Oilers fans should soak in Stanley Cup moment win or lose

Ice District parties bring back 2006 Whyte Avenue memories

An Oilers fan talks to a reporter on Whyte Avenue in 2006.

No matter what happens in the Stanley Cup final, Edmonton Oilers fans should soak in the moment win or lose.

You never know when a time like this will come again. Of course for the Oilers, this is their first time in the Stanley Cup final since 2006, when the fell 3-1 in a series deciding Game 7 to the Carolina Hurricanes.

After two games of this year’s Stanley Cup final, it is likely the enthusiasm from the Oilers faithful has lost some steam. The Oilers traveled to Sunrise, Florida, for the first two contests of the NHL championship series dropping a 3-0 decision on Saturday in Game 1 and a 4-1 decision in Game 2 on Monday to the Florida Panthers.

The series now shifts to Edmonton for Games 3 and 4 to be held on Thursday and Saturday respectively at Rogers Place at 6 p.m. local time on both nights. With the stellar play of Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and the frustration the Oilers are having breaking through on the scoreboard, there is a potential those two upcoming contests could be the last games of the series.

Oilers fans hang out at a pub on Whyte Avenue in 2006.

For me personally, I have for a long time been one of those that has elected to not concern myself with the makeup of the Oilers roster or getting into debates on who should be the second line centre, the third line right-winger, on the third defensive pair or other things like that. If the Oilers win or lose, I don’t treat it like it is life or death, and I’ve long ago realized the sun comes up tomorrow no matter the result of the game.

The way I treat wins and losses from the Oilers might have come from the aftermath of the 2006 run. After falling to the Hurricanes in Game 7 of that year’s Stanley Cup final, the “Decade of Darkness” started for the Oilers where they missed the post-season for 10 straight years.

With all that said, I do come away very happy when the Oilers win.

Throughout the Oilers post-season run in 2024, the most heartwarming sights for me have been seeing the video of the Ice District in downtown Edmonton on TV broadcasts. That area has also been dubbed the “Moss Pit,” named after beloved long time Oilers dressing room attendant Joey Moss who passed away at age 57 in 2020.

Oilers fans cruise Whyte Avenue in 2006.

When I see video from the Ice District, I mostly see lots of young adults out having the time of their lives. The parties look like pure fun.

The images from those videos take me back to reliving the fun that happened on Whyte Avenue during the Oilers run to falling to the Hurricanes in Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup final. Back in 2006, I was at the right young adult age to be able to go out and enjoy the fun on Whyte Avenue, which was also known as “The Blue Mile.”

Living in Medicine Hat at the time, I made it to Edmonton at least on three occasions to take part in the festivities on Whyte Avenue, which was a strip filled at the time with various bars and nightclubs. 

The final trip was for the Game 7 loss, where I went to the watch party at the Oilers long time former home in the Northland Coliseum before venturing out to Whyte Avenue.

A trio of Oilers fans share a laugh on Whyte Avenue in 2006.

Back in those days, Rogers Place hadn’t been built yet, and there was not gathering epicenter by the Northlands Coliseum like the Ice District that exists now.

While the Oilers ultimately lost that night in Game 7 in 2006, the party on Whyte Avenue was still great as the people that went out wanted to hold one last celebration for the run that was. Back in 2006, it was a surprise to have the Oilers in the Stanley Cup final, because they hadn’t been to a conference final since 1992 or to the Stanley Cup final since last winning it in 1990.

I remember that party provided a chance to put a bow on how good that run was. You did get to enjoy some adult fun.

There were also some rowdy episodes that occurred on Whyte Avenue during the 2006 run, but those episodes didn’t occur on my visits there. With that noted, the Edmonton Police Service did have bigger presence along Whyte Avenue during the final game nights of the Stanley Cup final and there were some pretty rough arrests where the police were trying to make a show of force.

The Edmonton Journal from June 20, 2006.

On the final night, I saw the increased police presence, and I did witness two tough arrests. With that said, I didn’t think the police presence took away from the fun that was had on that night.

