What if both Huskies hockey teams go all the way?

Home Ice Campaign would get a big push to the finish

The Huskies men’s team celebrates a win earlier this season.

    So what happens if both University of Saskatchewan Huskies hockey teams go all the way?

    You would have to think that would be a golden situation for the Home Ice Campaign, which is trying to raise funds to build a new twin pad rink on campus called Merlis Belsher Place. Actually, you would have to think that should give the finishing push to secure the final $5-million in funds for that project.

    The Huskies hockey program has long links to the Saskatoon community. The men’s team dates back to 1910, and the women’s team has been around in some form since 1912.

    If both Huskies teams won nationals, the emotional rallying point from alums and supporters from the community would be great.

    The respective journeys to get to that point would really pull some heartstrings. Both squads are pretty good at engaging the community either through coaching at camps or making various community event appearances, so most people in Saskatoon and the surrounding area would be pretty pumped for both teams, if they won it all.

The Huskies women’s team celebrates a playoff series sweep over U of R.

    With that said, the odds of one school winning both U Sports national titles in hockey in the same year are long. The last time one school took both U Sports hockey titles came back in 2006, when the University of Alberta Golden Bears claimed the University Cup for men’s supremacy and the U of Alberta Pandas captured U Sports women’s title.

    Actually, U of A is the only program to claim the men’s and women’s hockey titles in a single season also pulling off that feat one other time in 2000.

    The Huskies only national championship in hockey came back in 1983, when the men’s team won it all under head coach Dave King and captain Willie Desjardins. Considering how good both Huskies teams have been over the years, the fact only one national title has been claimed shows how hard it is to win it all.

    Both Huskies teams have the ability to go all the way. With how competitive their respective leagues are, their post-season runs could end in their respective Canada West semifinal series this weekend. Each Huskies team will earn a berth to their respective national championship tournaments if they pull out series wins this weekend.

Huskies netminder Jordon Cooke is the best goalie in U Sports.

    Both Huskies squads also have strong coaching staffs to guide the way on the playoff trail with head coach Dave Adolph leading the men’s side and interim head coach Robin Ulrich steadying the women’s side.

    The Huskies men’s team is one of the favourites to make a possible appearance in the University Cup title game. The University Cup runs March 16-19 at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton.

    U of S’s men’s team is rated second in the U Sports top 10 rankings and finished first in the Canada West conference with a 21-5-2 record. They host the Mount Royal University Cougars (15-11-2) in a best-of-three series this weekend at the ancient Rutherford Rink.

    Games 1 and 2 are set for 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday night respectively. If a series deciding Game 3 is needed, it will be held on Sunday at 7 p.m.

    The Huskies men’s team has it all from stellar starting goaltending, a forward unit that runs four lines deep and as solid of a defensive unit you will find anywhere in the country. Netminder Jordon Cooke is the best goalie in U Sports and is arguably one of the best goalies in Canada in the amateur ranks from the junior age level upwards.

Kaitlin Willoughby has been unreal for the Huskies.

    Cooke matched his own person record for most wins in a season by a Huskies goalie at 19 posting a 19-4-2 record, a 1.94 goals against average, a .929 save percentage and four shutouts. The Leduc, Alta., product first set his wins record winning 19 games in a regular season in the Huskies Canada West championship campaign last season.

    Up front, the Huskies have a forward unit where everyone can put the puck in the net. Their most potent line was the character unit of second-year centre Logan McVeigh, third-year winger Michael Sofillas and fourth-year winger Josh Roach.

    McVeigh topped the Huskies in scoring netting 13 goals and 18 assists. Sofillas picked up career highs with 13 goal and 14 assists, and Roach also netted career highs with eight goals and 18 assists.

    On the blue-line, the Huskies have a unit that is big and mobile. Third-year Waldheim, Sask., product Jesse Forsberg, who stands 6-feet and weighs 226 pounds, had a breakout year becoming the Huskies top offensive defenceman. He topped all defencemen in Canada West in scoring piling up 11 goals and 16 assists.

    Fellow third-year veteran Jordan Fransoo, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 210 pounds, also had a strong year offensively netting four goals and 10 assists. Captain Kendall McFaull, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 210 pounds, is an anchor as a defensive defenceman, and he can also chip in the offence when called upon.

