100th Memorial Cup will be best remembered for great hockey

Titan LW Liam Murphy (#61) and Pats G Max Paddock dive at the puck.

    REGINA, Sask. – The biggest uncontrollable variable came through in spades at the 100^th edition of the Memorial Cup.

    During the eight games of the tournament that ran from May 18 and wrapped up on Sunday in Regina to determine supremacy in the Canadian Hockey League, the hockey was outstanding. Now two days after the event wrapped up, the biggest memory you take away was how tight the competition was.

    Out of the eight games, five of them were decided by one goal, while two were decided by two goals with the winning club registering an empty-net tally on each of those occasions.

    Sunday’s championship final turned out to be the contest with the biggest margin of victory as the QMJHL champion Acadie-Bathurst Titan blanked the host Regina Pats 3-0, and that contest included an empty-net goal by Titan right-winger Ethan Crossman with 30.3 seconds to play.

Captain Sam Steel brings the puck up ice for the Regina Pats.

    On top of that, all of those games were shown on national television via Sportsnet providing great exposure to the CHL game.

    You would be hard pressed to find a more compelling Memorial Cup. The WHL champion Swift Current Broncos went 0-3 and every loss came via a one-goal margin.

    Despite being tired and beat up due to playing a record 26 games in their run through the WHL playoffs, the Broncos, who finished second overall in the WHL regular season with a 48-17-5-2 record, could have conceivably been on the winning side of any or all of their games.

    Had they not given up two short-handed goal in their tournament opener against the Titan on May 19 surrendering leads of 2-1 and 3-2, the Broncos wouldn’t have been on the short end of a 4-3 overtime setback.

Colby Sissons and the Broncos didn’t get enough breaks at the Memorial Cup.

    A win in that game could have reversed their fortunes for the event overall. If Broncos star right-winger Tyler Steenbergen came out that contest without sustaining a concussion on an awkward, second period hit, that would have made a big difference for Swift Current too.

    The OHL champion Hamilton Bulldogs were likely the most consistent club at the Memorial Cup. The Bulldogs downfall came from the fact they weren’t able to score even with having talented player like star centre Robert Thomas.

    In four tournament games, the Bulldogs, who finished third overall in the OHL’s regular season with a 43-18-4-3 record, posted a 2-2 mark at the Memorial Cup. They outshot their opponents 169-112 in those contests, but were outscored by their opponents 10-9.

Robert Thomas and the Bulldogs didn't get enough goals in Regina.

    The Bulldogs only scored more than two goals once in any of their outings when they downed the Titan 3-2 on May 22.

    Hamilton fell 4-2 in the tournament semifinal contest to the Pats last Friday despite having a 46-24 edge in shots on goal. The Pats sealed that win with an empty-net goal from Jake Leschyshyn with 5.2 seconds to play in the third period.

    In the championship final, the Pats, who were seventh overall in the WHL with a 40-25-6-1 regular season record, did have a real shot to win the game against the Titan, who finished second overall in the QMJHL regular season with a 43-15-8-2 mark.
    In the second period of that contest, right-winger Jared Legien and star captain Sam Steel both rang shots off goalposts.

Defenceman Josh Mahura, right, fires a shot on goal for the Pats.

    After 40 minutes, the Pats were down 1-0 and had been outshot 36-11, so had one or both of the goalpost shots by Legien or Steel have gone in, the storyline of that came could have played out differently.

    The Pats came out on fire in the third period of that contest holding a 17-8 edge in shots on goal. Steel had the best chance to tie things up, but he was robbed on a shot from the left slot by the glove hand of Titan netminder Evan Fitzpatrick.

    That set the stage for Titan captain Jeffrey Truchon-Viel to set up centre Samuel Asselin for a goal to put the Titan up 2-0 with 6:58 to play in the third. Victory was then sealed with Crossman’s empty netter.

Jake Leschyshyn brings the puck up ice for the Pats.