Those that went out still got to live out one great final party chapter that provided a final and lasting memory of that run.

When I see the video of the festivities out at the Ice District with the current generation of young adults, it makes me wish I was that young again. They might not know it yet, but they are making memories that they will always carry with them.

Now, it would be great to see rally back to win the Stanley Cup. Still for Oilers fans, they should try their best to enjoy the moment right now, because you never when they will get back to the Stanley Cup final again. Missing out would definitely be no fun.

Berries game night experience a blast, other notes

Ryan Olchoway sets to unload a pitch for the Berries.

The Saskatoon Berries have turned Cairns Field into the place to be during the spring and summer in “The Bridge City.”

The Berries are playing through their debut season in the Western Canadian Baseball League, and the game day experience might be one of the best you will find in minor league baseball. They have numerous promotions going on throughout the game, brought in numerous new concession options that feature items with Saskatoon Berries in them, sell a locally made beer with the team name on it that has a Saskatoon Berry taste to it and added a cool jumbo video board in the outfield next to the scoreboard.

The club’s mascot in Barry The Bear helps create a positive vibe that you can feel throughout the park. The Berries have produced the perfect spot where you can go out and enjoy quality high level baseball on a hot summer day or night.

They also have a small store at Cairns Field, where you can pick up their wonderful merchandise. They have the best merchandise you will see from any sports team anywhere.

Of course with the Berries being a first year team, the wins have been a little hard to come by. After 13 games, the Berries have posted a 5-8 record and sit fifth in the WCBL’s East Division. At the moment, they have won their last two straight.

A look at Cairns Field during a Berries home game.

They will face a big challenge in their next two games taking on the Medicine Hat Mavericks, who top the East Division with an 8-4 mark. The Mavericks have been one of the WCBL’s top five teams for most of the past 22 years. The two sides go at it on Wednesday and Thursday at Cairns Field with a 7 p.m. start time on both nights.

The management of the Saskatoon Entertainment Group, which owns the Berries as well as the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades and the NLL’s Saskatchewan Rush, made the astute move of hiring Joe Carnahan to be the Berries head coach. Carnahan had a storied playing and coaching career with the WCBL’s Swift Current 57s.

He was a played on three league championship teams with the 57s and guided them to three more league titles as head coach. Carnahan is putting the pieces in place that should allow the Berries to reach lofty heights on the field one day.

Still, the first year Berries team in the current day battles really hard. With how outstanding the game experience is at Cairns Field, Berries home games provide a great time at the park watching baseball.

• The Saskatoon Entertainment Group has a big store on the north end of Saskatoon, where people can buy Saskatoon Blades, Saskatchewan Rush and Saskatoon Berries merchandise. The store, which is called “The Fez,” is located at 105-2803 Faithful, Avenue. The store is open from Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For those looking to make purchases online, the link to get to making online purchases is right here.
• On Thursday, the Saskatoon Blades traded 20-year-old left-winger Vaughn Watterodt to the Victoria Royals in exchange for 19-year-old centre Ben Riche. Watterodt, who was a Blades fan favourite, recorded eight goals, 14 assists and a plus-eight rating in the plus-minus department in 59 regular season games with the Blades in the 2023-24 campaign. Riche played 67 regular season games split between the Moose Jaw Warriors and Royals this past season recording 15 goals and 20 assists for 35 points.
• On Saturday, the Saskatchewan Roughriders opened their regular season downing the Elks in Edmonton 29-21. If Roughriders veteran starting quarterback Trevor Harris can stay healthy, they might be able to be a surprise team in the CFL this year after missing the post-season the past two years. Early on, it feels like the Roughriders are better throughout their playing roster. Rob Vanstone, who is the team’s senior journalist and historian, puts out tonnes of great stories on the team. Those stories can been found on the Roughriders website www.riderville.com.
• On Sunday, I had new content appear on the Howe Happenings blog that supports the Gordie Howe Sports Complex. I put together a piece on Muriel Gieni, who has set Canadian masters record in track and field on at least 60 occasions. That story goes into Gieni’s journey through the sport and can be found by clicking right here. I also put together a photo roundup that was highlighted by the Saskatoon Berries first ever WCBL home game and showed the busy happenings of baseball, football, softball and track and field. 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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If you knew Skinner in the WHL, it is easy to cheer for him

Stuart Skinner raises the Ed Chynoweth Cup in 2018.