    The Huskies women’s team sits in an underdog role heading into their Canada West best-of-three semifinal series against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds, who topped the conference standings with a 23-4-1 record and are rated first in the U Sports top 10 rankings. U of S finished fourth in Canada West with a 15-10-3 mark.

    During the regular season, the Huskies and Thunderbirds split their four head-to-head meetings, and U of S could have conceivably won three out of those four matches. A Thunderbirds victory is not a given.

Jesse Forsberg has quarterbacked the Huskies back end.

    The Huskies women’s team lacks overall offensive depth finishing fifth in the eight-team Canada West conference in goals scored. They do have enough pieces that make them capable of beating anyone and making to and winning the women’s nationals that run March 16 to 19 at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont.

    Star forward Kaitlin Willoughby has been a one-person wreaking crew for the Huskies at both ends of the ice, and she has taken her game up to an all-world level since returning from the Christmas break. She missed four games to help Canada’s women’s team win silver at the FISU Winter Universiade in Almaty, Kazakhstan, earlier this month and still topped the Huskies in scoring with 11 goals and 10 assists in 24 regular season games. The Prince Albert product’s goal total was a career high.

    In a quarter-final series sweep of the University of Regina Cougars, Willoughby almost picked up enough offense by herself sniping four goals in two games to win the series. Willoughby is able to lift her teammates to another level, which makes the Huskies play beyond their abilities.

You wonder if she can keep delivering these spectacular outings game after game, and it looks like she can.

    In goal, Cassidy Hendricks backstopped the Huskies to a Canada West title in 2014 and a bronze medal win at nationals. The North Vancouver product is in her final season and appears set to back her team on one last lengthy playoff run.

Cassidy Hendricks has been money in goal for the Huskies.

    During the regular season, Hendricks posted an 11-9-3 record, a 1.67 goals against average, a .928 save percentage and two shutouts. In the sweep of the Cougars, Hendricks turned away 59-of-63 shots sent her way. She flat out has the ability to steal games.

    If the Huskies can get some extra offense from either fifth-year veterans like Lauren Zary or Rachel Johnson or talented rookie forward Bailee Bourassa, they will really be in business. Defensively, they have a group headed by fifth-year veteran Alyssa Dobler, sophomore Morgan Willoughby and rookie Kayla Kirwan that can shut down anyone.

    On their runs, the Huskies will run into times when it feels like things might be too tough. During those times, all they have to do is remember a catch phrase Desjardins often says in the coaching career he moved on to after playing with the Huskies. He said this phrase guiding the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers to two WHL titles, the Texas Stars to an AHL championship and now behind the bench of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks.

    When the going gets tough for the Huskies teams, Desjardins would likely say, “Guys and gals, it is all going to come down to one thing – how bad do you want it?”

    Expect these Huskies teams to display an effort worthy of wanting to win it all.

Huskies hoops team open playoff runs with wins

Sabine Dukate (#5) dishes the ball inside for the Huskies.

    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies basketball teams opened their respective post-seasons on winning notes at the Physical Activity Complex.

    In Game 1 of a best-of-three Canada West quarter-final series, the Huskies women’s team downed the Abbotsford, B.C., based University of Fraser Valley Cascades 78-55. The Huskies led 25-18 after the first quarter and cruised to victory from there. The Huskies were 15-5 in the regular season, while the Cascades were 12-8.

    Point guard Sabine Dukate led the way for the Huskies with 21 points, while guard Madeline Humbert chipped in 10 points. Forward Shayna Litman topped the Cascades with 21 points.

    The Huskies will try to sweep the series in Game 2 set for 6:30 p.m. on Friday night at the PAC. If necessary, Game 3 will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday at the PAC.

Summer Masikewich (#11) plays tough on defence.

    The Huskies men’s team slipped past the U of Winnipeg Wesmen 85-84 in Game 1 of their Canada West quarter-final series. U of S was 14-6 in the regular season, while U of W posted a 12-8 mark.

