Blades rally past Raiders with third period surge

Chase Wouters netted the winning goal for the Blades on Friday.

    The power play got hot at the right time for the Saskatoon Blades.

    Trailing the host Raiders in Prince Albert 1-0 before 3,033 spectators at the Art Hauser Centre on Friday night, the Blades scored two power-play goals inside of the final six minutes of the third period to pull out a 2-1 victory in a WHL regular season clash.

    Working on a five-on-three power play, Blades left-winger Eric Florchuk took an offensive zone faceoff and won it back to right-winger Max Gerlach, who was positioned at the centre of the ice at the top of the two faceoff circles. The 19-year-old sharpshooter blasted home his 32^nd goal of the season to tie things up at 1-1 with 5:23 to play in the third period.

    With 1:41 to play in the third period, sophomore centre Chase Wouters scored the winning goal for the Blades with a beauty effort on the power play. Wouters got the puck at the right side boards from overage left-winger Braylon Shmyr, cut to the front of the Prince Albert goal, went forehand to backhand and put a shot past a screened Raiders netminder Ian Scott to give the visitors a one-goal victory.

    Friday’s encounter turned into a classic rivalry clash these two teams are famous for resulting in three fights.

    In the second period, Blades defenceman Jake Kustra tangled with Raiders left-winger Justin Nachbaur and Saskatoon Russian import defenceman Mark Rubinchik battled with Prince Albert power forward Kody McDonald.

    Kustra and McDonald went at it in the third period. A scrum and drama also ensued at the end of the game.

Jake Kustra was involved in a couple of fights on Friday.

    Outside of the physical aspect of the contest, the Raiders took a 1-0 lead with just under 30 seconds to play in the first period on a short-handed goal from right-winger Parker Kelly. Kelly blocked a shot in his own zone, sped down the ice fighting off the backcheck of Blades rookie centre Kirby Dach, got on a short breakaway and snapped a shot past Blades overage netminder Tyler Brown.

    It appeared Kelly’s goal, which was his 29^th of the season, was going to hold up as the only tally of the contest until the Blades scored their two late power-play goals.

    Brown had a big night making 24 saves including a few stellar ones to pick up the win in goal for the Blades. Scott turned away 20 shots to take the setback in goal for the Raiders.

    The Raiders, who had earned points in the standings in their previous 11 games, fell to 32-26-9-4, but they are cemented as the second wildcard team in the WHL Eastern Conference. They will face the Moose Jaw Warriors, who finished first overall in the league, in a best-of-seven first round series.

    The Blades improved to 34-33-3-1 with their second win in a row and actually secured at least an eighth place overall finish in the 12 team Eastern Conference. Under the current WHL playoff format where the top three teams in each division and two wildcard teams with the next best records in each conference make the post-season, the Blades won’t take part in any playoff action. They have missed the playoffs for five straight years. 

Braylon Shmyr picked up an assist on the Blades’ winning goal.

    Saskatoon sits five points behind Prince Albert for the second wildcard spot. The Blades stumbled out of a playoff spot posting a 3-6-1 record in their last 10 games.

    Under the old playoff format that was last used in the 2013-14 campaign where the two divisional winners and the next six best records in each conference made the post-season, the Blades would have locked up a playoff berth.

    The Blades and Raiders will close out their respective regular season schedules with one last head-to-head encounter on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon.

    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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Huskies women’s hoopsters aim for more post-season glory

Head coach Lisa Thomaidis, left, and her Huskies continue to impress.

    It has become a special late February to the middle of March tradition in the sports scene of Saskatoon.

    Guided by head coach Lisa Thomaidis, the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s basketball team is winning games in the post-season, and they will make a serious push for a Canada West Conference title and a U Sports national title. It seems like every generation that plays for the Huskies is hard working, talented and extremely likable.

    Fans can take the current generation of players to heart like group that won the program’s first U Sports national title in the 2015-16 campaign headed by fifth-years Laura Dally, Dalyce Emmerson, Kelsey Trulsrud and Taja Keujer. The same goes for the generations of players that came before the national title win under Thomaidis’s watch.

    Last year, the Huskies were supposed to take a step back due to having a younger squad with the turnover of the fifth-years that powered the team’s first national championship win. After posting a 15-5 record in the regular season in 2016-17, the Huskies won a second straight Canada West title, which wasn’t expected by most observers outside of the program.

    This season, the Huskies 17-3 regular season record was good enough to ensure the team was the seeded second in the Canada West playoffs. The Huskies are also rated seventh in the U Sports Top 10 rankings.

