The sweetest of title sweeps

Huskies capture 17^th Canada West crown with emotional win

Marty Smuk, Matthew Spafford, Stephanie Vause and Darla Smuk all rock.

    To say the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team was playing with heart may be the biggest understatement ever.

    On Saturday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the Dogs weren’t going to be denied a Canada West title. Trailing their “Forever Rivals” the University of Alberta Golden Bears 1-0 entering the third period, the Huskies stormed out and scored three straight goals before a raucous sold out crowd of 1,066 spectators. U of A managed to pot one reply with seven seconds to play, but all that did was make the final on the scoreboard 3-2 in favour of the host Huskies.

    In the record books, the Huskies go down as sweeping the Golden Bears 2-0 in the best-of-three Canada West men’s hockey championship series. With their 17^th conference title win in team history, the Dogs will travel to Halifax for the University Cup, which is the Canadian Interuniversity Sport final eight championship tournament, along with the Golden Bears. That tourney runs from March 17 to 20.

    What the statistical sheet won’t show was that the Huskies were playing for something more. Besides playing for the logo on the front of the jersey and for the pride of the school and Saskatoon as a city, these Huskies were playing to honour the memory of a former teammate and alumnus.

Logan McVeigh, left, got the Ruthy jumping with a third period goal.

    After a battle with cancer that lasted over a year, Cody Smuk passed away in late June of 2015. The gritty forward, who played for the Huskies from 2010 to 2014, was known for his hard work and being the ultimate glue guy in the dressing room. Words can’t do justice to the impact he had on the Huskies athletic program and the community of Saskatoon.

    The Huskies men’s team retired Smuk’s #24 on Oct. 24, 2015. All season, they have warmed up with all players wearing his #24 jersey. Smuk’s father, Marty, mother, Darla, and fiancée, Stephanie Vause, have been to every home game.

    When it came time for the team picture with the Dr. W.G. Hardy Trophy and the championship banner, Huskies captain Kendall McFaull and third-year forward Josh Roach helped bring Marty, Darla and Vause on to the ice to be part the photograph. As the group approached the team, they received an ovation from the players, coaches and staff.

    Fifth-year forward Matthew Spafford teared up talking about his good friend and former teammate after the contest. His thoughts drifted to the 2014 University Cup championship tournament in Saskatoon, where Smuk played his final games with the Huskies. The Huskies made it to the championship game falling 3-1 to the Golden Bears at what is now known as the SaskTel Centre.

    “He (Smuk) is the driving force,” said Spafford. “I screwed up and didn’t get him one in my third year.

    “I know he is looking down on us right now, and he is helping us win, so it means everything.”

Levi Cable slips home the Huskies third goal of the night.

    Fifth-year defenceman Zak Stebner also couldn’t help but think his side might have had an extra boost. For Stebner, Smuk, who was nicknamed “Marty,” was a big part of the Huskies success in the 2015-16 campaign.

    “We are always playing for Marty,” said Stebner, “It is a big part of why we work so hard.

    “We try to work as Marty did, and he was a hard working dude. We figured if we could match just a fraction of how hard he works we will be successful, and I think that we exemplified that tonight.”

    At first, it looked like the Golden Bears were going to play spoilers. James Dobrowolski scored at the 3:31 of the first period to put U of A up 1-0. The goal only silenced the crowd for a short time, and it didn’t stall the Huskies.

    The Dogs responded with a big push back. Their efforts to net the equalizer also helped accidently create a pair of second period breakaways for Golden Bears forwards Brett Ferguson and Jordan Hickmott.

Zak Stebner hoists the Dr. W.G. Hardy Trophy.

    Huskie goaltender Jordon Cooke, who was named Canada West’s most outstanding player and goaltender of the year, stoned both chances. Cooke’s stop on Hickmott came late in the second and seemed to help add to the belief that the Huskies would rally.

    Early in the third, the Huskies push back resulted in the host side scoring two goals just 15 seconds apart from each other. Jesse Ross got the first tally, Logan McVeigh potted the second tally, and the Ruthy was rocking louder than it had at any point in the season.

    At the 11:57 mark, Levi Cable slipped home a low shot from a bad angle past Golden Bears goaltender Luke Siemens to increase the Huskies edge to 3-1.

    U of A rearguard Jordan Rowley, who was named Canada West’s top defenceman, netted the contest’s final goal with seven seconds to play.

    Cooke made 26 saves to earn the win in goal for the Huskies, who are rated third in the CIS top ten rankings. Siemens stopped 28 shots in net for the Golden Bears, who are rated fourth in the CIS top ten.

    While the Golden Bears played tough in both games of the series, the Huskies weren’t going to be denied in penning another cool chapter of a special season.

The Huskies are the 2016 Canada West champions.

    Even the rookies on the Huskies can feel something great has been happening. McVeigh, who is playing his first year with the Huskies after finishing his Western Hockey League career with the Kamloops Blazers, can feel the positive impact Smuk has had after his death.