    Most Memorial Cups have good drama, but the drama and excitement in this year’s event was above and beyond normal.

    In one of about every five Memorial Cups, you often encounter a situation where one team is heads and shoulders about everyone else like in 2010 in Brandon, Man. That Memorial Cup is viewed as one of the best run tournaments, but the dominating storyline was the romp of the OHL champion Windsor Spitfires.

    The Spitfires flattened the host Wheat Kings and the WHL champion Calgary Hitmen by a combined score of 15-5 before needing overtime to outlast the QMJHL champion Moncton Wildcats 4-3. In the championship final, the Spitfires made short work of the Wheat Kings in a 9-1 triumph.

Defenceman Noah Dobson wins a battle along the boards for the Titan.

    At the 2016 Memorial Cup in Red Deer, Alta., the OHL champion London Knights won all three of their round robin games by a score of 20-5. That event ended with an off the charts exciting final, when the Knights rallied back from a 2-1 third period deficit to pull out a 3-2 overtime victory on Matthew Tkachuk’s winner to down the QMJHL champion Rouyn-Noranda Huskies 3-2.

    The last three of the eight games at the tournament in Regina were all sellouts at 6,484 tickets sold for each night. All of those contests featured the host Pats.

    Over 6,000 tickets were sold for five out of the eight games in Regina. The lowest total of 5,678 sold for the opener on May 18, when the Pats downed the Bulldogs 3-2.

Samuel Asselin had the Titan’s Memorial Cup insurance goal.

    Fanfest was popular. It seemed like it was hit and miss with large gatherings at the Brandt Celebration Zone even with the outstanding musical acts that were brought in.

    The Pats owners expect to swallow a $2-million loss financially for hosting the Memorial Cup mostly due to providing a $3-million hosting fee to the CHL. They said they never expected to make money on the event.

    Regina Leader-Post star sports columnist Rob Vanstone reported the hosting fee for next year’s Memorial Cup to be hosted in Halifax, N.S., by the Mooseheads is believed to be $1-million less than the fee spent to host the tournament in Regina.

    The host committee for the Memorial Cup in Regina brought in the Eagles to perform during an open ceremonies on May 17, and about 27,000 seats were sold for that event.

    The Pats owners could have scaled things back, but they wanted to put on a memorable event and stuck to their guns. To be honest, this year’s Memorial Cup had a lot of cool things attached to it.
    Away from the rink, the hotels, restaurants and other businesses in Regina saw great spinoffs from the fact the Memorial Cup was held in the Saskatchewan capital.

    While there are always things to learn along the way, the 100^th Memorial Cup in Regina overall will go down as a success.

The Titan pose for the tradition team picture with the Memorial Cup.

    The big thing that made it a success was the product on the ice. When you come to the Memorial Cup, you want to see exciting hockey.

    All eight games that were played at the event in Regina delivered exciting hockey in droves. It will likely be a number of years before all the games in another single Memorial Cup tournament can duplicate the great display of hockey that took place in Regina.

    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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Bulldogs slip past Titan 3-2 at Memorial Cup

Both squads ensured a top two finish in round robin standings

Robert Thomas had the winning goal for the Bulldogs on Tuesday.

    The Hamilton Bulldogs made sure they won’t be involved in a standings tiebreaker game and will now wait to see where they will sit for the playoff round of the Memorial Cup.

    On Tuesday at the Brandt Centre in Regina, the Bulldogs downed the QMJHL champion Acadie-Bathurst Titan 3-2 in the final round robin game for both clubs. Both teams have identical 2-1 records and will finish in the top two positions of the round robin standings.

    At the moment, the Bulldogs sit in first place thanks to their head-to-head win with the Titan. Hamilton will make Sunday’s championship final, if the host Regina Pats (1-1) fall to the WHL champion Swift Current Broncos (0-2) in Wednesday’s final round robin game. The Pats and Broncos go at it at 8 p.m. at the Brandt Centre.