“Skin-Ner.”

Inevitably, that would be something Stuart Skinner heard every time played goal in an opposing WHL rink. In suiting up for three-and-a-half seasons with the Lethbridge Hurricanes and a half campaign with the Swift Current Broncos from 2014 to 2018, someone in an opposing rink would inevitably get up and bellow out “Skin-Ner” is his or her best imitation of Simpsons character superintendent Gary Chalmers.

During the 2018 WHL Playoffs as Skinner was backstopping the Broncos to a WHL championship win, he was asked about that heckle. The star netminder, who was 19-years-old at the time, took that noise with some amusement.

“I’ve been around it for four years,” said Skinner at that time. “I hear it every place I go.

“I like it. I think it gives more energy and kind of gets me pumped up.”

These days Skinner, who stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 230 pounds, is a 25-year-old professional goaltender who has played last season and the current campaign full time in the NHL for his hometown Edmonton Oilers. He has backstopped the Oilers to their first appearance in the Stanley final since 2006.

The Oilers currently trail the best-of-seven Stanley Cup final series 1-0 to the Florida Panthers. Game 2 is set for Monday in Sunrise, Florida (6 p.m. Saskatchewan time, Sportsnet West).

Back in his WHL days, Skinner was good natured and had a good youthful energy to him. It felt like nothing ever got to him, and he had a lot of fun handling the big moments. In 207 career regular season contests played between the Hurricanes and Broncos, Skinner posted a 104-72-15 record, a 3.22 goals against average, a .908 save percentage and 12 shutouts.

It seemed like he was made for the big moments. He was also made for fun moments too like on March 18, 2016, when he scored an empty-net goal for the Hurricanes in a 9-3 home ice victory over their biggest rivals the Medicine Hat Tigers.

Stuart Skinner dives on a puck for the Hurricanes in 2017.

The packed crowd of 5,320 spectators at the Enmax Centre broke into a thunderous ovation as Skinner made sure to do the goal scorer’s flyby of his team’s bench. At that point in time, not too many people saw someone do a goal scorer’s flyby dressing in full goalie gear.

Skinner was a key reason the Hurricanes went on a long playoff run in 2017 and the Broncos captured the Ed Chynoweth Cup as WHL champions in 2018.

In the 2017 WHL Playoffs, Skinner backstopped the Hurricanes to the WHL Eastern Conference Championship Series for the first time in nine years. They fell in the conference title series in six games to the Regina Pats.

During the 20 contests the Hurricanes played in the post-season, Skinner posted a 10-10 record, a 3.09 goals against average and a .916 save percentage.

On January 9, 2018, Skinner was dealt to the Broncos in a blockbuster deal as Swift Current was loading up for a potential long run through the post-season. 

With Skinner holding the fort in goal, the Broncos won their first WHL championship since 1993. In 26 games in the WHL Playoffs, Skinner posted a 16-10 record, a 2.20 goals against average, a .932 save percentage and six shutouts.

Skinner’s sixth shutout was a 31-save beauty as the Broncos claimed the WHL Championship Series win a 3-0 win over the Everett Silvertops in Game 6 before a sellout crowd of 2,890 spectators at the then Innovations Credit Union i-Plex in Swift Current.

At the Memorial Cup tournament that was hosted in 2018 in Regina, the Broncos were playing on fumes at the event that crowns a CHL champion. They were trying, but it was noticeable the battles they went through in the WHL post-season took their toll.

Stuart Skinner (#74) got the Hurricanes to a conference final in 2017.