    “It feels good just to get a win for him and his family,” said McVeigh. “It feels great to get them involved with our picture and come on the ice. It was great.”

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

Pandas win ugly, hold off Huskies rally

The Pandas celebrate Natasha Steblin's OT winner.

    The University of Alberta Pandas women’s hockey team proved they win the ugly one.

    Had the host University of Saskatchewan Huskies claimed victory, they would have held that same distinction.

    On Saturday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the Pandas slipped past the Huskies 2-1 in double overtime in a match that resembled what a New Jersey Devils game looked like back in their Stanley Cup winning years. From the second period onwards, the contest was defined by a whole tonne of clutching and grabbing, and the officials could have called more penalties than 13 total infractions that were issued out.

    Actually, the officials seemed to be trapped in not knowing what calls they should let go and what infractions they should call, which helped to further drag the flow of play down.

    When the dust settled in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport regular season clash, one of the biggest differences that created the final outcome was the fact the Pandas went 2-for-6 on the power play, while the Huskies went 0-for-7 with the one-player advantage.

    The Pandas struck first in Saturday’s clash with 2:03 to play in the opening frame. While working the power play, fifth-year forward Lindsey Cunningham collected the rebound from a Natasha Steblin shot at the side of the U of S goal and potted her third of the season to put U of A up 1-0.

    As the contest progressed, it appeared Cunningham’s tally would hold up to give the Pandas victory. Both teams had trouble working their way up and down the ice, which helped cut down on the scoring opportunities for both sides.

Julia Flinton had a huge goal for the Huskies.

    When scoring chances did come, Lindsey Post stood tall in the Pandas net, while Cassidy Hendricks ensured the Huskies remained within a goal.

    Just when the contest appeared to be stuck in a quagmire, Huskies offensive defender Julia Flinton netted the equalizer with four seconds to play in the third period on a beautiful solo rush. The Williams Lake, B.C., product picked up speed in the centre ice zone, blew by the Pandas defenders and slipped home a backhand shot past Post to even the score at 1-1.

    Near the end of the first four-on-four overtime period, the Huskies had huge chance to pull out the win, when they went on the power play after Pandas forward Deanna Morin was given a minor for checking to the head. The Huskies had three solid chance to win the game on that power-play chance including a point shot that deflected high into the air and almost lobbed into the U of A net. The puck ended up just settling on top of the goal.

    During a second overtime period played under a three-on-three format, the Pandas went to the power play after Huskies centre Lauren Zary was given a slashing minor.

    The visitors capitalized on that chance, when Steblin fired home the winner from the slot passed a screened Hendricks to give the Pandas a 2-1 victory.

    Hendricks made 18 stops taking the overtime setback in goal for the Huskies. Post made 24 saves to earn the win in goal for the Pandas.

    The Huskies record moved to 13-9-4, and they were able to clinch a berth in the Canada West playoffs with the point they earned from the overtime setback. With two regular season games to play, the Huskies sit fourth overall in Canada West two points up on the University of Manitoba Bisons.

    The Pandas improve to 14-9-3 to sit third in Canada West with a four-point cushion on the Huskies thanks mainly to having 13-10 advantage in regulations wins.

    The Huskies close the regular season with a home-and-home series with the U of Regina Cougars (16-9-1). The two teams play this coming Friday in Regina at the Co-operators Centre and this coming Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink.

Golden Bears pull out brooms in Edmonton

Sean Aschim had a goal for the Huskies in Edmonton on Saturday.

    The University of Alberta Golden Bears served notice that they are still a force to be reckoned with in Canada West men’s hockey.

    On Saturday in Edmonton, the Golden Bears completed a two-game series sweep of the Canada West leading U of Saskatchewan Huskies posting a 5-2 victory before 1,653 spectators at the Clare Drake Arena. The sweep at the hands of U of A marks the first time the Huskies have dropped two straight game all season. The Golden Bears took Friday’s clash in Edmonton between the two club’s 3-0.

    In Saturday’s encounter, Levko Koper, Jordan Rowley and Thomas Carr netted singles to stake the hosts out to a 3-0 lead.

    Jesse Ross and Sean Aschim responded with singles for the Huskies to cut the Golden Bear’s lead to 3-2 heading into the second intermission.

    In the third period, Stephane Legault and Jamie Crooks potted singles to seal victory for the Golden Bears.

    Jordon Cooke made 32 saves to take the loss in goal for the Huskies. Luke Siemens turned away 17 shots to pick up the win in the Golden Bears net.

    The Huskies, who are rated first in the CIS top ten rankings, fell to 21-5, but they have already locked up first overall in Canada West. The Golden Bears, who are rated seventh in the CIS top ten rankings, improve to 17-7-2 to sit third in Canada West just one point behind the Mount Royal University Cougars (17-6-3).

    U of S closes its regular season with a home-and-home series against the University of Regina Cougars (6-20). The two clubs play this coming Friday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink and on Saturday in Regina at the Co-operators Centre.