    Forward Shane Osayande topped the Huskies with 26 points and 15 rebounds. Lawrence Moore, Trevor Severinski and Matthew Forbes all hit double digits in scoring for the Dogs netting 15, 13 and 10 points respectively.

    Guard Narcisse Ambanza led the Wesmen with 24 points, while Forward Sean Tarver added 18 points.

    The Huskies will try to sweep the series in Game 2 set for Friday at 8:30 p.m. at the PAC. If necessary, Game 3 will be held at 4 p.m. on Saturday at the PAC.

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

Please don’t let new U of S rink die on political rhetoric

Huskies trainers clear up during a “rust break” at the Rutherford Rink.

    So close, yet so far.

    Those that are linked with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies hockey programs have to be feeling some level of anxiety, if you have followed the latest news regarding the fundraising efforts to build a new twin-pad rink complex on campus.

    In early January, the City of Saskatoon was asked for an additional $3-million to support the new arena complex on campus, which will cost $41-million to build. The facility will be called Merlis Belsher Place, which is named after the U of S alumnus who donated $12.25-million towards the project. The City of Saskatoon has already agreed to put $1-million in towards the facility.

    When the latest request for an additional $3-million was made, it was also stated the fundraising campaign for the new rink was $6-million short of its goal.

    On Monday, Tim Hodgson, who is the chair of the Home Ice Campaign committee that is raising funds for the new rink, appeared before the City of Saskatoon’s planning, development and community services committee to address the latest funding request. The city committee voted unanimously to bump the debate on spending an additional $3-million to the next meeting of city council on Feb. 27.

    If you have ever been to the ancient Rutherford Rink on the U of S campus, you will realize it needs to be replaced in the worse way possible. The 87-year-old facility is best known for its “rust breaks” or “rust delays,” when a puck hits the roof causing rust from the steel beams in the ceiling to rain down on the ice. The training staffs of the Huskies hockey teams proceed to race on to the ice to clean up the mess.

    Actually, it is surprising Rutherford hasn’t been condemned. Back in 1997, then Huskies athletic director Ross Wilson said he was actively pursuing a new rink, and Rutherford needed to be replaced at that time. Since that time, the process to replace Rutherford has had way too many stops and starts.
    After the request was made to the City of Saskatoon for an additional $3-million, those that are connected to the Huskies hockey programs must have a little fear that things might fall through again.
    There hasn’t been any ground breaking to start construction of the new facility despite being $6-million away from raising the total funds that are needed for the project.

    The new facility would allocate one rink to be used by the Huskies men’s and women’s teams for games and practices. The second rink will be mainly used by the Saskatoon Minor Hockey Association, which will gain an additional 1,500 additional hours of ice time per year.

Wyatt Johnson fires a shot on goal at the Rutherford Rink.

    The last new sheet of indoor ice was built in Saskatoon in 1998 with the second pad at the private Rod Hamm Memorial/Harold Latrace Arena. The last public rink was built in 1981, when a hockey ice pad was added to the ACT Arena.

    In my opinion, most of the minor hockey rinks in Saskatoon are dumps. They aren’t dumpy at the level of the Rutherford Rink, but they are still dumps.

    When you step into the six-sheet minor hockey ice palace that is the Co-operators Centre in Regina, you are pretty much embarrassed to say you play out of any of the facilities in Saskatoon.

    The Home Ice Campaign is so close to realizing its fundraising goal you could almost see yourself skating on the campus rink.

    It would likely cost the City of Saskatoon $6-million or more to add an ice pad to any of their existing rinks, so the investment in the new U of S facility would be a wise one.

    Unfortunately, the request for more funding will raise all sorts of political rhetoric. Those that want the new rink will point to the cost overruns of the Remai Modern Art Gallery noting the city would likely write a cheque if that project needed another $3-million or more.

    Others will say the money should be put into roads or other infrastructure.

    What all of that talk does is distract people away from the fact a new rink is needed on campus and for the city. A number of community leaders like Belsher have stepped up to really push the envelope to make a first rate facility a reality.

The Huskies women’s team celebrates a goal at the Rutherford Rink.