While the Broncos lost all three of their games at that event, Skinner posted a .902 save percentage. In a round robin clash against the OHL champion Hamilton Bulldogs, Skinner made 54 saves trying to steal a game the Broncos would ultimate lose 2-1.

In the professional ranks, Skinner would face a whole different challenge. 

He was selected by the Oilers in the third round and 78^th overall by the Oilers in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. The Oilers signed him to three-year NHL entry-level contract on May 14, 2018.

Skinner spent his first two seasons as a professional playing in the Oilers minor league system. He made his first NHL start in the 2020-21 campaign, and played 13 games for the Oilers in the 2021-22 campaign before becoming a full time member of the team in 2022-23.

He has put up some good numbers so far in his NHL career. In 123 career regular season games with the Oilers, Skinner has posted a 72-36-10 record, a 2.69 goals against average, a .909 save percentage and four shutouts.

If you know someone who plays in the NHL for a Canadian team, it is advised to not look at the Platform-X social media line. That goes double if the person you know is a goalie for his hometown Canadian team.

While Skinner was a finalist last year for the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s rookie of the year, it seems like some of the Oilers supporters in the social media world expect Skinner to be Patrick Roy right now. When struggles have come Skinner’s way, some Oilers fans will basically post their team would be better off with anyone else in goal.

Stuart Skinner helped bring a WHL title to Swift Current in 2018.

In the WHL, those who play for their hometown teams are viewed that much bigger of being a hero when they succeed in good times and take seemingly twice the harder criticism in the bad times. Those extremes are seen in a larger way at the NHL level.

The Oilers dropped Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final 3-0 on Saturday in Florida despite holding a 32-18 edge in shots on goal. 

Skinner stopped 15-of-17 shots sent his way. He had no chance on the two goals the Panthers scored on him, and the Florida side sealed the win with an empty-net tally.

Still, you are going to hear voices about how Panthers star netminder Sergei Bobrovsky is going to put Skinner in his back pocket in this series. Bobrovsky was sensational making 32 saves for the shutout in Game 1, where the Oilers likely would have had seven or eight goals on any other netminder.

For those that knew Skinner during his WHL days, the soft spot in the heart for him is always there. If the Oilers ultimately don’t win this series, you hope the there won’t be an effort by some fans in Edmonton to run him out of town.

If that materializes, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Vegas Golden Knights and their brilliant general manager Kelly McCrimmon swoop in to pick him up.

Right now, it would be preferable if the storybook situation plays out here. 

Stuart Skinner will try to add a Stanley Cup win to his resume.

That would see the Oilers become the first Canadian based team to win the Stanley Cup since the 1993 victory by Roy and the Montreal Canadiens, and Skinner materializes as the ultimate hometown hero in the Alberta capital city along the way.

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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Blades knock off hot Warriors

Winning streak ends at six for short-handed Moose Jaw side

Evan Fiala (#47) celebrates his winning goal with his Blades teammates.

    Evan Fiala’s off-speed knuckleball shot sent the red hot Moose Jaw Warriors for a loop.

    On Wednesday night at the SaskTel Centre, the Saskatoon Blades captain directed an odd-ball shot that found its way past Warriors netminder Brody Willms with 72 seconds to play in the third period. Fiala’s goal, which was his first of the season, broke a 4-4 tie and delivered the Blades to a 5-4 victory.

    Saskatoon’s victory ended a six-game winning streak for the Warriors, who fell to 16-5 but still lead the WHL’s overall standings. Earlier in the day, the Warriors were rated second in the newly released CHL Top 10 rankings.

    Fiala already expects the Warriors to be looking forward to getting some payback on Saturday when the two clubs meet in Moose Jaw, but the overage defenceman was pleased with Wednesday’s outcome.

Evan Fiala’s goal helped the Blades earn their third home win this season.

    “It feels really good,” said Fiala, whose Blades improved to 8-10-1. “We know that they are missing some guys and Saturday is not going to be easy.

    “It definitely puts a feather in our cap.”