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

Huskies rally comes up short

The Huskies push for an equalizer in the final seconds of the third.

    A rough opening 20 minutes came back to haunt the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team.

    On Saturday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the Huskies fell behind the visiting University of British Columbia Thunderbirds 3-0 in the first period, while being outshot 17-9. The hosts made a spirited comeback over the next two frames scoring twice in the second and once early in the third to force a 3-3 tie.

    Despite the fact the Huskies outshot the Thunderbirds 29-5 over the final two periods, the visitors pulled out a 4-3 victory, when Austin Vetterl picked up with winner with 5:44 remaining in the third.

    The Thunderbirds, who are ranked ninth in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport top ten rankings, got the jump on the Huskies early. Third-year forward Luke Lockhart roofed home a power-play goal at the 1:52 mark of the opening frame to give the Thunderbirds a 1-0 edge.

    Near the end of the first, defenceman Neil Manning and forward Chase Clayton scored singles 44 seconds apart from each other to give the Thunderbirds a 3-0 edge.

    The Huskies, who are ranked second in the CIS ratings, came out of the first intermission putting on all kinds of pressure in the Thunderbirds end. They finally broke thru on the scoreboard at the 11:55 mark of the second, when Thunderbirds goalie Matt Hewitt mishandled a puck, and Jesse Ross popped home the loose disk for his fourth goal of the season.

Levi Cable scored twice for the Huskies on Saturday.

    At the 15:49 mark of the second, the hosts cut the Thunderbirds edge to 3-2 working the power play when Levi Cable tucked home a rebound from a shot taken by rearguard Jesse Forsberg.

    Cable netted his second goal of the contest at the 3:11 mark of the third, when he lasered home a short-handed tally.

    With the way the momentum of the contest was going, it appeared the Huskies would go ahead, but Vetterl picked up the winner on one of the few chances his club was able to break into the offensive zone over the final 40 minutes.

    In the final seconds of the third, the Huskies tried to get the equalizer when a mad scramble saw a whole bunch of bodies fly into the UBC net, but the puck stayed out.

    Hewitt made 35 stops for the Thunderbirds (7-2-3). Jordon Cooke made 18 saves taking the loss in goal for the Huskies, who still sit at the top of the Canada West conference standings with a 10-2 mark.

    The Huskies and Thunderbirds also met on Friday night at the Rutherford Rink, and the hosts skated away with a 4-1 win in that encounter.

    Sean Aschim, Logan McVeigh, John Lawrence and Andrew Johnson scored for the Huskies, while Cooke made 19 saves to earn the win in goal. Manning had the lone reply for the Thunderbirds, while Eric Williams turned away 21 shots taking the loss in the UBC net.

    The Huskies return to action this coming Friday, when they travel to Winnipeg to take on the University of Manitoba Bisons (5-5-2).

T-Birds sweep in Vancouver

Marley Ervine speeds into the offensive zone for the Huskies.

    The University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team fell out of first place in the Canada West conference after dropping a pair of heartbreakers to the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds in Vancouver.

    On Friday, the Thunderbirds pulled out a 1-0 victory over the Huskies, when Mathea Fischer scored at the 2:05 mark of a second overtime period. Danielle Dube made 19 saves to earn the win in goal for the Thunderbirds, while Cassidy Hendricks turned away 28 shots taking the overtime setback for the Huskies, who are ranked seventh in the CIS top ten rankings.

    The Thunderbirds claimed a 4-3 regulation victory on Saturday to complete the sweep. Haneet Parhar, Stephanie Schaupmeyer, Madison Patrick and Kelly Murray picked up singles for the Thunderbirds, while Samantha Langford made 20 saves to earn the win in goal.

Lauren Zary scored twice for the Huskies, while Marley Ervine picked up a single. Hendricks made 20 saves to take the loss in goal.

    The Thunderbirds move into first in Canada West with the sweep improving to 8-3-1. U of S fell to 7-3-2.

    The Huskies return to action this coming Friday when they host the University of Manitoba Bisons (7-5) at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink. The Bisons are currently riding a five-game winning streak.

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

Sequel not in cards for Huskies

Huskies goalie Jordon Cooke makes one of his 51 stops in a loss to U of A.

    Jordon Cooke was a little bit too busy time around.

    On Friday night, the sophomore netminder made 44 saves to help his University of Saskatchewan Huskies steal a 3-2 victory over the visiting University of Alberta Golden Bears at the ancient Rutherford Rink. The Huskies netted their three goals off of 25 shots.

    On Saturday night at the Ruthy, the Huskies tried to lean on Cooke again to come up with a steal. The Leduc product did everything he could, but the Golden Bears managed to mount more pressure and chances at the U of Saskatchewan net than they did one night earlier.

    When the dust settled, Cooke made an incredible 51 stops, but the Golden Bears skated away with a 4-2 victory improving to 5-2-1. The Huskies, who lost their first regular season match to fall to 7-1, mustered 22 shots at the U of A net.