    In a best-of-three Canada West quarter-final series against the University of Winnipeg Wesmen held at U of S’s Physical Activity Complex, the Huskies took Game 1 last Thursday 76-58 but were given a slight scare after the Wesmen took Game 2 a day later 93-85.

Guard Sabine Dukate (#5) can do it all for the Huskies.

    In a series deciding Game 3 last Saturday, the Huskies showed the scare was minimal. They jumped out to a 28-14 lead after the first quarter and stormed to a 52-29 edge by halftime. The Huskies cruised to a 97-64 victory.

    Third-year guard Sabine Dukate, who is the only remaining starter from the national championship team, hit 6-of-11 shots from three-point range to lead the Huskies with 21 points. Star sophomore post Summer Masikewich added 17 points to aid the host side.

    Third-year guard Megan Ahlstrom and fifth-year forward Megan Lindquist chipped in 11 and 10 points respectively. Standout sophomore point guard Libby Epoch dished out eight assists to round out a strong night from the starting five.

    Third-year guard Maya Olynyk came off the bench to pitch in 12 points for the Huskies. Rookie post Kyla Shand and sophomore guard Kelsey Lalor added eight and seven points respectively play reserve roles as well for the host side.

    Teams that go far in the post-season usually get key contributions from everyone at different times, and the Huskies seemed to get contributions from everyone they dressed to prevail by a convincing margin in an elimination game.

    It is believed the win was the 400^th overall victory for Thomaidis as head coach of the Huskies in matches against U Sports opponents. The Huskies have won five Canada West titles with Thomaidis as head coach.

    In players like Dukate, Epoch, Masikewich, Lalor, Ahlstrom and Shand, the Huskies have a core that is going to be good for two to three more seasons.

Kelsey Lalor (#12) is one of the many stellar young players on the Huskies.

    While the Huskies core is young, the future is now for this team as well.

    Their next task is to get past the Trinity Western University Spartans in a best-of-three Canada West semifinal series. The Spartans will provide a big test finishing the regular season with a 16-4 record, and they are rated ninth in the U Sports Top 10 rankings.

    Game 1 of that series is set for this coming Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Physical Activity Complex on the U of S campus. The Huskies and Spartans split their two regular season meetings.

    If the Huskies win that series, they will advance to the Canada West title game for a fifth straight year and earn a berth at U Sports nationals for a fifth straight year.

    Odds are high that the Huskies will add to what is becoming a storied playoff legacy.

Playoff opponents set for Huskies hockey teams

The Dinos and Huskies men’s hockey teams will meet in the playoffs.

    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies hockey teams found out who their respective playoff foes will be over the weekend.

    Both Huskies squads earned byes to host best-of-three Canada West semifinal series thanks to respective second place finishes in the conference standings.

    On the men’s side, the Huskies, who were 20-7-1 in the regular season, will take on the U of Calgary Dinos, who had a 12-13-3 regular season record to finish fifth in Canada West. The Dinos forfeited their first six games in October due to using an ineligible player, which they self-disclosed as an error on their part.

    The Huskies took three out of the four head-to-head meetings with the Dinos, and none of those results came via forfeit.

    Game 1 of the series between the Huskies and Dinos is set for Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the ancient Rutherford Rink. Game 2 will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Friday at Rutherford, and if necessary, Game 3 is set for 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Rutherford.

The T-birds and Huskies women’s hockey team will meet in the playoffs.

    The Huskies women’s hockey team will battle the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds in a best-of-three Canada West semifinal series in what should be a heated rivalry type encounter. This will mark the third time in the last five years the Huskies and Thunderbirds have met in the post-season.

    The Huskies posted a 19-7-2 record for 58 points in the standings to sit second in Canada West, while the Thunderbirds recorded a 19-5-4 record for 56 points in the standings to sit third in Canada West.

    In the Canada West women’s hockey standings, teams earn three points for regulation wins, two points for extra time wins and one point for extra time losses. The Huskies earned their 58 points on 18 regulation wins, one extra time win and two extra time losses. The Thunderbirds earned their 56 points on 14 regulation wins, five extra time wins and four extra time setbacks.

    Game 1 between the Huskies and Thunderbirds is set for 1:30 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink. Game 2 is slated for 1:30 p.m. on Saturday at Rutherford, and if necessary, Game 3 will be held on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at Rutherford.

    The winners of the Canada West semifinals will advance to their respective best-of-three Canada West Conference championship series and earn berths in their respective U Sports national champion tournaments.