    If the Pats beat the Broncos on Wednesday, the Broncos will be eliminated from the CHL championship tournament. The Pats would improve to 2-1 and invoke the three-way tiebreaking rules between them, the Bulldogs and the Titan.

    Under a mathematical formula involving the goals for and goals against between the three clubs in their head-to-head games, the Titan would vault to first place, the Bulldogs would finish second and face the Pats in Friday’s semifinal contest set for 8 p.m. at the Brandt Centre.

Netminder Kaden Fulcher made 33 saves for the Bulldogs on Tuesday.

    If the Broncos beat the Pats on Wednesday, those two clubs will go at it again on Thursday at 6 p.m. in a standings tiebreaker game at the Brandt Centre.

    As for Tuesday’s game, the Bulldogs jumped out to a quick start on the scoreboard in the first period. At the 14:33 mark of the first, Bulldogs defenceman Benjamin Gleason fired home a point shot through a screen for a power-play goal to give Hamilton a 1-0 lead.

    The OHL champions expanded their edge to 2-0 at the 17:27 mark of the first, when right-winger MacKenzie Entwistle fed a pass across the front of the Titan net to linemate Nicholas Caamano, who buried his first of the tournament.

    The Titan cut the Bulldogs lead to 2-1 at the 14:11 mark of the second period, when captain Jeffery Truchon-Viel converted a backdoor pass from offensive defenceman Noah Dobson.

    Just 64 seconds into the third, the Bulldogs struck again on the power play to go ahead 3-1, when star centre Robert Thomas ripped home a shot from the right slot to the top right corner of the Acadie-Bathurst goal.

    The Titan didn’t go away. They cut the gap to 3-2 at the 3:44 mark of the third, when centre Samuel Asselin redirected a backdoor feed from Truchon-Viel into the Hamilton goal.

    Acadie-Bathurst couldn’t find the equalizer allowing the Bulldogs to pull out their second straight win.

Benjamin Gleason had the Bulldogs first goal on Tuesday.

    In one the stranger things you will see in a game, the Titan went on the power play with 1:34 to play in the third but elected to not pull netminder Evan Fitzpatrick for a six-on-four advantage in the number of skaters on the ice to push for the equalizer.

    With one goal separating the two clubs, the Acadie-Bathurst coaches elected not to pull Fitzpatrick to avoid giving up an empty-net goal to upset the mathematical formula involving a standings tiebreaker between themselves, the Bulldogs and the Pats.

    Had the Bulldogs defeated the Titan by two goals on Tuesday, Hamilton would have locked up a berth in Sunday’s championship game. Hamilton fell 3-2 to the Pats in the tournament’s opening game last Friday. The Titan downed the Pats 8-6 in their round robin meeting on Sunday.

    Kaden Fulcher made 33 saves to pick up the win for the Bulldogs on Tuesday. Fitzpatrick turned away 31 shots to take the setback in goal for the Titan on Tuesday.

    An announced crowd of 6,072 attended Tuesday’s game, but with a lot of empty seats visible at the rink, it appears there were a number of no shows.

    It is expected Wednesday clash between the host Pats and the Broncos could be the first game of this year’s tournament that could be a complete sellout.

Broncos fans bring extra atmosphere, other notes

Swift Current Broncos fans have invaded Regina for the Memorial Cup.

    When the Swift Current Broncos hit the ice at the Memorial Cup, you sometimes wonder if anyone was left in the city “where life makes sense.”

    On Monday when the WHL champion Broncos faced the OHL champion Hamilton Bulldogs, there was a huge invasion of fans sporting Broncos jerseys or apparel on to the Evraz Place grounds in Regina. For anyone that has attended Broncos games at the Innovation Credit Union i-Plex in Swift Current, they would recognize many of the Broncos supporters as regulars at games in Swift Current.

    When the Broncos faced the Bulldogs, the Broncos fans stormed into the Fanfest area. A handful spilled into the Brandt Celebration Zone pre-game.