    If you think ice time for minor hockey in Saskatoon is tight now, imagine if Rutherford did get condemned forcing two elite level U Sports hockey teams to find times for their games and practices amongst the existing facilities in the city. That theoretical development would likely toast the campus recreation hockey program at the U of S for a time too.

    The reality of getting a new rink on campus has never been closer than it has been at this moment. It would be extremely sad if this opportunity slipped away.

    The twin-pad rink is needed. Whether the funds come from the city or possibly other donor, please find some way to get this done.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. It should be noted that I made a donation to the Home Ice Campaign. If you want to donate to the Home Ice Campaign, you can do so by clicking here.

Hughton leaves friendly mark on Huskies

Retiring athletic director will be missed on U of S campus

Basil Hughton, left, watches a Huskies hockey game.

    The University of Saskatchewan Huskies won’t be able to replace Basil Hughton, but they will have to do their best to fill his void likely by committee.

    On Monday, the 60-year-old Hughton announced he was retiring as the Huskies athletic director effective June 30, 2017. He became the Huskies athletic director in August of 2008 after spending 30 years as a teacher and administrator in Saskatchewan’s school systems mostly with Saskatoon’s public system.

    When Hughton took over as the Huskies athletic director, it was a homecoming. He played with the Huskies football team in the 1970s, received his bachelor of physical education in 1977, bachelor of education in 1978 and a master’s degree in education in 1992 all from the U of S.

    Hughton returned to a Huskies program that was successful and had a great reputation on the national stage. His biggest challenge was to ensure the Huskies continued to achieve lofty goals in the classroom and in competition. Great success was achieved on both fronts.

    Under Hughton, almost 1,300 student-athletes were named to national or school all-academic teams. In competition, the Huskies won 15 Canada West championships and two national titles in the league now referred to as U Sports.

    One of those national championships came from the Huskies men’s basketball team in 2010 and the other from the Huskies women’s basketball team last March. Both were program firsts.

    All these achievements came from the fact that Hughton created a positive feeling environment.

Traditionally, athletic directors are viewed as authority figures. If you as an athlete had to visit one, you would stereotypically think you had done something wrong.

    Hughton was more like a kind second father. When you meet him, it doesn’t take long to realize he has a genuine sense of caring about the athletes in the Huskies program. He makes it a point to get to know everyone that plays for a Huskies team on some level.

    While a rookie athlete may have a good first impression about the U of S due to the recruiting efforts of a coach, the first meeting with Hughton is one of those welcome to the family type moments. You can feel there is an emotional investment and a hope that you will do well.

Basil Hughton, right, talks to a supporter at a Huskies volleyball game.

    That in itself is big, when you consider the majority of Huskie athletes are living away from home for the first time relocating to Saskatoon from some other town or city. Those athletes are taking their first steps in life as young adults, and it feels reassuring the top person in the athletics program cares that you do well.

    If an athlete needs to talk about something but doesn’t feel like telling a coach, Hughton’s door is always open.

    Right now, it is harder to be an athlete at the university level in Canada than it ever has before. An athletes’ time is stretched to the maximum due to commitments with academic studies, year round training, at times a job and maybe even a romantic relationship.

    When a Huskies athlete deals with ups and downs on all these fronts, it is nice to know Hughton is around to provide a friendly and positive presence which gives off a sense of stability.

    If you want to see the lengths Hughton will go to help the Huskies program, all you have to do is turn up on a Saturday morning at the U of S campus after a heavy snowfall. He will be out there shoveling away snow from the front of the Physical Activity Complex and the Rutherford Rink.

    If you’re a Huskies athlete and you see that, you have to be thinking if my athletic director is going to go out and do that I really need to bring it tonight.

    For me, the time it really struck me how much Hughton cares came from what I think was supposed to be a private moment. About a couple of days after Huskies men’s hockey team gritty, glue guy forward Cody Smuk passed away in June of 2015 due to cancer, I stopped to checked out the Smuk mural that was painted at the entrance of the Rutherford Rink on an early Saturday morning.

    I was alone only for a couple of minutes when Hughton pulled up. We talked for a few minutes, and it was visible he was in a moment where he was taking Smuk’s passing pretty hard. Hughton was working through his healing process dealing with the death of a member of his Huskies family.