Kustra delivers OT win in Edmonton to Blades

Jake Kustra had the overtime winner for the Blades on Monday night.

    Jake Kustra ensured his Saskatoon Blades concluded their four-game road trip on a winning note and with a winning record.

    On Monday night in Edmonton, the 18-year-old defenceman scored at the 1:37 mark of overtime on a beauty setup pass by overage winger Braylon Shmyr to lift the Blades to a 3-2 victory over the host Oil Kings in a WHL regular season match before 9,913 spectators at Rogers Place. The tally was Kustra’s fourth goal and second game-winner of the season.

    Shmyr scored late in the third period and centre Chase Wouters tallied at the 7:20 mark of the third to give the Blades a 2-0 lead.

    The Oil Kings received singles from Kobe Mohr at the 11:58 mark of the third and Trey Fix-Wolansky at the 16:44 mark of the third to force a 2-2 tie and send the contest to overtime. That set the stage for Kustra to come through with his heroics.

    Nolan Maier turned away 13 shots to pick up his 22^nd win of the season in goal for the Blades.

    Todd Scott turned away 18-of-20 shots starting in goal for the Oil Kings. He was forced to leave the game after being injured trying to stop Wouters’ goal. Josh Dechaine turned away two-of-three shots in relief for the Oil Kings, who saw their record move to 18-33-6-2.

    The Blades won three out of the four games on their road trip. They improved to 31-27-2-1 to hold the second wildcard spot in the WHL’s Eastern Conference with an eight-point edge over the Prince Albert Raiders (23-25-9-2). The Raiders have two games in hand on the Blades.

    Saskatoon is two points behind the Brandon Wheat Kings (31-23-3-2) for the first wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference. The Wheat Kings have two games in hand on the Blades.

    The Blades have 11 games remaining on their regular season schedule, and they will play seven of those games at home. They return to action taking on the Memorial Cup hosting Regina Pats at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre on Friday.

    A fundraising effort is underway to have Blades play-by-play voice Les Lazaruk sing the national anthem before that encounter with the Pats. Funds being raised will be donated to the Saskatchewan Red Cross to support Pink Day, which is set for February 28, and the anti-bullying initiatives backed by that program. Anyone looking to support that cause can do so by clicking 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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Clark loves returning to junior hockey roots made with Blades

Wendel Clark waves to the crowd at the SaskTel Centre.

    Wendel Clark is always fond of his Saskatoon homecomings.

    Before he became a legendary power forward with the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs, Clark starred as a defenceman for the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades for two seasons from 1983 to 1985. During that time, he appeared in 136 regular season games collecting 55 goals and 100 assists. In the 1985 NHL Entry Draft, the Leafs selected Clark first overall, and he is still the only Blades player to ever be selected first overall in an NHL Entry Draft.

    While he will always be best remember for his time with the Leafs, Clark will never shy away from renewing his links with the Blades. The Kelvington, Sask., product was in “the Bridge City” on Saturday to be honoured as part of the Blades “Homegrown Hockey Heroes” promotion, which was held as part of their 4-2 victory over the Red Deer Rebels.

    Starting from a pre-game dinner and hot stove and right through to the end of that night’s game, Clark did his best to accommodate the numerous fan requests that came his way.

    “It is great being back all the time,” said Clark, who stands 5-foot-11 and weighs 197 pounds. “Whenever you get back in the old arena with the old uniform playing and seeing the alma mater as we say playing the game, it is fun.

    “Your avid fans watch all the eras, and they know all the players and remember what they like from each of the players in each of the different eras. That is a great thing when you come back to the junior hockey rinks.”

    During his days with the Blades, Clark never got to play in the SaskTel Centre, which hosted its first Blades game on Feb. 9, 1988. He suited up for the Blades when they played out of the now demolished Saskatoon Arena, which was located in the city’s downtown core.

Wendel Clark, right, signs an autograph for a young fan.

    Playing with the Blades out of that facility, which was full of character, helped Clark connect with the city. Clark said the connections he made remain his best memories with the Blades.

    “It is your first time really away from home and the friends you met as teammates and your billets you become lifelong friends (with) and just all the people around town,” said Clark. “When you get a great city like Saskatoon to be able to play junior hockey in, it is some of your best memories is playing junior hockey.”

    On the ice, Clark remembers being in countless battles with the Blades long time arch rivals the Regina Pats, and witnessed what was a new rivalry take shape at the time with the Prince Albert Raiders, who left junior A for the major junior ranks in 1982 and won the Memorial Cup in 1985.

