 3-1 when 19-year-old left-winger Chase Wheatcroft deflected home a point shot from defenceman Omen Harmacy.

Down two goals, the Blades didn’t go away. Just under six minutes after the Ice went up 3-1, the Blades cut the lead to 3-2 when rookie right-winger Tyler Parr roofed home a shot from the front of the Winnipeg goal after receiving a sweet setup pass from Watterodt.

Tyler Parr scored the Blades second goal on Wednesday.

From that point, the Ice were able to tighten up their checking to prevent the Blades from getting the equalizer.

With 26 seconds remaining in the third, Ice overage defenceman Nolan Orzeck sealed the win shooting home a long-distance empty-net goal from his own blue-line to round out the 4-2 final score in Winnipeg’s favour.

Hauser stopped 16 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Ice. Nolan Maier turned away 25-of-28 shots to take the setback in net for the Blades (33-22-3-1).

In the win over the Blades, 10 different players picked up at least one point for the Ice. 

Veteran offensive-defenceman Carson Lambos collected two assists and was the only Ice player to have a multi-point night.

Carson Lambos recorded two assists for the Ice on Wednesday.

Wednesday’s clash was also the last regular season encounter between the Ice and Blades, and the Ice claimed six out of those eight head-to-head contests.

Saskatoon had a solid effort against the Ice. The Blades will continue their quest to lock up a playoff spot when return to action on Friday when they host the Regina Pats (7 p.m., SaskTel Centre).

“The Bridge City Bunch” can lock up a playoff berth by collecting four more standings points.

The Ice get back at it on Saturday when they host the Prince Albert Raiders (7 p.m. local time, Wayne Fleming Arena).

The Ice celebrate their win on Wednesday.

Winnipeg is ready to win right now. Considering a sizable group of their best players are in the 17-year-old age group, the Ice might be at the start of a run where they will be a force in the WHL for some time to come.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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