    We both signed the mural and went on with the rest of our respective days. I came away thinking the Huskies were pretty fortunate to have Hughton as their athletic director.

    Still, Hughton’s time as the athletic director isn’t over yet.

    Last season, the Huskies had an extremely memorable campaign capturing four Canada West championships coming from men’s track and field, men’s wrestling, men’s hockey and women’s basketball. The women’s basketball team also won their national title.

    Hughton gets to go through one last winter semester, and maybe a couple more conference champions or even national championships might be around the corner. That would be the ultimate capper for a send off.

Grahams donate big for Merlis Belsher Place hoops courts

    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies continued to showcase the big donors for the Home Ice Campaign, and the two that took centre stage on Thursday have been long-time friends of the athletic program.

    During a presentation at the Physical Activity Complex, alums Ron and Jane Graham gave a gift of $4-million to support the construction of two basketball practice courts at Merlis Belsher Place. The donation will also fund locker rooms and team rooms for the Huskies basketball teams and give the university flexibility to consider developing an athletic research area in the new space.

    With this gift, the Grahams also became the largest cumulative alumni donors to the university in its history contributing close to $20-million. In their honour, the main court at the PAC will be named Ron and Jane Graham Centre Court.

    In the past, the Grahams have supported the expansion of the Graham Huskie clubhouse at Griffiths Stadium and the establishment of the Ron and Jane Graham School of Professional Development in the College of Engineering.

    The planned Merlis Belsher Place will be best known as a twin pad ice rink facility that will be the new home for the Huskies hockey teams and provide additional ice time for Saskatoon Minor Hockey and the community.

    The university is seeking the help of the community to raise the remaining $7-million towards the facility that will cost $41-million to build.

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

Rams morph into “The Greatest Show on Turf”

QB Noah Picton (#4) had a spectacular regular season for the Rams.

    The 0-8 season has been left in the dust.

    A year removed from a winless campaign, the University of Regina Rams have become the most exciting team in U Sports football. At the start of the season, that concept was inconceivable.

    In 2015, the Rams had the image of being a bit of a train wreak under then head coach Mike Gibson, who left the club after only one season to join the CFL’s Edmonton Eskimos as their offensive line coach and run game coordinator. The Rams seemed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory losing four games by seven or fewer points.

    Under Gibson, the Rams were getting disconnected from their alumni, which had never been an issue in the past. Behind the scenes, there was more turmoil than most people knew.

   In the off-season, the Rams looked to the past to find their new head coach in hiring Steve Bryce. Bryce played five seasons on the Rams offensive line during their Canadian Junior Football League days from 1987 to 1991, which included a national championship win in his rookie campaign.

    With Bryce at the helm, the Rams vaulted up the standings in 2016 finishing first in the Canada West Conference for the first time in team history with a 6-2 record. In the turnaround, they put up offensive numbers to make them look like the Kurt Warner era St. Louis Rams of the NFL.

    Like the Warner era St. Louis Rams did in the NFL, the Regina Rams have become “The Greatest Show on Turf” in U Sports football.

Mitchell Picton makes a catch in traffic for the Rams.

    Since joining the Canadian university ranks in 1999, the Rams helped the University of Regina become known as “Receiver-U” due to placing a number of pass catching grads into the professional ranks. Those grads always were catching passes from great quarterbacks like Darryl Leason, Mark Anderson, Teale Orban and Marc Mueller.

    This year’s Rams have taken their reputation as a pass-happy team to another level averaging 408.4 yards through the air per game. Third-year quarterback Noah Picton has had a season that eclipses anything any Rams quarterback great from their university or junior football era could ever imagine.

    Picton completed 224-of-323 passes for 3,186 yards, 25 touchdown passes and nine interceptions. His completion percentage of 69.3 per cent is impressive, and he set a new U Sports record for passing yards in a season. Former U of Calgary Dinos quarterback Andrew Buckley, who is a rookie with the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders, held the old U Sports passing yardage record at 3,162, which was set just last season.

    Picton has also run the ball 31 times for 238 yards and reached the end zone twice via that route. He is a favourite to win the Hec Crighton Trophy as the top player in U Sports football.