    Cooke had to stand on his head almost from the opening puck drop against the two time defending Canadian Interuniversity Sport champions. The visitors busted through on their 14^th shot, when defenceman Jordan Rowley popped a power-play goal at the 12:19 mark of the opening frame.

Golden Bears goalie Luke Siemens was pretty much a spectator over the first 20 minutes, as his side held a 20-4 edge in shots on goal.

Jordan Rowley scored twice in a winning effort for the Golden Bears.

    U of A went up 2-0, when sophomore forward Stephane Legault scored unassisted just 56 seconds into the second frame.

    The Huskies pulled to within 2-1, when Jesse Ross scored at the 6:27 mark of the second. Ross’s goal was just the ninth shot on net for the Huskies.

    The goal didn’t slow the Golden Bears momentum.

    Before the second ended, the visitors scored two goals just 86 second apart from each other to go up 4-1. Rookie forward Jayden Hart fired home his third of the season, and on the power play, Jordan Hickmott and Levko Koper combined to set up Rowley down low on a tick-tack-toe passing play for his second of the game.

    The Huskies tried to stage a rally in the third. Ross picked up his second of the contest at the 5:46 mark to cut the gap to 4-2, and rookie forward Kohl Bauml was unable to score on a couple of breakaway chances.

    While the Golden Bears were unable to score in the third, they controlled play outshooting the Huskies 20-4 in the frame. Siemens made 20 saves to earn the win in goal for the visitors.

Cooke turned back chance after chance to give his side life, but the Huskies skaters weren’t able to find an extra gear and were often trapped in their own zone.

    After three straight home games, the Huskies hit the road to Calgary to face the Mount Royal University Cougars (4-2-2) this coming Friday and Saturday.

Pandas overpowering in rematch

Leah Bohlken had the lone goal in a Huskies setback.

    The U of Saskatchewan women’s hockey team saw their four game winning streak come to an end at the hands of a determined host U of Alberta Pandas squad.

    On Saturday night in Edmonton, the visiting Huskies jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first period, when rookie defender Leah Bohlken netted her second tally of the season. From that point onward, it was all Pandas as far as the scoring was concerned.

    The Pandas responded with five unanswered goals to skate away with a 5-1 victory. They scored three times before the first frame ended, and they added two more tallies in the third.

    Alex Poznikoff scored twice for the Pandas, who received singles from Sasha Lutz, Amy Helfrich and Erinn Baddock. Dayna Owen made 14 stops to earn the win in goal for the Pandas (5-4-1).

    Cassidy Hendricks made 31 stops taking the loss in goal for the Huskies (7-2-1).

    One night earlier, Hendricks stole a victory for the Huskies making 28 saves in regulation and turning away all three shooter she faced in a tiebreaking shootout to power the Huskies to a 3-2 win over the Pandas. U of S had just 10 shots on goal in regulation and overtime in that contest.

    The Huskies women’s team now enjoys a bye week before returning to action on Nov. 13, when they travel to Vancouver to face the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds (6-3-1).

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this blog post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. To see more game photos, check Twitter @StanksSports.

Spectacular showdown at Rutherford

Huskies slip past Pronghorns in stellar CIS game

Andrew Johnson burst into the offensive zone for the Huskies.

  It was a game the late Saskatoon StarPhoenix sports editor Doug McConachie would have loved.

    Known as one of the great characters in Canada’s sports media circles, McConachie would almost fall out of the press box due to over excitement, if he was witnessing a really good hockey game.

    McConachie was best known for the columns he wrote on the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades, but he would have been pumped had he seen what took play at the ancient Rutherford Rink on the University of Saskatchewan campus on Friday night. In an action packed match, the host Huskies downed the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns 3-2 in a Canadian Interuniversity Sport men’s hockey clash.

    While the contest wasn’t the highest scoring game you might see, it was filled with tonnes of offensive chances. Huskies netminder Jordan Cooke and Pronghorns counterpart Dylan Tait, who are both WHL graduates, both put on shows.

    Cooke turned away 24 shots, and his best stop might have come on an early second period breakaway, when he made a kick save on Pronghorns defenceman Tim Campbell. Tait, who recently beat testicular cancer, stopped 31 shots, and he was tested constantly in tight, as the Huskies drove hard to the net.

    The Huskies also appear to have found a new star in the early going in rookie forward Andrew Johnson, who seems to have the golden touch around the net. The local product accurately snipped home his club’s second and third goals of the night.

    The first tally came late in the second and gave the Huskies a 2-1 edge going into the second intermission. The second marker came just 56 seconds into the third to put the host side up 3-1.

Dylan Tait makes a stop in the Pronghorns goal.

    In the Dog’s 3-0 start, Johnson has netted the winner in every contest and has four goals and an assist so far this season.

    The Pronghorns made their share of plays as well in falling to 1-2. Sophomore left-winger Justin Valentino set up both his squad’s goals. His first helper was put in by Cassidy Mappin, who gave the visitors a 1-0 early in the first period.

