Soyko takes long and winding road back to hockey

P.A. Bears all-time great makes strong comeback with Pandas

Abby Soyko is putting up points with the Pandas.

Abby Soyko was never going to give into the setbacks in her hockey career even when they came in bunches and were often out of her control.

The 21-year-old alumna of the Prince Albert Northern Bears under-18 AAA female hockey team experienced enough downs over a two-year period that would have knocked most out of the sport and into another stage of their lives. The string of adversity for Soyko started in earnest in April of 2020.

Having finished playing one season with the Northern Alberta Xtreme under-18 female prep team in Edmonton, Soyko was finishing up her Grade 12 studies in high school and looking forward to joining the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns Women’s Hockey Team in September of 2020 along with one of her triplet sisters in Alli. The two sisters had played together on the Xtreme and the Bears.

On April 20, 2020, the University of Lethbridge axed the Pronghorns Men’s and Women’s Hockey team’s due to budget cuts. On May 28, 2020, Abby found a new team and she officially joined the storied University of Alberta Pandas Women’s Hockey Team.

Abby Soyko went over two years between competitive games.

With the world in the grips of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Pandas weren’t able to take the ice for game action in 2020-21 due to the Canada West Conference cancelling its season and U Sports cancelling all its national championships.

 In June of 2021, Soyko tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her knee and had to undergo reconstructive surgery. Due to the one year long rehabilitation to it took to comeback from that injury, Soyko was forced to miss the 2021-22 campaign, when all leagues under the U Sports umbrella returned to action.

Even during the worst of the down times, Soyko was not going to give up on playing hockey.

“I just always knew that hockey is what I wanted to do,” said Soyko, who also took part in lacrosse and track and field growing up in P.A. “I just kind of looked at this as more opportunity to just focus on my school and just rebuild myself kind of from the ground up.

Abby Soyko missed the 2021-22 season rehabbing a knee injury.

“I just kind of changed from how I was from (under-18 hockey) to how I am now, because in my opinion, I think I’m a more well-rounded player than I was in (under-18). I just kind of tried to rejuvenate myself.”

These days, Soyko is well into her first season playing full-time with the Pandas. In 20 regular season games with the Pandas, the power forward sits fifth in team scoring with seven goals and six assists for 13 points.

Taking up position on the right wing, Soyko had a goal Saturday helping her Pandas down the host University of Saskatchewan Huskies 3-1 in a U Sports regular season game played before 626 spectators at Merlis Belsher Place. In skating through her first campaign with the Pandas, Soyko is focused on improving and admits she still had to go through her on-ice growing pains with regards to adjusting to the game at the university level.

“I feel like I’ve had my ups and downs,” said Soyko, who stands 5-foot-4. “I expected that completely.

The first U Sports team Abby Soyko committed to folded.

“My coach Howie (Draper) has been really understanding and just really pushing me to be better. That has been really helpful in my mental block. He made it kind of easy for me actually.”

Draper, who has been the Pandas head coach since U Sports started awarding national titles for women’s hockey in the 1997-98 campaign, said one of Soyko’s biggest moments this season was when she scored in the team’s first regular season game back on September 30, 2022. Soyko netted the Pandas first goal of a 3-2 overtime victory over the Mount Royal University Cougars at the Clare Drake Arena in Edmonton.

The tally was a nice one too. Soyko took a drop pass from linemate Megan Wilson at the top of the left faceoff circle in the offensive zone, passed the puck to herself around a Cougars checker and roofed home a shot short side to the top left corner of the Mount Royal goal.

Soyko came to the Pandas with a reputation for putting up points. She is the all-time leading scorer with her hometown Bears piling up 128 points on 65 goals and 63 assists in 136 career regular season games played over five seasons from 2014 to 2019. Soyko is still the ninth all-time leading scorer in the history of the Saskatchewan Female Under-18 AAA Hockey League.

Abby Soyko scored a goal in her first U Sports game.

During her one season with the Xtreme, Soyko topped her team in scoring posting 14 goals and 13 assists for 27 points in 23 games.

When Soyko scored her first goal with the Pandas, she had gone over two-and-a-half years without playing in a competitive regular season or post-season contest. Draper said you could tell it meant a lot for Soyko to get that first goal after all that she had been through.

“It was great to see her score the goal,” said Draper, who has guided the Pandas to all eight of their U Sports national championship wins. “She hadn’t done it in a while.

“She kind of mimicked pulling the monkey off her back. That is the kind of person she is. She got really excited, and we all got excited for her.

“She is going to have a great career here.”

Abby Soyko is the P.A. Northern Bears all-time leading scorer.

When Soyko was dealing with her two-year stretch of multiple adversities, Draper was certain she would be playing full time for the Pandas one day. Draper said Soyko’s passion for the game is too strong to give up on it.

Last season when she was rehabbing her knee, Draper said Soyko was as locked into the game as the players that were on the ice for the Pandas were. The legendary Pandas bench boss said he could feel Soyko’s energy coming from the stands.

Draper said Soyko helped out with statistics and gave good feedback to her teammates trying to help guide them towards a win.