RB Atlee Simon (#36) is one of the Rams overlooked weapons.

    The signal caller has also spread the ball out very well resulting in three of his receivers surpassing 500-yards receiving in an eight-game campaign. Cousin Mitchell Picton topped Canada West in receptions (58) and receiving yards (834) and his 11 receiving touchdowns led everyone in U Sports.

Sophomore Ryan Schienbein hauled in 54 passes for 790 yards and seven touchdowns. Riley Wilson finished the regular season with 37 catches for 627 yards and one touchdown.

    The Pictons, Schienbein and offensive lineman Jeremy Zver were all named Canada West all-stars on Thursday.

    The Rams are so good through the air that talented tailback Atlee Simon seemed like a forgotten man. Simon ran the ball 113 times for 567 yards and scored four touchdowns on the ground in seven appearances. He also caught 17 passes for 203 yards and four touchdowns.

    Defensively, the Rams rank third in Canada West allowing 458.6 yards per game. Linebacker Danny Nesbitt and defensive backs Kahlen Branning and Jeff Propp were also named Canada West all-stars.

    Thanks to topping the Canada West standings, the only time the Rams wouldn’t potentially be playing at home at historic Taylor Field/Mosaic Stadium during the post-season would be if they made the Vanier Cup. The only time the Rams appeared in the U Sports title game was in 2000, when they fell 42-39 to the U of Ottawa Gee Gees.

The Rams celebrate a touchdown catch from Ryan Schienbein (#14).

    Now, we will see if the Rams success in the regular season transfers over to playoffs. The fourth rated club in the U Sports top 10 rankings hosts a Canada West semifinal match on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. local time against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds, who went 3-5 as defending Vanier Cup champions. The Rams took both head-to-head meetings with the Thunderbirds this season.

    Looking further down the road, the U Sports football post-season also hasn’t been kind in recent years to the team that wins Canada West. Over the past 17 years, the Canada West champ has only moved on to win the Vanier Cup on two occasions including the Thunderbirds last year and the U of Manitoba Bisons in 2007.

    With that said, the Rams are in a spot that they don’t realize they aren’t supposed to accomplish what they have already accomplished. They still have nothing to lose and everything to gain. With Bryce at the helm, they also have all their alumni and supporters back in the fold too.

    If they can go all the way, these current Rams will produce a season that would arguably be the squad’s most memorable including the team’s time in both the university and junior ranks.

Huskies in position to make post-season noise

QB Kyle Siemens had a solid season calling signals for the Huskies.

  The U of Saskatchewan Huskies football team might be the wildcard when it comes to the U Sports post-season.

    Of course, the Huskies have lost their last seven straight playoff games, but this might be the year they break that dubious streak. After a three-game skid dropped them to 2-3, the Huskies won their last three straight regular season games to finish at 5-3.

    They are the hottest team entering the playoffs from Canada West, and they face an opponent they finally got over the hump against. On Saturday, the Huskies travel to Calgary to face the U of Calgary Dinos (6-2) in a Canada West semifinal match at 12 p.m. local time. The Huskies are rated ninth in the U Sports rankings, while the Dinos sit in the sixth spot.

    On Oct. 22, the Huskies slipped past the Dinos 38-35 in Calgary. Entering that contest, the Dinos had won 10 straight games between the two sides including action in the regular season and playoffs.

    In the other meeting between the two sides this season, the Dinos slipped past the Huskies 20-19 in Saskatoon thanks to a last minute field goal.

Huskies RB Tyler Chow led Canada West in rushing.

    During their three-game regular season skid, the Huskies offence lost its cohesion. Part of the struggles came from the fact reliable receiver Mitch Hillis missed a pair of games due to injury. When Hillis returned, the offensive unit seemed to find a new groove.

    Despite missing a pair of games, Hillis still made the Canada West all-star team catching 35 passes for 423 yards and three touchdowns. Starting quarterback Kyle Siemens had a solid campaign completing 166-of-278 passes for 2,091 yards, 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

    Running back Tyler Chow topped Canada West in rushing piling up 828 yards on 127 carries and scoring seven touchdowns. Chow also caught 16 passes for 132 yards in being named a Canada West all-star along with offensive tackle Evan Johnson.