    With Broncos making their first appearance in 25 years at the CHL’s championship tournament, the expressions on the faces of the Swift Current fans shows they are just happy their team has made it this far. Almost all of them are intent on just enjoying the fact the Broncos are playing in the Memorial Cup and that this year’s prestigious major junior tournament is located in a centre that is just a two-and-a-half hour drive east of Swift Current on the Trans-Canada Highway.

Swift Current Broncos fans gather outside the Brandt Centre.

    Back in 1993, the Memorial Cup was held in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., so it wasn’t as easy for Broncos fans to follow their team on the road. When the Broncos won the Memorial Cup in 1989 in Saskatoon, a healthy contingent from Swift Current made it out to the tourney in that year.

    Before Monday’s game, Broncos supporters could be heard in Fanfest getting warmed up before the game with chants of “let’s go Broncos” minutes before the doors of the Brandt Centre opened. When the doors swung open, many Swift Current supporters took up position in the standing room on the concourse ring to see their team warm up. A couple displayed signs.

    Upon hitting the ice during pre-game introductions, the Broncos were greeted with a deafening cheers.

    The cheers were muted for much of Monday’s clash, as the Bulldogs spend huge amounts of time in the Broncos end. Hamilton outshot Swift Current 22-4 after the first period and held a 1-0 lead.

Broncos fans did have spurts, when they hammered on their cowbells and attempted to get the “let’s go Broncos chant” going. They brought huge cheers at the 9:26 mark of the second, when offensive defenceman Colby Sissons scored on the power play to tie thing up at 1-1.

    From that point, the Bulldogs proceeded to tilt the ice keeping the puck in Swift Current’s end for long stretches, which kept the Swift Current supporters quiet. Eventually, Bulldogs left-winger Marian Studenic netting the winner with 2:01 remaining in the third period. 

Swift Current Broncos fans cheer on their team at the Memorial Cup.

    When the third period expired with the Bulldogs pulling out a 2-1 victory while holding a 56-22 edge in shots on goal, the Broncos fans saluted their side, when they left the ice. A huge ovation was given to Broncos netminder Stuart Skinner, when he reappeared on the ice to accept his award as the game’s first star. He had a spectacular performance making 54 saves, and he made sure to give an appreciative wave to the crowd before departing to the dressing room.

    The presence of the Broncos fans has added to the atmosphere of the Memorial Cup. Unfortunately, it might only last for one more game.

    The Broncos hit the ice against the host Regina Pats on Wednesday at 8 p.m. at the Brandt Centre. At 0-2, the Broncos need to win against the 1-1 Pats to stay alive in the tournament.

    If the Broncos can win to stay alive, they will ensure their supporters will return to the rink with them for another game.

• The best of the Regina Pats fans definitely showed up for their round robin game on Sunday. Judging by the stands, there were very few no shows of the 5,832 spectators who bought tickets to that contest. Even after the Pats fell behind 7-2 early in the third period to the QMJHL champion Acadie-Bathurst Titan, not that many in attendance left the rink. They got to see an inspired Pats comeback attempt. As the host side closed to 7-6, the cheers in the building were deafening. The rally was not to be as the Titan scored an empty-net goal to season an 8-6 victory.
• On Tuesday, the CHL announced alums and current player used a total of over $9.6-million from the CHL Scholarship Program in the 2017-18 campaign. That included 910 graduates who utilized their scholarships at post-secondary institutions across North America totaling over $8-million. In addition, a total of over $1.6-million was spent for current CHL players attending high school and post-secondary institutions.
• It is hard to judge the buzz for the Memorial Cup in Regina. When you are on the Evraz Place grounds, the buzz is there no matter who is in action. When you leave the Evraz Place grounds, it feels like the buzz is lacking. After covering Sunday’s game where the host Pats fell 8-6 to the Titan, I checked out the nightclub district on Dewdney Avenue. Only Gabbo’s was open, and it was steady. The workers and patrons inside had to be pretty much reminded the Pats were playing hockey again. The Pats were eliminated in tough seven game first round series in the WHL playoffs to the Swift Current Broncos and had 45 off days before playing in the Memorial Cup. The night action in Regina was a big contrast to the 2017 WHL playoffs, when the Pats made a long run falling in Game 6 of the WHL Championship series. Before 2017, the Pats last appeared in the WHL final in 1984. After Pats home games in the 2017 WHL playoffs, the night action with excited Pats supporters spilling into the Dewdney Avenue district was similar to what was seen when the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders make a run to the Grey Cup.