Now that Soyko is on the ice playing for the Pandas, Draper said she aids the team in so many ways.

The Pandas celebrate Abby Soyko’s first period goal on Saturday.

“I think one of the things that we were missing last year was just an extra threat offensively, and she provides that threat,” said Draper. “You can see how she can drive the puck to the net.

“She has tremendous power and the ability to explode just from a standstill and get around the corner. She has a great shot. She is tough and rugged.

“When she plays the game, she doesn’t play it in a dirty way by any stretch. It wasn’t lucky what happened down in Lethbridge with them losing their program, but we were extremely lucky to have her come to us.”

Soyko is happy she has landed on her skates with the Pandas. The opportunity to join U of A’s perennial powerhouse women’s hockey squad kind of came out of the blue.

After the Pronghorns folded, Soyko said things were quiet on the hockey front as restrictions to combat the COVID-19 pandemic had shut down large aspects of life in North American and the world. One day, Soyko got a call from her head coach with the Xtreme in Tyrel Spitzer asking if she wanted to go to the U of A and play for the Pandas.

Abby Soyko has seven goals and six assists in 20 games this season.

The wheels were put in motion from there, and Soyko officially joined the Pandas about a couple of days later. She said it meant a tonne to have her teammates around when she was coming back from her knee injury.

“Everyone was there for me when I was struggling with just not being on the ice,” said Soyko, who is an arts major looking to get into the education at U of A. “They didn’t treat me any different from any other player.

“I was just as included as everyone else. My coach made sure that I knew I was still part of everything. We’re a really tight knit group.

“I live with a couple of girls on the team. I didn’t feel left out at all, and they just made me feel really a part of the team still.”

Abby Soyko aims to keep improving her game with the Pandas.

In Saturday’s game with the Huskies, Soyko opened the scoring in the first period and a single from second-year centre Jadynn Morden allowed the Pandas to exit the opening 20 minutes with a 2-0 edge.

Second-year defender Emily Holmes scored on the power play for the Huskies at the 4:48 mark of the second to cut the Pandas lead to 2-1. Before the second period ended, Pandas second-year right-winger Kallie Clouston netted a single to put the visitors ahead of what would be the 3-1 final score.

Halle Oswald stopped 16 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Pandas, who improved to 18-5-1 with their ninth straight win. Colby Wilson turned away 22 shots to take the setback in net for the Huskies, who fell to 12-9-3.

The Pandas return to action this coming Friday, when they travel to Regina to take on the University of Regina Cougars at 7 p.m. at the Co-operators Centre.

Abby Soyko loves how her Pandas are playing overall.

The Huskies are off until Saturday, February 4, when they host U of R at 5 p.m. at Merlis Belsher Place.

Soyko said she loves how the Pandas are playing overall as a team and is pumped for what the rest of the season has in store for her squad.

“Coming back from Christmas break, I can say we’re definitely a different team,” said Soyko. “Everyone is on the same page.

“Everyone knows their roles. Everyone has bought in. We’re just kind of flowing right now.

“Everyone is just super excited.”

When her playing days with the Pandas are done, Draper believes Soyko will continue to be in hockey in some capacity.

That led to asking Soyko if she could see herself returning to Prince Albert one day to coach her old Bears team she won a SFU18AAAHL title and earned an appearance at the Esso Cup national female under-18 AAA championship tournament with in the 2016-17 campaign. Soyko enjoyed playing for long time former Bears head coach Jeff Willoughby, and the idea taking on his former role has crossed her mind.

Abby Soyko hugs Huskies centre Kate Ball.

“I don’t know, maybe,” said Soyko with a chuckle. “I have definitely thought about coaching.

“I’m not sure if I’ll go back to P.A., but if need be, I know I could probably make that happen. I have started doing some coaching and on-ice instructing in Edmonton. I definitely could see myself coaching in the future.”

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Sports scene feeling more optimistic vibes

Marie-Philip Poulin in action in November of 2018.

Marie-Philip Poulin delivered those tingly feel-good feelings to Canada.

On Tuesday night, Poulin roofed home the overtime winner to the top right corner of the United States goal to power Canada to a 3-2 comeback victory in the gold medal game of the Women’s World Hockey Championship Tournament. The win marked the first time Canada (7-0) won gold at worlds dating back to 2012.

The United States (5-2) had captured the gold medal the last five times worlds were contested.

When worlds were last held in 2019, Canada won a bronze medal.

Worlds weren’t contested in 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

Poulin has a history of coming through in big moments in Canada. She scored the gold medal game winning goal for Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, B.C., and the gold medal overtime winning goal for Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

In Tuesday’s gold medal game at worlds, the United States took a 2-0 in the first period with forward Alex Carpenter netting both tallies.

Brooklin Fry and the Prince Albert Northern Bears are going again

Canada tied things up at 2-2 in the second as forwards Brianne Jenner and Jamie Lee Rattray netting singles.

That set the stage for Poulin to net the winner in three-versus-three overtime. Her shot went in and out of the net so fast that her goal had to be confirmed by video review.