    Valentino’s second helper came on a goal from Dalton Sward, who scored just before the midway point of the third period to cut the Huskies edge to 3-2.

    Jesse Ross accounted for the Huskies other goal with a beauty snipe of his own in the first frame.

Both teams transitioned up and down the ice at a very high tempo, blocked shots in the defensive end and threw some solid clean hits. The pace moved so fluidly that all the officials had to do was stay back and let both sides play.

Huskies goalie Jordon Cooke pushes a puck out of harms way.

    The men in the striped shirts had to do their biggest work after the third period expired, as what amounted to a minor scrum occurred behind the Huskies net. The mix up included a lot of wrestling and angry shouting but not much more than that.

    The Huskies entered Friday’s game as the fifth rated team in the CIS’s top ten rankings. The spectators saw a great show, and if Friday’s game is a sign of things to come, the old barn on the U of S campus is going to be the place to be.

    The Huskies and Pronghorns go at it again Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink.
    NOTE - The Huskies players all hit the ice for warm ups sporting #24 jerseys like the one that was once worn by team alumnus Cody Smuk, who passed away in June due to cancer. The team plans to keep doing that all season to honour the late gritty and hard working forward. 

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this blog post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. Check out more game photos on Twitter @StanksSports.

CIS fights an uphill battle for exposure

Jon Ryan launches a punt for the U of Regina Rams in 2000.

    Canadian Interuniversity Sport is uniquely Canadian – it is a league that contains a large number of the country's most talented athletes, but it is also a circuit no one talks about.
    Actually, there are people that talk about the CIS, but they usually are a stakeholder being a program's staff member, a player or a friend or family member of a stakeholder. There is a niche audience that follows the teams in the CIS. Those audiences can be bigger in centres like Saskatoon or Thunder Bay, but are smaller in bigger cities like Winnipeg, Calgary and Vancouver.
    One of the disappointing things about the CIS on a subjective level is it appears its audience hasn't grown over the last 20 years.
    If an athlete from Canada does something special in the United States in the big old National Collegiate Athletic Association, it seems Canadians are more likely to take notice of that person as opposed to if someone does something great in the CIS. It seems to go back to the notion that Canadians don't like to brag about great moments inside of their borders.

Jesse Ross speeds down ice for the U of Saskatchewan Huskies.

    There was a time in the 2000s a CIS all-star team would take on an all-star team of NCAA players in men's hockey. When the CIS teams earned some victories in those clashes, there were observers who would try to wave it off saying the CIS team was stacked with older players from the major junior ranks. In an attempt to make that put down, there was also a concession made that the players in CIS men's hockey are actually pretty good.
    For an example of lack of attention, the Carleton University Ravens men's basketball team make for a prime case. Out of all the CIS teams in the league's various sports, the Ravens are the most successful program having won 11 of the last 13 CIS men's hoops titles. If you go out on any street in Canada outside of Ottawa where Carleton University is situated, how many people could name one let alone two members of the Ravens.
    The most known post-secondary hoops player in Canada likely comes from the Medicine Hat College Rattlers of the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association, which is a league that is a step under the CIS. The Rattlers men's basketball team roster contains a 6-foot-6 third year forward, who has drawn national attention due to the fact his last name that is spelled exactly like a swear word.
    Guilherme Carabagiale Fuck (pronounced "Foo-key") became an all-Canadian all-star in the CCAA ranks. The Brazilian product, whose last name is of German origin, has been featured in numerous media outlets in Canada due to the spelling of his last name. Big award winning credit should be given to Medicine Hat News sports staffers in editor Sean Rooney and reporter Ryan McCracken for how well they handled this story.

Matthew Busse hammers a kill for the Huskies.

    As a result of the national attention, a random person on any Canadian street has a better chance knowing there is a college level player in Medicine Hat whose last name is Fuck as opposed to naming one player on the Ravens roster. On the plus side, all the staffers from Medicine Hat College who have been interviewed about Fuck say he is a first rate individual.
    A CIS athlete would draw the same attention of he or she was the subject of this type of unique story. It is unfortunate a CIS athletes' stellar exploits wouldn't draw the same attention.
    Players from the CIS's football league might get a little more exposure due to the fact those athletes are trying to earn spots in the CFL.
    The most famous CIS football grads made their names in the NFL in current Seattle Seahawks punter Jon Ryan, who is a grad of the University of Regina Rams, and former veteran Chicago Bears defensive lineman Israel Idonije, who is a grad of the University of Manitoba Bisons.
    The status of both was elevated due to the fact they played in the biggest professional league in the United States, which has huge media exposure. As a result, the attention they received when they return to Canada is heightened, which as a by-product did give more attention to the CIS football programs they came from.
    The CIS can't rely on Canadian media outlets for increased exposure, because those outlets have been significantly slashed for staff and resources over the last two decades. Also, those in Canada in independent media also have a limited number of hours in a day to cover anything, which results in those outlets focusing on subjects of interest.
    The mainstream media outlets in bigger centres will focus resources towards covering the NHL, because that is where you get the most bang for the buck due to the fact that league has a huge captive audience.