    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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Titan clash with Pats proves Memorial Cup up for grabs

Pats LW Robbie Holmes (#32) battles Titan D Elijah Francis for the puck.

    REGINA, Sask. – There are no guarantees at the 2018 Memorial Cup, if Sunday’s clash between the Acadie-Bathurst Titan and the Regina Pats is any indication.

    Just 13 seconds into the round robin clash, Pats overage right-winger Cameron Hebig lifted a shot over top of a sprawled out Titan netminder Evan Fitzpatrick to give his side a 1-0 lead. The Titan proceeded to rally back to take a 6-2 lead after the second period chasing Pats starting 17-year-old netminder Max Paddock from the Regina goal stopping 26-of-32 shots fired his way.

    Veteran Ryan Kubic came in at the start of the third and was beaten on the first shot he faced as Titan right-winger Ethan Crossman fired home his second goal of the contest to put the QMJHL champions up 7-2. 

The Pats celebrate a goal 13 seconds in from Cameron Hebig.

    At that point, it looked like the Titan were about to put the final stamp on a statement game to show they might be the best club in the four-team field.

    The tournament hosting Pats proceeded to counter with four straight goals to pull to within 7-6. The last tally was a long seeing-eye point shot from overage centre Matthew Bradley with 1:57 to play in the third bringing the crowd of 5,832 spectators at the Brandt Centre into a frenzy.

    Following Bradley’s goal, the Titan look fragile, and it felt like the next Pats shot could force overtime.

    After the Pats had an offensive zone faceoff with 18.4 seconds to play, Titan captain Jeffrey Truchon-Viel made a desperate diving stab to knock a Pats pass attempt along the blue-line into the centre ice zone.

Defenceman Noah Dobson had two goals and two assist for the Titan.

    Titan offensive defenceman Noah Dobson raced up ice, tracked down the puck and fired it into an empty Pats cage with one second to play to seal an 8-6 victory for Acadie-Bathurst. Dobson finished the contest with two goals and two assists.

    The Titan, who were playing on back-to-back nights, improved to 2-0 and locked up a berth into the tournament’s semifinal contest on Friday. The Pats fell to 1-1 with the setback.

    The clash between the two sides was a thriller for the fans. By the looks of the stands at the Brandt Centre, it appeared there were very few no-shows in the event’s third round robin game.

    It was an aggravating one for the coaches. Both sides had to consider the possibility of delating the video on this one.

    With the WHL champion Swift Current Broncos set to battle the OHL champion Hamilton Bulldogs in a battle of 0-1 squads on Monday at 6 p.m. at the Brandt Centre, the Memorial Cup is up for grabs.

Pats C Matthew Bradley (#77) steers the puck away from trouble.

    It is hard to declare any team a favourite. As the overused sports cliché goes, the club that shows up and makes the most plays on any given day is going to win.

    In the battle between the Titan and Pats, the goaltending on either side did not inspire confidence. The skilled players on both squads did net some nice goals, but a number of soft shots made it through for each side too.

    Fitzpatrick looked good over the opening 40 minutes, but in the third period, it looked like at times he wouldn’t have been able to stop a beach ball.

Captain Sam Steel had four assists for the Pats.

    Paddock looked like a rookie sensation making 31 saves in the Pats 3-2 tournament opening victory over the Bulldogs on Friday. On Sunday, he looked like a deer in the headlights type rookie, where the stage seemed to overwhelm the youngster from Brandon, Man.