Ann-Renee Desbiens made 23 saves to pick up the win in goal for Canada. Nicole Hensley turned away 29 shots taking the setback in goal for the United States.

Tuesday’s clash at the Winsport Arena in Calgary, Alta., was played before a gathering of family members from both teams. The International Ice Hockey Federation had women’s worlds played in a bubble format without fans as part of the event’s protocols to deal with the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.

The move allowed women’s worlds to get completed in 2021.

Actually, it feels like optimism is riding much higher in Canada’s sports scene than it did a year ago at this time. Unlike a year ago at this time, there are vaccines that are available to the public for COVID-19.

Due to the fact those vaccines exist, there is a bigger and realistic believe sports seasons will be played and national championships will be contested.

The Hilltops cherish their time on the field.

A year ago at this time, some in the sports scene tried to sell false hope that everything would be alright, but a back of the mind suspicion always existed that things would fall through.

One person who has noted the increased optimism is Jeff Willoughby, who is the head coach of the Prince Albert Northern Bears female under-18 AAA hockey team. The Bears held a prospects camp and a practice session for returning regulars on Sunday.

Willoughby spoke of the positive vibes to Lucas Punkari of the Prince Albert Daily Herald.

“Even going back to last fall, the anticipation level is a lot higher,” said Willoughby to Punkari. “I think there is a little more optimism compared to last season, and it’s nice to be able to think ahead on things as we’re getting closer to normal and hopefully have a full season ahead.”

If you go by Saskatoon Hilltops practice in Saskatoon, the positive vibes are flowing like in pre-pandemic times. The players, coaches and staffers seem to be cherishing the opportunity to be involved in football a little bit more than in the past.

After the 2020 CJFL season was scrapped due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hilltops have played their first two regular season games in 2021.

The Saskatoon Angels will play at a big tournament this weekend.

They are looking forward to hosting their home opener against their provincial rivals the Regina Thunder on Saturday, September 11 at 7 p.m. at Saskatoon Minor Football Field. The contest will be a battle between two teams with 2-0 records.

Excitement is running high at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex as the 2021 Rawlings Grand Slam Softball Championship begins there on Thursday and runs through to Sunday.  That event features nine men’s teams in the under-23 division and 10 teams in the men’s division from across Canada.

Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic is still going cause bumps and adjustments to the sport scene. With that said, there is a strong believe the games will be able to march on.

On that note, here are a few other observations from the sports scene.

• Morgan Willoughby was named an assistant coach with the Prince Albert Northern Bears female under-18 AAA hockey team near the middle of August. She is a former Bears captain and a recent graduate of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Hockey team. Odds are high she will make big waves in the hockey coaching scene.

• 

  Jessica Vance in action for the Huskies on February 15, 2020.

  Jessica Vance’s name can be added to the list of athletes who likely didn’t know they were playing their final game before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. On February 15, 2020, Vance made 28 saves playing goal for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Hockey team as they dropped a 1-0 decision in Game 2 of a Canada West quarter-final series to the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds at Merlis Belsher Place. The Thunderbirds swept the best-of-three series 2-0. Vance was the Huskies star goalie and was named the MVP of the Canada West Conference for the 2017-18 campaign. She has one season of U Sports eligibility remaining. The 2020-21 U Sports campaign was scrapped due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Vance kept progressing in her school studies and is now attending the University of Toronto to pursue her masters of physical therapy.
• On Tuesday night, Saskatoon Blades general manager Colin Priestner announced on Twitter long time Blades volunteer dressing room attendant Bobby Kirkness had passed away. Kirkness was battling stage 4 liver and pancreatic cancer. The Blades named their training camp tournament trophy after him in “The Kirkness Cup.” Kirkness was a true gem on the WHL circuit, and he will be missed by many.
• Back on August 18, the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets signed centre Cole Sillinger to a three-year, entry-level contract. The Blue Jackets picked Sillinger in the first round and 12 overall in the NHL Entry Draft held this past July via video conference call. If Sillinger doesn’t make the Blue Jackets, he would be returned to the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers for his 18-year-old season. Last season, the Tigers loaned Sillinger to the Sioux Falls Stampede of the United States Hockey League. Sillinger had 24 goals, 22 assists and a plus-five rating in the plus-minus department in 31 games in Sioux Falls. He had 22 goals, 31 assists and a plus-19 rating in 48 games with the Tigers in 2019-20. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Sillinger crack the Blue Jackets roster this coming season.
• Yours truly is off to attend a big family wedding, so I am out of here for a short bit. See you all in about seven to 10 days.

 

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Epic comeback caps Bears most memorable night at Hauser

The Bears celebrate clinching a berth to the Esso Cup in 2017.

It was a game where it appeared the Prince Albert Northern Bears were going to have to rely on a second chance to nail down an Esso Cup berth.

After capturing their second Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League title in team history in March of 2017, the Bears hosted the Hartney, Man., based Westman Wildcats in a best-of-three female midget AAA Western regional playdown.