Dalyce Emmerson drives for a score for the Huskies.

    Overworked media outlets like weekly publications in small towns might pick up a feature here and there of a CIS athlete from the geographical area of the small town, but that is also a hit and miss proposition.
    In order to increase its own brand, the CIS likely has to take their media relations and sports information departments up another level.
    The NFL was a leader in the late 1990s, when its teams began hiring print and broadcast media professionals for the various websites run by each club. In 2003, the NFL also launched its own television network.
    Of course, the CIS does not have anywhere near the billions in revenue the NFL draws. If the CIS tried to start a television network, there would be a lot of Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission hoops to jump through let alone of satisfying the logistics of running a station, but it would still be a good idea to strive for.
    Currently, the media relations and sports information departments in the CIS can't even stack up resource wise to their counterparts in the NCAA.
    You quickly glance at the website of the Florida State University Seminoles, and you can see a number of the Seminoles teams have their own exclusive media contact person.
    Even programs that don't have the resources like a program as big as the one the Seminoles run have multiple people in their media and sports information departments. A few of these programs have the ability to send regular updates to media outlets from the home regions its players might be from.
    For some NCAA programs, if they have a player from Brandon, Man., that NCAA program might send regular updates to the media outlets in the Brandon region about the athlete from that area.

Tyler Chow rumbles downfield for the Huskies

    Too many of the CIS teams have media and sports information departments that might have one or even two people dealing with a program that has anywhere from six to 20 varsity teams. 
    Those staffing levels were about the same about 15 years ago before social media exploded.
    It is quite easy to see those in media and sports information departments in the CIS will quickly run out hours in the day to do anything.
    Over the past 20 years, the product on the fields, courts and ice surfaces in the CIS has increased greatly. Players train like professionals year round. The number of full-time coaches and coaches that are paid by CIS programs is also at all-time high.
    The league is not some over glorified recreation league. It is major league at the amateur level.
    In major junior hockey in Canada, a number teams have put more resources into media relations departments, which has seen an increased number of staffers producing video and print features on players for websites. The mantra of even community owned clubs is they must step up like that to promote the team.
    The programs in the CIS have to do the same and employ more media professionals, which could start with even just two or three extra people. The players and coaches in that league have come up a level, and the media relations and sports information departments have to do the same. If not, the profile of the CIS won't have a chance to increase.
    
    If you have any comments about this blog, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Holfy valiant in last stand for Huskies

Huskies goaltender Ryan Holfeld gets focused for action.

    Ryan Holfeld did all he could do to extend his CIS career to another weekend.
    As has been the case a number of times this season, the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men's hockey team couldn't score enough goals to support him.
    On Sunday night at the Flames Community Arena in Calgary, Holfeld was once again in net for the Huskies this time in a deciding Game 3 of a Canada West quarter-final series against the Mount Royal University Cougars. The fifth-year netminder kept making save after save and finished the contest making 41 stops in total.
    As far as the scoreboard was concerned, the effort went for naught. The Huskies were unable to score and fell 3-0 to bring their 2014-15 campaign to an end. Cam Lanigan made 23 stops in the Cougars goal to pick up the shutout.
    In defeat, Holfeld was once again heroic. He again gave his Huskies every opportunity to earn victory.
    His teammates paraded to the penalty box allowing the Cougars to have 15 power-play chances. Holfeld, who stands 5-foot-11 and weighs 185 pounds, only surrendered one goal on those chances, and it likely should have been more. Playing like a focused pro, he wouldn't let the game get away from his squad.
    This past weekend, Holfeld left one last big memory over three games of work to once again show just how amazing he could play in goal. He stopped 100-of-108 shots fired his way for a .926 save percentage and a 2.66 goals against average.
    In Game 1 of the series Friday in Calgary, he made 25 stops through regulation as the Huskies and Cougars played to a 1-1 draw. MacKenzie Johnston gave the Cougars a 1-0 lead in the first period, while Sean Aschim netted the equalizer for the Huskies in the third.
    The Huskies dominated play in the final frame of regulation outshooting the Cougars 14-3. During the regular season, the Dogs scored the third fewest goals in the eight-team Canada West Conference, and their struggles around the net were showing up again.
    Just 36 seconds into overtime, Holfeld was beaten by Cougars forward Matthew Brown on the first shot of the extra session to help the hosts skate away with a 2-1 win. Once again, the netminder had to suffer through a heartbreaking loss. His Huskies arguably had what would be their best outing of the series as Lanigan made 31 stops to pick up the win.

Ryan Holfeld makes a stop in goal for the Huskies.