    Defensive lineman Donovan Dale anchored the Huskies defence earning Canada West all-star honours with 24 total tackles, three sacks and one interception.

    Standout kicker Sean Stenger was the conference’s all-star place kicker and punter.

DB Payton Hall (#28) makes a tackle for the Huskies.

    U of S has an X-factor in receiver Chad Braun, who is a talented graduate of the Saskatoon Hilltops of the Canadian Junior Football League. Braun caught 26 passes for 403 yards and scored two touchdowns and returned 37 punts for 449 yards and one touchdown.

    The Huskies have a number of other capable playmakers on offence including receivers Julan Lynch, Yol Piok and Ben Getzlaf along with running back Colton Klassen.

    They have a number of players that can rise to the occasion on defence including defensive lineman Matt Kozun, linebackers Justin Filteau and Quinn Pearce along with defensive back Payton Hall.

    The Huskies are right where they were expected to be as far as the regular season goes. It also feels like they haven’t reached their potential.

    It wouldn’t be a shocker if a long playoff run is finally on the horizon again for a club that has experienced eight one-and-done exits in the last nine years.

Off the Leach Luncheon was sweet

Lanny McDonald and Brian Burke spoke at the Off the Leash Luncheon.

    If you wanted to see how much the U of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team means to the Saskatoon community, all you have to do was attend the Off the Leach Luncheon on Thursday at Prairieland Park.

    A huge group of alumni and members of the Saskatoon and area hockey community turned out for this eighth annual event, which is a fundraiser for the Huskies men’s hockey team. The alumni turnout was impressive, and it shows that the Huskies hockey team means a great deal to those that wore the green and white. A large contingent of recent grads were present as well.

    At the luncheon, the Wright Construction company donated $1-million to the Home Ice Campaign, which is raising funds to build a new twin pad home rink on campus. With the Wright Construction company donation, $36-million has been raised towards building the new $41-million Merlis Belsher Place.

    The other big highlight of the evening was being entertained by the hockey stories of former NHL enforcer George Parros, Calgary Flames president of hockey operations Brian Burke and NHL legend Lanny McDonald. McDonald made a surprise appearance.

    If you live in the Saskatoon area and you haven’t been to the Off the Leash Luncheon, you are encouraged to put that function on your to do list.

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

Wheels more in motion for new U of Saskatchewan rink

Replacement for Rutherford still can’t come fast enough

Officials clean up fallen rust at the Rutherford Rink.

    The “rust break” will become a thing of the past.

    Anyone connected with the University of Saskatchewan has to be breathing a big sigh of relief that the ancient Rutherford Rink will be replaced in a more sooner than later time span.

    Last Thursday, Rutherford was the site for the public launch of the Home Ice Campaign, where U of S commerce and law graduate Merlis Belsher contributed $12.25-million to fund a new ice facility to replace the current home of the Huskies men’s and women’s hockey teams. The donation was the largest donation from an alumnus and individual in the university’s history.

    One day later, Lawrence and Patricia Rychjohn and Ian and Alice Van Norman donated $1-million to the campaign after a ground breaking ceremony for a new hotel development on campus.

    Thanks to those incredible gifts, $34-million has been raised for the new twin-ice facility, which will cost $41-million and be called Merlis Belsher Place. It will eventually be built south of the Field House. A picture of what the rink will look like drew good reviews at the launch and through circulation on social media.

    The only thing that would have made the launch announcement better would have been a ground-breaking ceremony for the new arena. That detail still helps a minor anxiety linger about the whole project.

The Huskies men's hockey team celebrate a goal at the Rutherford Rink.

    Even with that in mind, the campaign is only looking for the public to raise the remaining $7-million to complete everything. With $34-million already raised and legendary former Huskies men’s hockey head coach Dave King leading the charge, the new rink will be built. The question is only when?

    Since 1997 when then Huskies athletic director Ross Wilson said he was actively pursuing a new rink, it felt like the process to replace Rutherford had way too many stops and starts. One had to wonder if a new facility would ever be built, or it felt like the current facility that was built in 1929 would have to be condemned to get any more action under way.