The Bears took Game 1 of the series 6-4 on March 31, 2017 at the Art Hauser Centre.

Brooklyn Anderson (#7) had the late third period winner.

In Game 2 of the series on April 1, 2017, the Bears found themselves down 6-3 with 13:24 remaining in the third period. At that point in time, it appeared the two sides would play in a series deciding Game 3 the next night.

All of a sudden, the Bears made a frantic comeback. With exactly two minutes to play in the third, rookie forward Brooklyn Anderson tipped home a point shot from tough as nails defender Jordan Ashe to give the Bears a 7-6 lead.

Prince Albert held on from there to ensure that score would be the final result in order to capture the Lanchbery Family Trophy. The Bears swept the series 2-0 to qualify for the Esso Cup – the female under-18 AAA championship tournament – for the first time in team history.

The Bears celebrate Brooklyn Anderson’s late third period winner.

“It feels amazing,” said Anderson after the game. “I know the team was really excited to get there.

“We weren’t losing this. We wanted to get there, and we got there, so that is awesome.

“I saw Jordan (Ashe) had it on the point, and I knew that I just needed to get in front of the net. It is exactly what I did, and it just went off my stick and in.”

The Bears in 2016-17 were the carbon copies of the romantic image of their WHL cousins the Prince Albert Raiders, when the Raiders are at their best.

If you wanted to play run and gun, the Bears could run and gun. If you wanted to get down in the trenches, the Bear would get down in the trenches.

Captain Brooke Hobson was the Bears best player.

While fighting is technically banned in the female game of hockey, the Bears had the toughness to take care of things in a flat out brawl, if their opponents chose to play that way. The Bears had a team that was built for any type of game.

Overall, head coach Jeff Willoughby liked the high tempo offensive games the best being a fan of the 1980s NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. It seemed fitting the Bears most memorable home game turned out to be a 7-6 shootout that saw a championship trophy and banner handed out at the end of the contest.

The Bears finished second overall in the SFU18AAAHL with what was at the time the best record in team history at 22-6.

When they got to the best-of-five SFU18AAAHL championship series, the Bears swept away their archrivals the Saskatoon Stars 3-0. The Stars had topped the league standings with a 25-2-1 mark.

Camryn Amundson (#9) jets up ice for the Bears.

The Bears had a well-rounded roster, but their best player was captain and ultra-talented offensive-defender Brooke Hobson. Hobson was a member of Canada’s under-18 national women’s team and turned heads with a shot that seemed to be gifted to her from a Higher Power.

Veteran forward Camryn Amundson skated through an inspired season in 2016-17. She played in 27 regular season games setting career highs in goals (13), assists (14) and points (27).

Her older sister Shaye had passed away tragically in a single-vehicle accident in June of 2016. On the ice, it seemed like Shaye was still there helping her younger sister play.

Abby Soyko had the equalizer for the Bears.

The Bears roster had some classic Prince Albert hockey elements.

 They had the great power forward in Abby Soyko. At age 15 that season, Soyko topped the Bears in scoring with 18 goals and 13 assists for 31 points in 27 regular season games.

The Bears had players that could put up points with a finesse offensive game like Kate Ball, who had 15 goals and 15 assists appearing in all of the Bears 28 regular season games.

They had gritty checkers like centre Ireland South, who also showed some offensive touch netting 11 goals and 10 assists in 26 regular season games.

Finesse defender Hannah Koroll was solid and made the game look easy to play at both ends of the ice.

Of course, the Bears had Ashe on the back end, and she was the Bears version of Raiders legend Dave Manson on defence.

Kate Ball had a big offensive season for the Bears in 2016-17.

In goal, the Bears had the reliable duo of Ryan Fontaine and Brooklyn Elek, and the team couldn’t go wrong playing either in big games.

Overall, the Bears had their own unique collective personality, where it seemed it was always a good day to go to the rink. Ultimately, everyone on the roster stepped up with big performances and moments at different points in the campaign to make it a special one.

When the Bears showed up for Game 2 of their series with the Wildcats, they had an estimated 1,200 supporters waiting for them at the Art Hauser Centre.

A sweep in the short set wasn’t guaranteed as the Wildcats had some star players like forward Ashton Bell, who was the captain of Canada’s under-18 national women’s team.

Hannah Koroll made playing the game look easy.

The Wildcats scored on their first two shots of the game to go ahead 2-0, but the Bears stormed back to take a 3-2 lead early in the second period.

The visitors proceeded to score four straight goals to go ahead 6-3 with 13:24 remaining in the third.

Josee Casavant and Bell had each scored twice for the Wildcats, while Camryn Clyne and Haley Wickham had singles.

Ball, Amundson and Story Navrot replied with singles for the Bears up to that point in time.

With 12:22 remaining in the third, the Bears got traction when forward Miranda Heidt slipped a pass across the front of the Westman goal to Hobson. The Bears captain potted a tally to cut the Wildcats edge to 6-4.

Hobson struck again with 7:54 remaining in the third, when she blew home a point shot to further trim the Wildcats lead to 6-5.

