Great Scott – Veteran goalie sets new Raiders shutout record

The Raiders congratulation G Ian Scott on his team shutouts record.

    PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – It was a night where he wasn’t overly busy, but Ian Scott was the man of the moment for the Prince Albert Raiders.

    The fourth-year veteran goalie made 14 saves to pick up a shutout as the Raiders thumped the Swift Current Broncos 8-0 on Friday night before a standing room crowd of 2,848 spectators at the 2,580 seat Art Hauser Centre. The shutout was the seventh of the campaign for Scott, who set a new Raiders team record for most shutouts in one regular season.

    The old record of six shutout was first set by Rejean Beauchemin in the 2003-04 campaign. Luke Siemens equaled that mark of six shutouts in the 2012-13 season before Scott set a new standard on Friday.

Netminder Ian Scott gets focused for the third period on Friday.

    “It is a pretty cool accomplishment,” said Scott, who played for Canada at the last world juniors. “It wouldn’t have happened this season without the team in front of me.

    “A lot of thanks goes towards them for shutting it down tonight and making it two in a row.”

    Back on Tuesday, Scott made 24 saves to equal the Raiders record for most shutouts in a season in a 6-0 victory also over the Broncos at the Art Hauser Centre.

    The win on Friday allowed the Raiders to improve their WHL leading record to 52-9-2-2. Scott, who turned 20-years-old in early January, has been a big part of what has been an outstanding season for the Raiders.

Captain Brayden Pachal had a goal and an assist on Friday.

    In 46 appearances with the Raiders this season, Scott has posted a 36-7-3 record, a 1.86 goals against average and a .932 save percentage to go with his seven shutouts.

    Having joined the Raiders as a 16-year-old rookie back in 2015-16, Scott admits he is amazed by how far his career has come. He said it has been great he has been able to enjoy the ride with some long time teammates, who help make up the core of the Raiders.

    “I think it is pretty crazy,” said Scott, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 183 pounds. “The past few seasons probably weren’t the strongest.

    “Just coming in this season, I think it is a real eye opener about a lot of personal things I have worked on, and I think it has helped.

    “I share a lot of those moments with Parker (Kelly). (Zack) Hayes I’ve been with since like midget. It is pretty special as a team I think.”

    Scott’s shutout on Friday proved to be more of a mental challenge than a physical one, because he didn’t see a whole lot of shots on goal. He kept his concentration up despite going long stretches of time without seeing any action.

Ian Scott made 14 saves for his record shutout win on Friday.

    With the Raiders holding a comfortable 7-0 lead after 40 minutes, team captain and veteran defenceman Brayden Pachal said attention increased towards helping Scott get the record. Prince Albert allowed only two shots on goal over the final 20 minutes of Friday’s contest.

    “It is one of those things we talked about it during the second intermission,” said Pachal, who had a goal, two assists and was a plus-four in the plus-minus department in Friday’s win. “We wanted to get that for him.

    “It seems like whenever we don’t talk about him getting a shutout he doesn’t get it. It is one of those things it might be a jinx for some guys, but not for him. He definitely locks it down.”

    Pachal was pumped to see Scott get the Raiders regular season shutouts record.

Brett Leason scored twice for the Raiders on Friday.

    “It is pretty awesome,” said Pachal. “He (Scott) has had a phenomenal season.

    “He has been our backbone back there, so it was going to happen. I was just a matter of time, so it was good on him.”

    Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid said that Scott wasn’t tested during the team’s last two games like in some of the other shutouts veteran puck stopper has had. With that said, Habscheid said you can never discount the work that goes into getting a shutout, and he was happy to see Scott get the team record for most shutouts in one season.

    “A shutout is a shutout,” said Habscheid. “He (Scott) is an important guy for us.

    “He has been that all year. You could tell the guys were doing what they had to do to help him out in that regard tonight for sure.”

Spencer Moe had a goal for the Raiders on Friday.

    The Raider built a 4-0 lead in the first period scoring on their second and third shots on goal in the process. They proceeded to cruise to victory from that point.

    Brett Leason and Parker Kelly each scored twice for the Raiders, while Noah Gregor, Cole Fonstad and Spencer Moe had singles.

    Isaac Poulter, who is a 17-year-old rookie, turned away 40 shots to take the setback in goal for the Broncos. The Broncos, who are going through a major rebuild after winning the WHL championship last season, fell to 10-47-4-2 to continue to sit last in the league.