    In Game 2 on Saturday in Calgary, Sebastien Pare gave the Cougars an early 1-0 lead. Before the opening 20 minutes finished, the Huskies finally had an offensive spark going up 3-1 with singles coming off the sticks of Jesse Ross, Zak Stebner and Connor Cox. Overall, the Huskies scored three times on five shots in the first.
    The visitors played a strong second, but the Cougars came out with a whole pile of pressure in the third. Pare would net his second of the contest, and Emerson Hrynyk tied the contest up at 3-3 with 7:20 to play in the stanza.
    From there, the Holfeld kept the Cougars at bay, and the Huskies were able to stave off elimination. With 29 seconds to play in the third, rookie forward Michael Sofillas scored to give the visitors a 4-3 victory, which ended a six game skid including the regular season and playoffs.
    Holfeld made 34 stops to earn the win. Lanigan turned away 23 shots in goal for the Cougars. The series and the battle between two former members of the WHL's Medicine Hat Tigers was tied 1-1.
    As it turned out, the OT loss in Game 1 was the one that got away for the Huskies. In Game 3 on Sunday, Tyler Fiddler scored 30 seconds into the first to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead. They outshot the Huskies 26-6 in the second and added two more goals on singles from Jamie King and Tyler Jewitt.
    The Cougars were on their way to face the Calgary Dinos in a best-of-three Canada West semifinal series this coming weekend. 
    Holfeld's career was left to tick away.
    The 25-year-old LeRoy, Sask., product goes down as one of the best goaltenders the Huskies men's program ever had. In the regular season, he finished with a 53-34-2 record, a .919 save percentage, a 2.43 goals against average and eight shutouts. His 2,452 career saves in regular season play is a record for the Huskies men's team.
    During the 2014-15 regular season, he split time in goal with rookie Jordon Cooke, who came off a stellar WHL career with the Kelowna Rockets. The Huskies posted their first losing record in 19 years with a 10-15-3 mark due in large part to their goal-scoring struggles.
    Holfeld was still sensational recording a .922 save percentage, a 2.42 goals against average and one shutout in posting a 5-8-1 record.
    In his first four seasons at the U of S, the Huskies never finished lower than third in the Canada West standings. While those Huskies teams had a larger number of high end forwards, Holfeld did steal his share of games.

Ryan Holfeld (#31) gets congratulated after a win in early Jan.

    Due to mostly being made up of graduates of the major junior and junior A ranks, the players in Canada West are good at critiquing their own performances, and when Holfeld stole a win, there were a lot of players telling him thank-you afterwards, while vowing to play better going forward. He was key in helping the Huskies win a Canada West title in 2012.
    Away from the rink, Holfeld endeared himself to his teammates and players on other Huskies teams for being a comedian that would say the most humourous things out of the blue. He also knew when it was time to be serious and was the teammate others could confide to, if they were having troubles in their lives.
    Holfeld also excelled in the classroom, which allowed him to be accepted into law school after his third year with the team. Over the past two seasons, he was usually busy studying, when he wasn't at the rink. He was still able to squeeze in time to visit with family and friends for short periods after games.
    For all that he was able to do in his five seasons with the Huskies, it would have been nice if he could have gotten one more series win.
    On and off the ice, he will always be viewed as one of most proud success stories of the U of S athletic program.

    If you have any comments about this blog, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.    

Outmatched: Dinos too much for Huskies

Parker Thomas (#24) tries to set up offence for the Huskies.

            Could the unthinkable happen? Could the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team actually finish a regular season with a losing record?

            Unless the Dogs can roll off a big win streak over their last six games, it appears likely a losing record will happen. On the weekend, it became really apparent the Huskies are a bit of a distance away from being one of the top teams in the Canada West conference.

            The Huskies battled the University of Calgary Dinos at the ancient Rutherford Rink and fell 6-3 on Friday night and 5-2 on Saturday night. With the wins, the Dinos improved to 15-7 to sit alone in second place in the conference.

U of S fell to 9-12-1 and dropped to sixth overall in the conference. The Huskies sit five points up on the seventh place U of Regina Cougars (6-14-2) for the final playoff berth in the conference.

The last time the Huskies finished with a losing record in regular season play was way back in the 1995-96 campaign, when they posted an 11-14-3 record. Over the past six seasons, the Huskies have been an impressive 105-52-11, which includes winning a Canada West title in 2012 and a second place finish at last year’s University Cup.

Roster turnover has definitely caught up with the Dogs. They have 12 players in their first year of eligibility, with the bulk of those newcomers coming on the forward lines. The Dinos in contrast have five first year players.

Calgary also has more higher end former Western Hockey League players on its roster than Saskatchewan does.

With all that said, the Dinos only pulled out respective 2-0 and 2-1 victories early on in the season in Calgary. The notion that the Huskies could pull out two win in their home rink wasn’t unthinkable.

Friday’s tilt was back-and-forth. Craig McCallum scored 55 second into the third period to cut the Dinos two-goal lead to 4-3.