    The Warriors entered Wednesday’s clash with a lengthy injury list. Moose Jaw was without defencemen Josh Brook, Jett Woo, Dmitri Zaitsev and Matthew Benson due to upper body injuries. Brook and Woo are listed as out week-to-week, Zaitsev is day-to-day and Benson’s timetable to return is still to be determined.

    For the fourth straight game, the Warriors were without captain Brett Howden with an undisclosed injury. Howden was injured playing for the WHL team that took part in Game 1 of the CIBC Canada-Russia Series on Nov. 6 in Moose Jaw and came away with a 7-0 win.

Warriors goalie Brody Willms was unable to prevent this Blades goal.

    The Warriors also scratched associate player in defenceman Drae Gardiner, who was called up from the Calgary Buffaloes midget AAA program, and left-wingers Tyler Smithies and Brecon Wood.

    Besides the injuries, Moose Jaw entered Wednesday’s game having played the previous night in Swift Current and downing the host Broncos 7-4.

    Centre Logan Christensen was the Blades only scratch due to injury, and he is still expected to be out for about two-to-four weeks. Defenceman Seth Bafaro sat out the second game of a four-game league imposed suspension for taking a checking from behind major penalty and a game misconduct in a 6-4 home loss last Friday against the Swift Current Broncos.

Winger Caleb Fantillo celebrates his first period goal for the Blades.

    Forwards Tyler Lees and Dryden Michaud were Saskatoon’s other two scratches.

    Despite missing a number of key players, the Warriors held leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in the first period before Blades right-winger Caleb Fantillo deflected home a shot from linemate Cameron Hebig with 2:07 to play in the opening frame to force a 2-2 tie.

    The Blades jumped ahead 4-2 in the second, but the Warriors cut the gap to 4-3 heading into the second intermission.

    At the 8:39 mark of the third, Warriors 15-year-old defenceman Daemon Hunt converted a passing play from star forwards Noah Gregor and Jayden Halbgewachs to pot his first career WHL goal to force a 4-4 tie.

Justin Almeida (#8) breaks into the offensive zone for the Warriors.

    The Warriors selected Hunt in the first round and 15^th overall in the WHL Bantam Draft held last May and called him up from the Brandon Wheat Kings midget AAA team.

Hunt’s goal set the stage for Fiala’s dramatic winner late in the third.

    “I think we were a little fortunate that they played last night and looked a little sluggish,” said Blades head coach Dean Brockman. “We’ll definitely take the two points and run with it.

    “I think we took far too many chances still in the third. When you are doing that, you are playing with fire, especially with the guys they have up front.”

Alec Zawatsky scored his first WHL goal on Wednesday.

    Brockman was thankful Fiala scoring the winning goal for the hosts after Moose Jaw erased Saskatoon’s 4-2 edge.

    “It was a bit of a relief,” said Brockman. “The two-goal lead is the worst lead in hockey.

    “When you give that up, most of the time you lose those games. We found a way to get it done.”

    Alec Zawatsky, Braylon Shmyr and Gage Ramsay all had singles for Saskatoon. Zawatsky’s tally was his first career WHL goal. He had been with the Notre Dame Hounds in the junior A ranks of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League earlier this season before joining the Blades.

    Gregor, Justin Almeida and Tanner Jeannot all had singles for the Warriors.

    Ryan Kubic turned away 34 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Blades. Willms stopped 46 shots to take the setback in net for the Warriors.

    Seconds after Fiala scored, the Warriors thought they scored the equalizer, when a scrum of players bumped into Kubic and the puck did go into the Saskatoon net. The goal was disallowed as the officials had blown the play dead after losing sight of the puck.

The Blades begin celebrating their win over the Warriors.

    Wednesday’s game marked only the third time the Blades have won at home this season in nine tries. While the crowd was sparse at 2,745, Fiala was happy his side could deliver a victory for the team’s supporters.

    “It is huge, and it is not only for us,” said Fiala. “It is for our fans too that come out every night.

    “We really want to give them a good game.”