Jordan Ashe brought grit and toughness to the Bears.

Soyko proceeded to even things up at 6-6 with a power-play goal with 3:13 remaining in the frame. That set the stage for dramatics on Anderson’s winner.

Elek made 24 stops to pick up the win in goal. Kaitlyn Slator turned away 19 shots to take the setback in goal for the Wildcats.

“Both teams kind of just let it loose,” said Willoughby after the game. “It was kind of run and gun and fun to play in and fun to coach.

“I’m sure all the fans got more than their money’s worth here. It was incredible to coach in I will say that first of all. There was lots of intensity on the bench.

“The girls didn’t get down too low, didn’t get up too high. It was very good.”

The Bears raise the Lanchbery Family Trophy.

The win marked the first time the Bears accepted a championship trophy and banner on home ice. 

The two times they clinched the SFU18AAAHL title were both on the road.

The Bears on ice celebration with their parents and fans seemed to last a good two hours after their series clinching win ended.

Later that same month, the Bears finished fifth overall in the round robin standings at the Esso Cup tournament, which was held in Morden, Man. They just missed out making the playoff round with a 2-3 record.

The Bears are all smiles after their epic comeback win.

Looking back now, the excitement Prince Albert that season had for the Bears in 2016-17 seemed to be a prelude in “Hockey Town North” for the huge excitement that followed for the Raiders in their special 2018-19 campaign.

Of course in 2018-19, the Raiders topped the WHL standings with a 54-10-2-2 record and went on to win the WHL title thanks to Dante Hannoun’s overtime winner of Game 7 of the league championship series at the Art Hauser Centre.

In 2016-17, it was Anderson’s late third period goal and the Bears that took centre stage at the Art Hauser Centre. Prince Albert rallied around the Bears as they collected championship trophies and banners.

Camryn Amundson enjoys her moment with the trophy.

The Bears crafted a story in 2016-17 which will be passed down through generations in P.A.

That season, the Bears truly embodied the romantic image of “Hockey Town North.”

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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Bears’ rookie Archer slams door on Sharks in OT win

Bears G Brooke Archer turns away Sharks F Lacey Schneider.

PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – Brooke Archer wasn’t going to let an opportunity for redemption pass her by.

Last Sunday at the SaskTel Centre, 15-year-old rookie goalie for the Prince Albert Northern Bears made her first Saskatchewan Female Under-18 AAA Hockey League regular season start. The Mossbank, Sask., product made 27 saves coming up on the wrong end of a 7-2 loss to the host Saskatoon Stars.

The Bears played their next game after that setback on Saturday inside the friendly confines of the Art Hauser Centre, and Archer found herself getting the start again in goal. She made 21 stops helping the Bears post a 2-1 overtime victory over the visiting Battlefords Sharks.

Brooke Archer directs a shot into the corner.

The two sides go at it again on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at the Battleford Arena in Battleford.

Archer was pleased Bears head coach Jeff Willoughby didn’t allow her to dwell too long on the lopsided loss to the Stars.

“I was actually really surprised, but I was happy,” said Archer. “I felt that hopefully I could redeem myself this game and come back out better.”

Actually, it might be accurate to say Archer played so well she stole Saturday’s game for the Bears. She turned away speedy Sharks 17-year-old forward Jordyn Blais on three different breakaway opportunities.

Brooke Archer made 21 saves on Saturday.

Blais had two breakaway chances while the Sharks were short-handed.

During the game’s first 40-minutes, the Sharks had a slim 20-19 edge in shots on goal, but the visitors also had numerous grade A scoring chances.

Archer made a larger number of tough saves to allow the Bears to exit the first 40 minutes locked in a 1-1 tie.

“I was a little scared going into this one after what happened in the last one,” said Archer. “Once I got in the home ice, I felt my confidence went up a lot more.”

When it came to facing Blais on those three breakaway, Archer had a strategy.

“I knew she was going to shoot each time just because we had a D-man pressuring her,” said Archer. “I was just ready for the shot.”

Brooke Archer gathers up a loose puck.

After the two sides played a tight checking scoreless third period, it didn’t take the Bears long to get the win in a four-on-four overtime session. Just 35 seconds into the extra frame, Bears winger Haley Kicia sprung captain Paris Oleksyn on a breakaway to the Sharks goal with a smart pass.

Oleksyn wired the winner to the top right corner of the Battlefords net over the shoulder of Sharks 16-year-old veteran goalie Yelena Zaleschuk. The veteran 17-year-old Prince Albert centre was pumped to net the overtime winner.

Yelena Zaleschuk made 24 saves for the Sharks.

“It was a heck of a feeling,” said Oleksyn. “There was a lot nerves at the beginning.

“It was the first overtime of the year, which was kind of scary. Me and Haley (Kicia), we’re super excited. We just need to focus on getting the puck deep, and then it is four-on-four.

“It shouldn’t be that hard to create some two-on-ones which we did. We retrieved the puck, and it was just the best feeling.”

Oleksyn said the Bears had to get the win too after Archer made all her key saves to keep the host side in the contest.