Shortly after that tally, Calgary put the contest away going up by the final of 6-3 scoring goals 28 seconds apart from each other. David Vandane had the first marker, while Colton Grant had the second marker.

Philip Tot, Alex Dzielski, Chris Collins and Brooks Myers had the other singles for the Dinos, while Kris Lazaruk made 35 saves to earn the win in goal.

Zak Stebner and Jesse Ross also netted singles for the Huskies, while Ryan Holfeld made 23 stops taking the loss in goal.

Dinos goalie Jacob DeSerres holds down the fort.

On Saturday, the Huskies played the Dinos close and trailed 3-2 heading into the final two minutes of the third. Dinos forward Ryan Harrison then potted an empty netter and added another tally in the final seconds to seal a 5-2 victory.

During that contest, the Dinos had the Huskies pinned in their own zone for extended periods of time.

Danny Gayle, Elgin Pearce and Kevin King also had singles for the Dinos, while Jacob DeSerres made 14 stops to earn the win in goal.

Tayler Thompson and McCallum netted singles for the Huskies, while Jordon Cooke turned away 25-of-29 shots suffering the loss in goal.

Huskies head coach Dave Adolph is holding at 377 career conference wins, which ties him with University of Alberta Golden Bears head coach Clare Drake for the Canadian Interuniversity Sport record for conference victories. Adolph will have to hope the fourth attempt at getting the record will be a charm.

U of S heads on the road to Vancouver for two key games against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds. The Thunderbirds hold down fourth overall in the conference with a 10-9-3 record, which means they would host a first round playoff series if the regular season ended right now.

If the Huskies still hope to host a home playoff series, they needed to win at least one of those games to keep those hopes alive. With that said, one win might not be enough. A sweep is likely needed.

With the Huskies in a rebuild, a home playoff series and a winning regular season record might not be in the cards for the current campaign.

Paparazzi picture a good sign

Huskies ace picture taker Kandace Cook.

            The volume of the laughs and the mischievous giggles gave away that something was up.

            During the Huskies men’s hockey game on Jan. 3 at the Rutherford Rink against the U of Lethbridge Pronghorns, I went over behind the Pronghorns net to shoot pictures in the second period. The Pronghorns were in the end that contained the box seats at the Rutherford and most of the members of the Huskies women’s hockey team were up there.

            As I was getting ready to shoot, I could hear the laughter, and I knew something was going on. When I returned home that night, I saw fifth-year forward Kandace Cook took a picture of me doing my thing and put it on Twitter.

            I am all cool with that. If that helps the Huskies have fun at the rink and win, it is all good. The Rutherford is their home rink, and it should always be a fun place for them to be at.

Actually, to me that is a good sign. If they have the comfort level to do something like that, it is just another signal that shows me how together the Huskies women’s team is and that they have another intangible to help them be successful.

            I don’t mind getting made fun of or being the victim of a prank. Pretty much all the women’s sports teams I have dealt with that have won have done something along those lines.

            It is just too bad the Cook’s Huskies took one on the chin in their first weekend back. They traveled to Calgary and were swept by the Dinos by respective scores of 4-1 and 5-2 on Friday and Saturday.

            The Dinos roster contains Canadian National team icon Hayley Wickenheiser and Russian national team standouts Iya Gavrilova and Alexandra Vafina. All three were not with the Dinos last season because it was Olympic year.

            Back in October, the Huskies swept the Dinos, who had all those stars on the ice, 4-3 in overtime and 3-1 at the Rutherford Rink. After those results, you can bet the Dinos, who are guided by head coach and former Canadian national team star Danielle Goyette, played the revenge card in an old school style way like how head coach Bill Belichick prefers to see his New England Patriots bury opponents in the NFL.

            In Friday’s encounter in Calgary, Heather Berzins, Wickenheiser, Janelle Parent and Kate Lumley netted singles for the Dinos, while Carissa Fischer made 23 stops to earn the win in goal.

            Cook had the Huskies lone goal, while Cassidy Hendricks made 44 stops taking the loss in the Huskies net.

            A day later, Erica Mitschke scored twice for the Dinos, while Megan Grenon, Gavrilova and Vafina netted singles. Fischer made 13 stops to earn the win in goal.

            Captain Paige Anakaer and Hailey Tyndall picked up singles for the Huskies. Hendricks turned away 15-of-20 shots starting in goal for the Huskies. Jerrica Waltz stopped all 14 shots she faced in a relief appearance.

            The Dinos vaulted into first in Canada West improving to 11-3-4. The Huskies dropped from first to fifth in the tight contested conference with an 11-5-2 mark.

            The Huskies return to action this coming Friday and Saturday when they host the Thunderbirds (10-4-4) at 7 p.m. on both nights at the Rutherford Rink.

            The losses to the Dinos were likely a big learning experience for the Huskies in dealing with a revenge minded team.

            Knowing the character of the players on the Dogs, expect them to bounce back and move on.

If you have any feedback on this blog, feel free to email comments to stankssports@gmail.com.