    The Blades return to action on Friday, when they host the Brandon Wheat Kings (12-6-1) at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre. The Warriors return to Moose Jaw to host the Calgary Hitmen (6-12-3) on Friday.

Hilltops in the house with Canadian Bowl

The Hilltops are honoured before Wednesday’s Blades game.

    The Saskatoon Hilltops were on hand at the SaskTel Centre on Wednesday night, and they brought the Canadian Bowl with them.

    The Hilltops were honoured for winning their fourth straight Canadian Junior Football League championship on Saturday in Windsor, Ont., when they bombed the host AKO Fratmen 56-11. Captains Jack Sloboda, James Vause, Tom Schnitzler, Cameron Schnitzler and quarterback Jordan Walls marched to centre ice to show off the Canadian Bowl.

    The Hilltops, who finished the 2017 campaign with an 11-1 overall, arrived on an invite from the Blades. A large contingent from the team watched Wednesday game in the section of seats behind the net of the west side of the SaskTel Centre.

    The victory over the AKO Fratmen marked the 20^th time the Hilltops have won the CJFL title.

Vetter receives WHL Milestone Award

Referee Reagan Vetter was give the WHL Milestone Award.

    Saskatoon product and veteran WHL official Reagan Vetter was honoured during a pre-game ceremony before Wednesday’s game for his years of service to the league.

    The 40-year-old, who has been a school teacher for the last 11 years, was presented with the WHL Milestone Award by Kevin Muench, who is the WHL’s senior director of officiating.
    The WHL Milestone Award is given to WHL players, coaches, trainers, officials and WHL championship teams for their outstanding achievements.
    Vetter has worked 20 seasons in the WHL, which includes six campaigns as a linesman and 14 as a referee.

    He has skated in over 650 regular season games, 11 WHL conference championships and seven WHL Championship series. Vetter was part of the officiating crew that worked the 2013 Memorial Cup tournament that was held in Saskatoon.

    Vetter makes his home in Saskatoon with his wife, Kristine, and their daughters, Neven and Quinn.

Former Tigers captain Valk makes NHL debut

Curtis Valk in action for the Tigers in the 2013-14 season.

    Curtis Valk found his way to “the Show.”

    On Tuesday, the 24-year-old former captain of the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers made his NHL regular season debut with the Florida Panthers. He saw three minutes and 25 seconds of ice time as the host Panthers downed the Dallas Stars 4-3 after a tiebreaking shootout before 10,928 spectators at the BB&T Centre in Sunrise, Florida.

    The skilled centre played in 270 career regular season games for the Tigers from 2009 to 2014 piling up 125 goals and 130 assists. The Medicine Hat product picked up another 22 goals and 19 assists in 49 career WHL playoff games.

    All through his hockey career, Valk heard naysayers comment that he was too small to play hockey at an elite level and eventually make it to the NHL. He stands 5-foot-9 and weighs 170 pounds and has proved the naysayers wrong.

    After graduating from the Tigers, Valk played his first three professional hockey seasons in the farm system of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. He signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Panthers before the start of this season.

    Before skating in his NHL debut, Valk appeared in 16 regular season games with the Springfield Thunderbirds, who are the Panthers’ American Hockey League affiliate club. He collected six goals and nine assists in those 16 games with the Thunderbirds.

    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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    If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

Expect Blades’ Fiala to get real look from Red Wings

Evan Fiala zips down the ice for the Blades.

    The Saskatoon Blades man with the giant smile might be sitting on a giant opportunity.

    On Friday, the team announced rugged defensive defenceman and local area product Evan Fiala received an invite to the development camp of the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings. The camp start this coming Friday and runs through to July 11 in Traverse City, Michigan.

    There are a number of cases where an NHL development camp invite means a player is showing up to be a camp body. When you show up at a Red Wings camp, that isn’t the case.

    The Red Wings are one NHL team that has a reputation for finding players all over the map. Those that show up at a Detroit camp will receive an honest evaluation and have an actual shot to make that organization.