    “It was a tough game,” said Habscheid. “They’re rebuilding, and they just know it is tough to play at that time of the year for them.

Cole Fonstad had a goal for the Raiders on Friday.

    “I thought our guys played real good. We started off good, and we had good tempo. Our structure was good.”

    The Broncos return to action on Saturday when they travel to Saskatoon to take on the Blades (7 p.m., SaskTel Centre).

    The Raiders hit the ice again on Sunday when they travel to Swift Current to face the Broncos (4 p.m., Innovation Credit Union i-Plex).

    Scott said he will always look fondly on Friday’s game, because he set a new Raiders team record for must shutouts in one season. With that said, he wants to help his team earn bigger accomplishments in the post-season.

Parker Kelly, left, and Brayden Pachal mark the Raiders win on Friday.

    “I will always remember it, but I think we have bigger things moving forward to focus on,” said Scott, who has a signed NHL entry level contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. “I think that is all our goal.”

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

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Huskies nail it down in Game 1

Dogs dump Golden Bears 4-0 in Canada West final opener

Captain Kendall McFaull celebrates his goal with Logan McVeigh.

    You can bet fans likely forgot about their wait to get into the ancient Rutherford Rink on Friday night.

    Before the puck dropped for Game 1 of the Canada West men’s hockey championship series between the host University of Saskatchewan Huskies and the University of Alberta Golden Bears, fans were lined up over a lengthy stretch outside the Huskies home rink looking to get a ticket to see the action. When they finally found a place to view the contest, the host side did not disappoint.

    The Huskies played one of their best games of the season and blanked their “Forever Rivals” 4-0 before a crammed gathering of 1,066 spectators. U of S will try to lock up the best-of-three series in Game 2 Saturday at 7 p.m. before what should be another raucous crowd at the Ruthy.

    During the regular season, the Golden Bears, who have won the last two University Cups, claimed three of four head-to-head meetings with the Huskies. In those four outings, the Golden Bears played their best hockey of the 2015-16 campaign, and the lone U of S victory came by a 3-2 score back on Oct. 30, 2015 thanks to a 44-save performance from netminder Jordon Cooke.

    On Friday night, the Dogs, who topped the Canada West standings with a 22-6 mark, showed they can take their game up to another level.

Parker Thomas scored a key insurance goal for the Huskies.

    In the opening 20 minutes, the Huskies, who are rated third in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport top ten rankings, went toe-to-toe with the Golden Bears, who are rated fourth in the CIS top ten, trading scoring chances, hits and end-to-end rushes. The best collision came near the end of the frame, when Golden Bears forward Brett Ferguson and Huskies defenceman Zak Stebner smashed into each other. It was hard to tell who initiated the hit.

    The strong play of Cooke and Golden Bears netminder Luke Siemens ensured the two clubs entered the first intermission locked in a 0-0 draw. Fans were treated to intense playoff hockey at its best.

    The Dogs started assert control in the second. Working on a power play, they broke through on the scoreboard at the 5:57 mark, when “Captain Clutch” Kendall McFaull wired home a shot from the slot to the top corner of the U of A goal to give the hosts a 1-0 edge.

    U of S came at U of A in waves, and after the second period ended, the Huskies held a 24-18 edge in shots on goal.

    The Golden Bears, who finished second in Canada West with a 19-7-2 mark, didn’t go away. They mounted a big push back at the start of the third displaying the effort that allowed them to win the past two Canadian Interuniversity Sport titles.

Goalie Jordon Cooke and the Huskies defence fend of the Golden Bears.

    Cooke answered the bell for the Huskies showing why he was named the most outstanding player and goaltender of the year for Canada West on Wednesday. The Leduc product wowed fans with his glove saves.

    He set the tone early in the third robbing Ferguson at point blank range right in front of the U of S goal. It was a sign that this wasn’t going to be the visitors’ night.

    Backed by Cooke throwing up a wall in goal, the Huskies started to turn the game’s momentum back in their favour.

    With 6:30 to play in the third, Huskies forward Jaimen Yakubowski picked off a bad Golden Bears pass, slipped a nifty pass of his own to linemate Parker Thomas and watched Thomas tuck home his first of the post-season to give the Huskies a 2-0 edge.

    Just 44 seconds after that goal, Huskies forward Levi Cable was hacked down on a breakaway by Golden Bears defenceman Dylan Bredo. Cable actually slipped the puck into the net, but the officials said the goal became dislodged before the puck went in.