“She (Archer) was having an amazing game,” said Oleksyn. “It was hard for us that we couldn’t help her out, because she kept stopping like breakaway shots and everything.

Ava Cole scored to give the Sharks a 1-0 lead.

“There wasn’t a lot we could do to help her out until the end.”

After a scoreless opening frame, the Sharks got on the board first at the 3:38 mark of the second. Working on the power play, Sharks defender Ava Cole snuck down from the point and collected the loose puck at the left side of the Bears net.

Cole popped home an extra-strength marker from close in to the top corner of the Prince Albert goal to give the visitors a 1-0 edge.

The Bears responded 41 seconds later when centre Sophia Zuck roofed home a shot on an offensive zone rush to even the score at 1-1.

From that point, Archer ensured the door to the Prince Albert net stayed shut helping her team improve to 2-1.

Sophia Zuck scored the equalizer for the Bears.

Zaleschuk had a solid outing as well turning away 24 shots to take the setback in goal for the Sharks, who were making their regular season debut in the 2020-21 campaign.

Willoughby said the Bears coaching staff believed they needed to let Archer start another game as quickly as possible to help her get past the loss she took in her regular season debut.

“We just felt that she needed to play,” said Willoughby. “Instead of sitting and thinking about the last game one more day, let’s just get her back in the action.

“There is no better way than to just get right back into it. I thought playing at the Art Hauser she would feel more comfortable. Obviously, it showed today.

Paris Oleksyn had the OT winner for the Bears.

“I thought she had great composure on some of the saves she had to make like three breakaways and some in tight rebounds. She had really good composure. We were glad with the decision that was made, and it paid off I think for all of us.”

Willoughby said he was happy for Archer, and believes his netminder got exactly what she needed. The veteran bench boss added the Bears skaters need to play better in front of their goaltenders but having Archer gain a boost of confidence was a big plus.

“Games can be swung either way just by how your goaltender is playing,” said Willoughby. “If we can continue to get that performance from Brooke and both our goalies, it just helps us out throughout the way here.”

The Bears celebrate their OT victory on Saturday.

On top of gaining a confidence boost, Archer will never forget getting her first win for the Bears.

“It was so exciting,” said Archer. “I just had so energy going over there, and it was just an awesome feeling.

“I hope we get lots more from there.”

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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Will sports entities lose butt financially to stay relevant in COVID-19 times?

The Acadie-Bathurst Titan enjoy a Memorial Cup win in 2018.

So how much money will sports teams be willing to lose to stay relevant in these coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic times?

Will it be millions and millions of dollars?

During the COVID-19 pandemic, money is the elephant in the room when it comes to sports organizations. It is pretty well known from a common sense type of view that sports organizations don’t have enough money to spend as the COVID-19 pandemic grips the world.

There is pressure on sports organizations to operate, because of the fear that if they are out of site they will be out of mind.

This fear is real in the sports world in Canada, and it appears millions will be spent by sports organizations to alleviate that fear. In far too many cases, sports organizations will be spending money they don’t have.

In Canada, you are seeing that with minor sports bodies, the CHL leagues and gate driven circuits like junior A hockey.

It is hard to know how much money is being lost outside of sports teams that are community owned, who make their financial statements public at an annual general meeting.

The Swift Current Broncos lost $791,000 on the 2019-20 campaign.

When it comes to the sports world, it should be noted that the sports industry in Canada is not like the sports industry in the United States.

From what I have been told, the sports industry in Canada is worth $2.6-billion. If anyone disputes that figure, I hope they feel free to pass on the source of what the correct figure might me.

On August 25, Forbes ran a column that said the sports industry in the United States is worth US$750-billion. It actually took a bit of work to search that figure out. The piece said the sports industry is the 11^th biggest industry in the United States.

In just comparing the worth of the sports industry in Canada and the United States, it becomes obvious that the sports industry is taken a lot more seriously in the United States and the sports industry in Canada is not even close to being in that realm.

Of course, one will argue the United States has 11-times greater the population that Canada has. If you do the comparative math to make Canada’s population close to equal to that of the United States, Canada’s sports industry would be worth $29.7-billion in Canadian funds in that scenario.

If Canada’s sports industry was like that of the United States, Jeff Willoughby would be making $100,000 a year to be the head coach of the Prince Albert Northern Bears female under-18 AAA hockey team as opposed to picking up a yearly honorarium to do a full-time job.

That is the reality of most coaches who work in the sports industry in Canada. They have to make careers in other industries and basically volunteer their time to help elite sport.

Most U Sports teams are not in action in 2020-21.

Circuits like major junior hockey and U Sports are the exception, but usually only the head coaches are paid full-time wages on U Sports teams.

It should be noted almost all regular season and post-season competition in U Sports has been cancelled to due safety concerns regarding COVID-19 and the fact the financing is just not there to play.

Most sports organizations in Canada have seen various revenue streams like sponsorships and fundraisers dry up significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizations that are gate run leagues have to deal with crowd limitations due to COVID-19 restrictions.