    “You play them 12 or 14 times,” said Clark, who is widely regarded as the best player to ever suit up for the Blades. “There had to be a love hate just because of how much you played each other.”

Clark also suited up for Canada at the world junior championships during the 1984-85 campaign, where he helped Canada win gold in Helsinki, Finland. During that tournament, he netted four goals and two assists in seven games.

    During those world juniors, Clark gained a new respect for one of his junior hockey rivals in Raiders head coach Terry Simpson, who was also the head coach of Clark’s world junior team.

    “Terry (Simpson) was renowned,” said Clark. “He built all those teams in tier two and then he went on.

    “I had Terry (as a coach) after the world juniors as well with the Leafs as an assistant coach. He was just one of those guys that was always around the game. He loved the game and was student of the game by how much he changed and learned.

    “Anywhere he coached, he had great hockey teams.”

A bobblehead doll of Wendel Clark as a member of the Saskatoon Blades.

    Clark spent most of his career with the Leafs, but also suited up for short stints with the Quebec Nordiques, New York Islanders, Tampa Bay Lightning, Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks in his NHL days that went from 1985 to 2000. He appeared in 793 regular season games piling up 330 goals, 234 assists and 1,690 penalty minutes.

    The 50-year-old recently finished writing an autobiography called “Bleeding Blue: Giving My All for the Game.” The book provided another avenue to interact with the fans.

    “The book is great,” said Clark. “I did the tour in November just before Christmas with it.

    “It did well, and I had a lot fun with it. I told a lot of stories and reminisced. Now, it has calmed down from the book selling tour, but it was a fun thing to do.”

    While he will always be remembered for his playing days with the Leafs, Clark will always look forward to the next time he gets to run back to Saskatoon.

Kustra and Shmyr down with concussions

    On Monday, the Blades reported that defenceman Jake Kustra and left-winger Braylon Shmyr both suffered concussions from hard hits they received during Saturday’s win over the Rebels.

    Kustra was injured with 10:41 to play in the third, when he was hit into the boards by Rebels winger and former Blade teammate Cameron Hausinger. Following the hit, Kustra was taken off the ice by a stretcher.

    Besides suffering a concussion, Kustra sustained a laceration to his head. The Yorkton, Sask., product has appeared in 30 games this season netting a goal and three assists.

    Hausinger was given a checking to the head major and a game misconduct for that hit. The replay in the building showed Kustra had slipped trying to avoid the hit, which resulted in him being in a vulnerable position.

    Shmyr was injured after receiving a high hit from Rebels defenceman Colton Bobyk. Shmyr leads the Blades in scoring netting a career high 27 goals and equaling a career high with 22 assists in 53 games.

    With Kustra and Shmyr following concussion injury protocols, the Blades didn’t set any timelines for any possible returns. The WHL hasn’t announced if there will be any suspensions from Saturday’s game.

    Saskatoon also lost winger Lukus MacKenzie to injury in Saturday’s win. MacKenzie injured his shoulder in a second period fight with Rebels winger Evan Polei.

    The Blades return to action Friday, when they host the Moose Jaw Warriors at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

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

Battling Blades take feisty encounter with Rebels

Blades D Jackson Caller, left, engages with Rebels C Michael Spacek.

    It was a rare rowdy Saturday night at the SaskTel Centre that saw tensions escalate between the Saskatoon Blades and the visiting Red Deer Rebels.

    The 4,211 spectators in attendance got to witness all sorts of fireworks in the third period of a WHL contest between the two teams that included a shouting match between the each clubs’ coaches from the edge of their benches, a couple of big collisions that resulted in two Blades players being helped off the ice and a big scrum at game’s end.
    When the dust settled, the Blades skated away with a 4-2 victory, which ended a four game losing streak.

    “For us, it is about winning,” said Blades head coach Dean Brockman. “It is about the composure. We stopped the four-game losing streak, and really, that is what we should be talking about.

    “For us, it is a huge win. Hopefully, we haven’t lost too many pieces of the puzzle. We’ve fought through that adversity all year.”

Rebels HC, GM and owner Brent Sutter yells at the Blades bench.

    Tensions rose as Saskatoon held a 3-1 edge with 10:41 to play in the third period. The trigger came when Blades defenceman Jake Kustra went down after taking a hit from Rebels winger Cameron Hausinger, who is a former Blade, by the left corner boards of the Saskatoon zone. Kustra had to be taken off the ice by stretcher, and Hausinger was given a major penalty for checking to the head and a game misconduct.