    After being beat on the first shot he faced, Kubic, who is eligible to return for an overage campaign, almost mishandled a shot just seconds later nearly allowing that puck to go into the Regina goal. It took a video review to ensure the Titan did not score at that moment.
    Kubic stopped three of four shots sent his way.

    Besides getting a huge night from Dobson, Truchon-Viel and Liam Murphy had big nights for Acadie-Bathurst. Truchon-Viel had a pair of goals and an assist, while Murphy had a goal and two assists. Samuel Asselin had Acadie-Bathurst’s lone other tally.

Noah Dobson, left, and Jeffrey Truchon-Viel enjoy a Titan empty-net goal.

    On the Pats side, their top line of Hebig, captain and star centre Sam Steel and left-winger Nick Henry did most of the damage. Steel had four assists, Hebig had a pair of goals and an assist, while Henry had a goal and an assist.

    Offensive defenceman Josh Mahura had a goal and an assist to help out the Pats cause as well.

    Going forward, the Titan will close out their round robin schedule taking on the Bulldogs on Tuesday at 8 p.m. at the Brandt Centre. With a win in that contest, the Titan would lock up a berth in the Memorial Cup championship game this coming Sunday.

    The Pats close their round robin schedule taking on the Broncos at 8 p.m. on Wednesday at the Brandt Centre. If the Pats pull out a win in that contest, they will lock up a spot in Friday’s semifinal.

    It remains to be seen if the Titan or the Pats can make good on the upcoming opportunities they have.

Steenbergen watch on for the Broncos

Broncos star Tyler Steenbergen, left, is listed as day-to-day due to injury.

    The anticipation is on to see if star right-winger Tyler Steenbergen will be in the Swift Current Broncos lineup on Monday.

    Steenbergen was lost in the Broncos opening game of the Memorial Cup on Saturday, when the WHL champions fell 4-3 in overtime to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champion Acadie-Bathurst Titan.

    Early in the second period, Titan captain Jeffrey Truchon-Viel hit Steenbergen from the side and sent the Sylvan Lake, Alta., product flying awkwardly into the boards. Steenbergen was assisted off the ice by Broncos athletic trainer Jamie LeBlanc and did not return to the contest.

    Daniel Nugent-Bowman, who writes for Sportsnet.ca and is a former Saskatoon StarPhoenix beat writer who covered the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades, caught up with Broncos head coach and director of player personnel Manny Viveiros on Sunday. Nugent-Bowman asked Viveiros about Steenbergen’s status, and Viveiros said Steenbergen is listed as day-to-day.

    The Broncos face the OHL champion Hamilton Bulldogs on Monday at 6 p.m. at the Brandt Centre in a key clash between two teams who are 0-1 in the round robin.

Tyler Steenbergen has been a dynamic player for the Broncos.

    Steenbergen plays on the Broncos dynamic top line with captain Glenn Gawdin at centre and Finnish import Aleksi Heponiemi at left wing.

    During the past two regular seasons, Steenbergen had been outstanding. In the 2016-17 campaign, Steenbergen appeared in all of the Broncos 72 regular season games piling up 51 goals, 39 assists and a plus-26 rating in the plus-minus department. Thanks to those efforts, he was selected in the fifth round and 128^th overall in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft by the Arizona Coyotes.

    In the 2017-18 regular season, Steenbergen appeared in 56 regular season games with the Broncos piling up 47 goals, 55 assists and a plus-52 rating. During the Broncos record 26-game run through the WHL playoffs to capture the league title, Steenbergen had 12 goals, 15 assists and a plus-seven rating.

    At the last world junior hockey championship, Steenbergen scored the winning goal for Canada late in the gold medal game in a 3-1 victory over Sweden on Jan. 5 in Buffalo, New York.

On March 6, Steenbergen signed a three-year NHL entry-level contract with the Coyotes.

    In Saturday’s game with the Titan, Steenbergen scored once before departing due to injury.

    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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