    That temporary disappointment was erased, when Cable was awarded a penalty shot on the play. The standout rookie and graduate of the Western Hockey League’s Kootenay Ice totally undressed Siemens on a deke and popped home a tally that put the hosts up 3-0.

The Huskies celebrate Levi Cable's penalty shot goal.

    The Golden Bears pulled Siemens in the final minutes to get something going offensively, but third-year Huskies forward John Lawrence rounded out the contest’s scoring with an empty netter.

Cooke made 28 saves to earn his first career post-season CIS shutout. Siemens turned away 30 of 33 shots sent his way.

    While Friday’s game pleased the hometown crowd, this series could still go to a deciding Game 3, which is set for 7 p.m. on Sunday at the Rutherford Rink.

    Both teams are loaded with WHL grads, who know how to bounce back and make adjustments.

    With that said, Friday’s win was by far the best game the Huskies have had against the Golden Bears this season. If the Huskies can duplicate their effort in Game 2 on Saturday, they will give themselves a good chance to celebrate their 17^th conference championship and first since 2012.

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

Huskies finally get rewarded

Kaitlin Willoughby celebrates her second period goal for the Huskies.

    It might be a bit of an understatement to say the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team needed to break back into the win column.

    Entering play Friday, the Huskies had won only won one of their last six games, and in the five setbacks, they had the edge in shots on goal. The effort was there, but the goals had dried up as the Dogs only scored eight times over that stretch. What made the losses even more painful was the fact two were by one goal and two were by two goals.

    The biggest challenge facing Huskies head coach Steve Kook and his staff was trying to keep the confidence of their players elevated and make them believe that the goals will come, if they keep their effort up.

    Heading into their home game Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the Huskies, who were no longer rated in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport top ten rankings, faced a huge challenge taking on the University of Alberta Pandas, who are a powerhouse club year in and year out in the Canada West Conference.

    In one of those that’s why they play the games moments, the Huskies pulled out a 2-1 victory in the match that resembled what one might see in the post-season.

    The contest turned out to be a goaltending duel between fourth-year veterans Cassidy Hendricks of the Huskies and Lindsey Post of the Pandas. Hendricks turned way 30 shots, while Post made 27 saves.

Centre Lauren Zary jets up ice for the Huskies.

    Over the opening 20 minutes, the Huskies stormed out of the gates with huge jump and outshot the Pandas 17-5. The hosts had some golden chances, but Post slammed the door shut.

    The Huskies mental toughness was tested even further in the second period. The Pandas responded with a big push back, where they were spending large stretches of time in the U of S zone.

    U of A broke through at the 13:23 mark, when third year forward Ashley Morin deked around a Huskies defender and tucked a smart shot past Hendricks to give the Pandas a 1-0 lead.

    The Huskies were at a point they could have folded, but they kept digging deep and finally started to get rewarded around the net. Just three minutes after the Pandas tally, Huskies winger Kaitlin Willoughby broke into the U of A zone with speed, deked past a Pandas defender and roofed a shot top corner on Post to tie things up at 1-1. The tally energized the home side.

    With 22 seconds to play in the second, Huskies were buzzing in the Pandas zone, and U of S centre Lauren Zary corralled a rebound from a Marley Ervine shot at the side of the U of A net and lifted a backhander home to put the Huskies up 2-1. The normally calm Zary proceeded to leap in the air and then jump into the glass with excitement.

    In the third, the Pandas had the majority of the chances, but the Huskies still had a number of moments where they applied pressure in the offensive zone in search for an insurance goal.

Cassidy Hendricks makes a clutch save late in the game for the Huskies.

    The biggest difference maker down the stretch was Hendricks in goal. With under a minute to play, Pandas standout rookie Alex Poznikoff had an opportunity to score from point blank range, but Hendricks was able to trap the puck between her arm and body.

    The win allowed the Huskies to improve to 13-9-3 to remain fourth in the Canada West standings with three games to play. The Pandas dropped to 13-9-3, but they remained three points ahead of the Huskies due to having three more regulation wins. In Canada West women’s play, teams are awarded three points for a regulation win and two points for an extra time victory.

    Both teams will go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink, and the Huskies should have a little extra boost in confidence from seeing positive results come from their efforts.

Dogs winning streak ends at nine

Huskies goalie Jordon Cooke made 22 stops in Friday's loss in Edmonton.