In Saskatchewan at the moment, sports teams are only allowed to bring in 150 spectators to their venues at the moment. The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League was hoping to be able to have more spectators than that when that junior A circuit’s regular season began.

This past Tuesday, the SJHL announced its regular season would start on Friday, Nov. 6, which is about four days after the circuit had been targeting to start.

Due to the rise of new COVID-19 cases in Saskatchewan, it appears SJHL teams will enter the regular season dealing with a spectator cap of 150. You have to wonder how much money each of these franchises will bleed.

Across Canada, junior A teams are leaning more and more on a model where players pay to play.

If each junior A team loses an average of $1-million on the 2020-21 season, would that justify taking the ice to play games to stay relevant?

The CFL couldn’t work out the logistics to hit the field in 2020.

On the junior A front, a $1-million loss on hockey season would be extremely tough to swallow.

The losses of the three community owned WHL teams in Saskatchewan are known from a 2019-20 campaign that saw the tail end of the regular season and all of the post-season lost due to COVID-19 restrictions.

On Sept. 29, the Swift Current Broncos announced they lost $791,000 on the 2019-20 campaign. On that same day, the Moose Jaw Warriors announced a loss of $391,299 for 2019-20.

On Oct. 7, the Prince Albert Raiders announced they lost $331,895 on the 2019-20 season. In the Raiders case, they would have easily made money had they hosted their final two home regular season games and from their home playoff dates.

The losses of the Broncos, Warriors and Raiders were compounded by money they didn’t receive from the Sportsnet television contract for broadcasting CHL games. Sportsnet didn’t have to pay out for games that weren’t played due to the COVID-19 pandemic and from the Memorial Cup tournament that was cancelled in Kelowna, B.C., that annually determines a CHL champion.

Each of those teams’ losses included money that was put aside to settle a CHL-wide class action lawsuit that argued major junior hockey players are employees and not student-athletes and were entitled to employment standard compensation. The settlement for that lawsuit is undergoing further litigation.

A circuit like the CFL didn’t play any games, and teams there are bracing for big losses. Those losses would have been worse had the CFL played.

Saskatchewan U-18 hockey will start with capped crowds of 150.

As new COVID-19 cases increase across Canada, it is still a big gamble when it comes to playing games in any sports.

On Monday, all the sports facilities in Winnipeg will be closed for two weeks due to lockdown measures that were brought back in to reduce the rise in new COVID-19 cases.

During the month of October, the provinces of Ontario and Quebec brought back in restrictions. Near the middle of October in Saskatchewan, the provincial government limited private social indoor gatherings in the home to 15 persons.

Sports teams and minor sports organizations are going to have an increasingly tough time limiting the money they are going to lose.

When the pandemic ends, those sports teams and minor sports organizations are likely going to need sugar daddies or sugar mommies to pay off their unsustainable debts or be bailed out by governments. You get the feeling there will be a lot of organizations looking for a government handout.

On a money front, the debts these sports teams and minor sports organizations could be further limited by just not playing or by shutting down until the pandemic ends. Scrutiny will likely come to sports teams and sports organizations when those that don’t have an interest in sports will want to know if sports teams and sports organizations acted in an irresponsible manner financially and if that should affect any decisions on bailouts.

The Raiders will rely on their loyal faithful to minimize losses.

My late father, Dan Steinke, worked fairly successfully in the business world, and he had little to no patience for anyone that worked under him that operated in an irresponsible manner financially.

Right now, way too many sports organizations and teams in Canada have actively decided to take the risk to play to stay relevant. It remains to be seen if these entities will have to pay the piper when all is said and done.

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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Kushniruk rises from nowhere to be key member of Bears

17-year-old forward set to play at U of Regina next season

Jadyn Kushniruk became a Bears assistant captain this season.

  PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – Jadyn Kushniruk was a diamond in the rough the Prince Albert Northern Bears found.

    During her 13-year-old season, Kushniruk was playing female house league bantam hockey in Saskatoon, where she was discovered by Bears head coach Jeff Willoughby. Willoughby liked Kushniruk’s skating and physical strength and invited her to come to training camp with the Bears.

    From that invite, Kushniruk hasn’t looked back. She made the Bears, who are one of the top teams in the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League, as a 14-year-old underage player in the 2015-16 campaign.

    As a 15-year-old sophomore in 2016-17, Kushniruk recorded 11 goals and seven assists appearing in all of the Bears 28 regular season games.

Bears C Jadyn Kushniruk, left, checks Wildcats F Carissa Hogan.

    She helped them win the SFMAAAHL title, a Western regional playdown series and appear in the Esso Cup national championship tournament.
    Kushniruk, who stands 5-foot-4, had a solid third season posting 10 goals and five assists in 26 regular season games with the Bears. This past summer, she committed to playing for the University of Regina Cougars women’s hockey team in the U Sports ranks starting in the 2019-20 campaign.

Currently in her 17-year-old and final midget AAA season, Kushniruk is helping lead the Bears as one of their assistant captains.

    “It is awesome,” said Kushniruk. “I love being here.