    The replay in the building showed that Kustra slipped and was placed in a vulnerable position, when he was trying to avoid Hausinger’s hit.

    As Kustra was being tended to on the ice, Rebels head coach, general manager and owner Brent Sutter hopped up on the edge of his team’s bench to engage in a shouting match with Blades assistant coach Ryan Keller and Brockman. Building security moved in to ensure the spectators didn’t get involved.

Blades AC Ryan Keller and HC Dean Brockman yell at the Rebels bench.

    Most of the power play from Hausinger’s infraction was later wiped out, when Blades winger Caleb Fantillo received a double minor for high sticking.

    With 29.6 seconds to play and Saskatoon holding a 4-2 edge, Rebels defenceman Colton Bobyk nailed Blades star winger Braylon Shmyr with a high hit dropping Shmyr to the ice. Saskatoon defenceman Evan Fiala tried to engage Bobyk, but was only able to get in a slash before the officials jumped in. Both rearguards were given 10-minute misconducts, and Fiala received a minor for slashing.

    After being tended to by the trainers, Shmyr managed to leave the ice for the Saskatoon dressing room under his own power.

    “Anytime you see one of your own guys go down whether it be a clean hit or not it is always tough to watch,” said Blades centre Jesse Shynkaruk. “We’re on the bench there, and it is tough seeing Kusy (Kustra) get dragged off and Shmyrsie (Shmyr) too.

A scrum occurs by the Rebels net in the second period.

    “The boys battled, and we won it for those two guys tonight. It was all for them.

    “It was a little tense. We kind of got into it with the other team there. We just have to draw attention back to the game and finish off the last 10 minutes.”

    The game ended with a big scrum ensuing by the left corner boards in the Saskatoon zone. The highlight was a jawing match between Rebels centre Michael Spacek and Blades defenceman Jackson Caller.

    The officials broke the scrum up before it could escalate, and no penalties were assessed.

    As far as scoring went, Shynkaruk scored twice and had an assist for the Blades, while Shmyr and Gage Ramsay netted singles. Austin Glover and Evan Polei responded with singles for the Rebels. Polei was involved in a second period fight with Blades winger Lukus MacKenzie.

Blades S Evan Fiala mixes it up with Rebels captain Adam Musil.

    Logan Flodell made 22 stops to earn the win in goal for the Blades (21-26-5-1). Lasse Petersen took the loss starting in goal for the Rebels (23-22-5-3) turning away just three-of-six shots. He was pulled at the 10:22 mark of the opening frame.

Riley Lamb stopped 20-of-21 shots playing in relief for Red Deer.

    “All of us were definitely worked up when Kusy (Kustra) got hit,” said Flodell. “I think we settled down and played pretty well.

    “We got the win and killed off the penalties. It was good.”

    After the game, Brockman was still trying to piece together the shouting match with Sutter.

    “I am not even sure exactly what started or what happened,” said Brockman. “Tempers are pretty high at that point. It is obviously a pretty emotional game and that can happen.

The Blades celebrate their victory over the Rebels.

    “After the bad hit, I mean tempers are obviously going to fly. Hockey is a game of emotion and physicality.
    “To be honest, I am looking down my bench to see who I have to put out next. I didn’t see the first hit, and I didn’t see the hit on (Braylon) Shmyr either.”

    With the win, the Blades move into eighth place and currently hold the final playoff berth in the WHL’s Eastern Conference. They sit a point ahead of the Calgary Hitmen (19-24-7-2), but the Hitmen have a game in hand.

    The Blades return to action this coming Friday, when the host the Moose Jaw Warriors at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre. The Rebels return home to Red Deer to host the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Wednesday.

Suspensions could be on the horizon

    The WHL office could possibly issue suspensions for actions that went down in Saturday’s clash between the Blades and Rebels.

    The major penalty for checking to the head given to Hausinger and the double minor for high sticking assessed to Fantillo will be automatically reviewed by the league for further discipline.

    The Blades could send a tape to the league office asking for supplemental discipline for Bobyk over his high hit on Shymr, which wasn’t penalized.

    From what I saw on the replays, I don’t believe Hausinger or Fantillo will be suspended, but there could be a suspension to Bobyk for head contact. With that said, the league has access to various camera angles besides the replays that were shown in the building, so any outcome is possible.

    Richard Doerksen, who is the WHL’s vice-president of hockey, is usually pretty bang on when it comes to issuing or not issuing suspensions.

    The Blades didn’t have any injury updates on Kustra or Shmyr after the game.  

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