    Standing 6-foot-4 and weighing 205 pounds, Fiala has the physical gifts most scouts look for in a defensive defenceman. After spending about two-and-a-half seasons with the Spokane Chiefs, Fiala came to the Blades last season in a trade around the middle of last December.

    Playing just over half a season with the Blades, he logged a lot of minutes, and he really helped “the Bridge City Bunch” play a lot more sound in their own zone. Between the Chiefs and the Blades, Fiala appeared in 70 regular season games posting four goals, 15 assists, 139 penalty minutes and a plus-11 rating in the plus-minus department.

    Fiala rarely gets flustered on the ice. Actually, he seems to always carry a huge smile no matter what he is doing, which includes battling in the corner or in front of the net. He even wears his big grin in fights.

Evan Fiala controls the puck at the point for the Blades.

    The 20-year-old is one of those old school character players that always feels it is great day to be at the rink. It is fun attitude the mirrors former enforcers like the late Dave Semenko of the Edmonton Oilers, who recently passed away of pancreatic cancer, Grant McNeill of the Prince Albert Raiders or Blades tough guy Darcy Hordichuk.

    Fiala is one of those players that is front and centre in doing community appearances for the Blades. He has made a few of those in the off-season along with teammate Gage Ramsay, who is another local product.

    The development camp invite won’t be a new experience for Fiala. He attended the development camp for the NHL’s Florida Panthers in 2015, so that experience should help a little going into the Red Wings development camp.

    If Fiala can earn a rookie camp invite or a main training camp invite, that would be another huge bonus.

    No matter what happens on the NHL front, the likelihood if fairly high Fiala will be one of the Blades three overage players next season as a key part of the club’s blue-line. At the moment, the Blades don’t have any other defencemen who are entering their 20-year-old season, which makes Fiala’s presence that much more valuable.

    Fiala is a strong character player who has worked hard at his game, so it is always good when that work and positive outlook results in any NHL opportunities.

Canada put up fight in final in football women’s worlds

Canada earned silver on home soil in Langley on June 30 #WWC17ca https://t.co/yHoj6zotcO pic.twitter.com/FpBQAiNyzv

— Football Canada (@FootballCanada) July 1, 2017

    Canada’s National women’s football team didn’t get the upset win they were seeking, but they gained a measure of respect.

    On Friday in Langley, B.C., the Canada took on the powerhouse United States in the gold medal game of the International Federation of American Football Women’s World Championship tournament. Canada put up a big fight, before the United States pulled away 41-16 victory.

    The Canadian side led 3-0 for a short time when Carly Dyck, who plays for the Saskatoon Valkyries, booted a 38-yard field goal in the game’s first quarter. The United States stormed back to score the next 21 straight points to push ahead 21-3.

    Right before halftime, Canadian quarterback Aimee Kowalski hit sister Alex Kowalski with a 39-yard bomb pass for a touchdown to pull Canada to within 21-9. Both are members of the WWCFL champion Regina Riot.

    Early in the third quarter, the United States push its lead out to 27-9. Canada answered back with a defensive score, when U.S. quarterback Lisa Horton fumbled the ball, and Canadian defensive back Becky Heninger, who plays for the Calgary Rage, recovered it and ran 76 yards for a major to cut the United States lead to 27-16.

    The United States rounded out the scoring with two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to pull away for good.

    Canada opened the tournament with a 31-6 victory over Australia on June 24. They blanked Great Britain 35-0 last Tuesday to advance to the gold medal game.

    A total of seven members from the Valkyries were members of the Canadian team including Dyck, Julene Friesen, Samantha Matheson, Alyssa Funk, Jaime Lammerding, Shaylyn de Jong and Beth Thomson. A total of nine members from the Riot were part of the Canadian side including the two Kowalski sisters, Carman Agar, Ashley Viklund, Claire Dore, Katie Hungle, Emilie Belanger, Artemis Kouropoulou and Adrienne Zuck.

    The United States claimed the other two world tournament held in 2013 in Finland and 2010 in Sweden.

    Mexico downed Great Britain in Friday’s bronze medal game 19-8.

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