Jadyn Kushniruk smiles after scoring a first period goal.

    “Spending my fourth year being a leader on the team is really awesome. I am hoping to have the young girls look up to me and just do my best and leave my mark on the team as I am graduating.
    “Before I came, I played a lower level of hockey that I shouldn’t have, and Jeff (Willoughby) found me. It was really nice that he showed confidence in me early, and it is helping me to build confidence as I go on through my last year and move on to next year.”

    On Saturday at the Art Hauser Centre, Kushniruk gave the Bears a 1-0 lead against the visiting Swift Current Diamond Energy Wildcats in a SFMAAAHL regular season clash just 3:10 into the first period. She drove hard to the net on a rush into the offensive zone and tipped home a beauty setup pass from linemate Alli Soyko on the backdoor of the Swift Current goal to put the Bears ahead.

Alli Soyko (#22) set up the Bears first goal by Jadyn Kushniruk.

    That quick start helped propel the Bears to a 5-2 victory.

    Kushniruk broke an eight-game goalless drought with her tally against the Wildcats.
    “It was really nice,” said Kushniruk. “I had been looking to score a goal for a couple of games now.

    “Alli (Soyko) made a perfect pass, a perfect feed and I couldn’t have asked for a better setup to start the game.”

    Kushniruk has four goals and five assists appearing in all 11 of the Bears regular season games in the current campaign. Willoughby is pleased to see how far his hard-working forward has come in her midget AAA career.

Rhea Peterson scored the Bears third goal on Saturday.

    “She is not the typical bantam AA that moves on to (midget) AAA,” said Willoughby. “To see her from start to finish committing to Regina now, it is just a real good feel good story. You don’t hear them all the time.

    “We’re just proud of her. Everything she has gotten she has earned. She is just one of those consistent players that just sets a good example every night.

    “We’re lucky to have her.”

    The Bears expanded their lead to 2-0 with six minutes remaining in the first on a near identical play to Kushniruk’s goal only with 16-year-old forward Brookyn Anderson sending a beauty feed to linemate Kailey Ledoux, who notched her third goal of the campaign.

    Anderson set up the Bears third goal at the 6:13 mark of the second hitting sophomore forward Rhea Peterson with another backdoor setup pass to give the Bears a 3-0 edge.

Brooklyn Anderson had two assists for the Bears on Saturday.

    “We’re happy with the start we’ve had,” said Willoughby, who team’s previous game was a 3-2 overtime loss to the Stars in Saskatoon back on Nov. 11. “Obviously, we were off for a couple of weeks.

    “We didn’t know how the feel would be, but I think the girls made a connection right away, made some nice passes, had some puck possession and scored a couple of quick goals. I think that just helped set the table for the rest of the game for us.”

    The Wildcats answered back just 23 seconds after Peterson’s tally, when 16-year-old forward Sara Kendall roofed a shot past Bears netminder Lexi Beuker to cut the Bears lead to 3-1.

    Before the second period ended, sophomore 15-year-old forward Paris Oleksyn tipped home a point shot from defender McKenzie Mayo to give the Bears a 4-1 edge. Bears star forward Kate Ball expanded that advantage to 5-1 scoring 79 seconds into the third period.

    The Wildcats rounded out the game’s scoring with 12:33 to play in the third period with a short-handed goal coming from Crystal Wale.

Taylor Lind picked up assists on both Wildcats goals on Saturday.

    Beuker made 24 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Bears (6-4-1). She made a least three huge saves on Wildcats star forward Taylor Lind including a sprawling stick paddle stop on a breakaway with 11.4 seconds remaining in the second period.

    Lind picked up assists on both Swift Current goals.

    Harper Davey turned away 24 shots to take the setback in goal for the Wildcats (3-5-1).

Both teams face each other again on Sunday at 1 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre.

    Looking to the future after this season, Kushniruk is looking forward to playing at the university level with the Cougars. Near the end of this past summer, she received an email from Cougars head coach Sarah Hodges regarding interest about joining the Cougars.

    Kushniruk said she was in right at the start. She was brought in to visit the U of R campus.

Lexi Beuker holds on to one of her 24 saves in goal for the Bears.

    During that visit, Kushniruk went to lunch with Hodges, and the veteran bench boss told the young forward she definitely had a spot on the team and gave Kushniruk time to think things over. Kushniruk said she didn’t need to think things over and wanted to go ahead full steam in joining the Cougars.

    Kushniruk’s mom, Tracey, is originally from Regina.

    “It is exciting,” said Kushniruk. “It will be nice to have the support of my family there.

    “(Bears alum) Ireland (South) is there too, so it will be nice to play back with her again and have a couple of familiar faces on the team that will welcome me in.”

    Before she heads off to join the Cougars, Kushniruk hopes to enjoy a special season to conclude her time with the Bears.

The Bears celebrate their win over the Wildcats on Saturday.

    “We just want to continue to push ourselves to be better and better,” said Kushniruk. “Winning league and Esso is not too far out of our reach, so I think that is what we are all kind of hoping for.”

    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.