    Those with long memories know the Physical Activity Complex on campus was built due to the fact the U of S’s Physical Education Centre was found to be no longer structurally sound in December of 1997. Within months of that discovery, the Physical Education Centre was demolished.

    When the Physical Activity Complex opened in 2003, it replaced Education Gym as the home of the Huskies basketball and volleyball teams.

    As far as the new rink front goes, there appears to be no stopping its inevitable construction now. When King became involved, you knew the will was there to get the project done.

    Belsher along with the Lawrence and Rychjohn families showed outstanding community minded leadership with their donations.

    The twin ice surfaces will provide ice time for the Huskies hockey teams, 900 students who play campus recreation hockey annually, 400 students and 140 faculty and staff for other recreational and academic purposes and Saskatoon Minor Hockey Association teams.

A sign for the Home Ice Campaign.

    The facility will have a 90-foot wide main surface, seating for 1,830 with the ability to expand to 2,310 spectators and flex space for events like convocations.

    In Rutherford, hockey games often have to be stopped, when a puck hits the ceiling causing rust from the beams to fall on to the ice. The rust has to be cleared off before play can resume, which caused the term “rust break” to become a norm.

    A new rink will put a thankful end to rust stoppages.

    Until the last $6-million is raised, there will be a bit of an anxious wait, but this time there is more certainty than ever of a positive end result.

    For those that want to donate to the Home Ice Campaign, they can do so by clicking here.

Hockey enforcers documentary to premiere in Saskatoon

    A documentary that explores the world of the hockey enforcer is set to open in Saskatoon, and it looks to be a good one.

    “Ice Guardians” is slated to be shown at the Remai Arts Centre at 6:30 p.m. on Monday. The film features some of the game’s most famous pugilists including Dave Schultz, Dave Semenko, Joey Kocur, Kelly Chase, Rob Ray and the late Derek Boogaard.

    In exploring the role of the enforcer, the premise of the movie is to show the human side of the men that took the ice to protect superstars like Wayne Gretzky and Brett Hull. One of the observations was the fact enforcers wanted to make the NHL, but they didn’t think growing up they would live the dream by throwing fists.

    One of the players featured was former Philadelphia Flyers enforcer Riley Cote. Cote was the 19-year-old captain of the Prince Albert Raiders, when I covered that WHL team during the 2001-02 campaign.

    At that time, Cote was known for this toughness, which is a traditional trait you see coming from members of the Raiders. He won his share of fights in the major junior ranks.

    The Winnipeg product was also making a reputation for his offensive skill. During the 2001-02 campaign, Cote collected 28 goals and 23 assists in 67 regular season games along with 134 penalty minutes. He was in tremendous physical shape and had quite an impressive build.

    Cote was known for being a teddy bear. He wasn’t even tagged as the enforcer of the Raiders. One thought he would make the NHL as a power-forward type player like Keith Tkachuk.

    During the off-season months in 2002, Cote signed his first professional contract ensuring he wouldn’t be back for his overage season in Prince Albert. Soon, I was hearing stories that Cote was slugging it out in hockey’s minor professional ranks as an enforcer. He eventually made his NHL debut with the Flyers on March 24, 2007.

    He played in 156 career regular season games with the Flyers collecting one goal, six assists and 411 minutes in penalties. In 70 games in the 2007-08 campaign, Cote spent 202 minutes in the sinbin.

    During his NHL career, he was viewed as one of the Flyers best representatives out in the community, and he was always a fan favourite. Cote is one example that there is more to an enforcer type player than just getting into fights.

    For those that get to deal with the game on a regular basis, they find enforcers are usually the most personable guys on a hockey team. When it comes down to it, you end up thinking of them as just “boys.”

    You also find out a number of them are fairly intelligent and are well-versed in all sorts of subjects. The “Ice Guardians” documentary aims to show all these other characteristic of enforcers.

    Those that purchase a $100 VIP ticket will get to attend a reception before the movie at Milestones with Chase and Kocur, a question and answer session with NHLers after the film and an after party.

    General admission tickets are $45, which also gets you into the question and answer session and the after party.

    Tickets can be purchased by clicking here.

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