    It seemed the University of Alberta Golden Bears men’s hockey team wanted to do everything they could to end the winning streak of their forever rivals, and they were successful in doing just that.

    On Friday night in Edmonton, the Golden Bears blanked the U of Saskatchewan Huskies 3-0 before a large gathering of 1,839 spectators at the Clare Drake Arena in a tightly contested match. Jayden Hart tallied for the hosts at the 9:40 mark of the second period to give the Golden Bears a 1-0 edge.

    The Golden Bears potted a couple of power-play goals in the third, with Jordan Rowley scoring at the 45-second mark and Kruise Reddick tallying at the 17:10 mark. Luke Siemens turned away 23 shots to earn the shutout in goal for U of A.

    Jordon Cooke stopped 22 shots taking the loss in net for the Huskies, who saw their nine-game winning streak come to an end. U of S was 11-0 on the road this season before falling to the Golden Bears on Friday night. The Huskies, who are rated first in the CIS top ten rankings, fell to 21-4, but they entered play Friday having first place in the Canada West Conference all locked up.

    The Golden Bears, who are rated seventh in the CIS top ten rankings, improved to 16-7-2 and sit a point behind the Mount Royal University Cougars (16-6-3) for second in Canada West.

    The Huskies and Golden Bears go at it again on Saturday at the Clare Drake Arena in Edmonton.

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

Cooke, McVeigh steal win for Huskies

Logan McVeigh fires home an equalizing goal for the Huskies.

  The University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team might be able to go out for Halloween as the Calgary Flames of the “Iggy” and “Kipper” era.

    When Jerome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff played for the Flames, the joke was Iginla would pot a couple of goals and Kiprusoff would make like 47 save to lead the Flames to a 2-1 victory, which was often the story when those two played together in Calgary.

    On Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, Huskies faced their toughest foe of the season in the two-time defending Canadian Interuniversity Sport champion University of Alberta Golden Bears.

    Huskies netminder Jordon Cooke played the role of Kiprusoff making 44 saves, Logan McVeigh took on the part of Iginla scoring a couple of goals, and those performances equaled a 3-2 comeback victory for the Dogs.

    The 477^th all-time meeting between the two historic rivals definitely had drama. Just 58 seconds into the contest, the Huskies scored on their first shot of the game, when rookie forward Andrew Johnson slipped home an on-ice shot past Golden Bears goalie Luke Siemens to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.

    The defending national champs responded by throwing everything including what seemed like the kitchen sink at Cooke. Even an extended rust break couldn’t halt the Golden Bears onslaught of shots. The lengthy break was caused, when a puck went into the Ruthy’s roof causing one steel beam to drop a straight line of rust across the ice, while two other beams added sprinkles of rust.

    With 58 seconds to go in the first, the Golden Bears were able to even things up at 1-1, when star forward Jordan Hickmott deflected home a point shot from defenceman Jordan Rowley.

Jordon Cooke made 44 saves to backstop the Huskies to victory.

    Cooke still made 22 saves through the first 20 minutes to keep the Huskies in the contest.

    The Golden Bears went ahead 2-1 at the 5:25 mark of the second, when rearguard Dylan Bredo found the back of the net for his first of the season. U of A kept coming at Cooke in waves, but the sophomore netminder slammed the door for the rest of the contest.

    As the second came to a close, the Huskies started to string a series of good shifts together, which started to turn the tide of the contest. The hosts played their best structural frame in the third, which cued the comeback.

    Just past the midway point of the third, John Lawrence and Jesse Ross combined to set up McVeigh with a scoring chance in front of the Golden Bears net. McVeigh made no mistake wiring home a shot to the top corner of the U of A goal to tie things up at 2-2.

    A little over three minutes later McVeigh tucked home the rebound from a point shot coming off the stick of Huskies captain Kendall McFaull to put the hosts up by the eventual final of 3-2.

    Down the stretch Cooke made a couple of nice glove saves to preserve the victory, which allowed the Huskies to remain undefeated at 7-0. Siemens made 22 stops as the Golden Bears dropped to 4-2-1.

    The two teams go at it again on Halloween night Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink.

Hendricks robs Pandas

Huskies goalie Cassidy Hendricks frustrated the Pandas.

    Speaking of robberies, the Edmonton City Police department might be looking to put University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s team goalie Cassidy Hendricks behind bars for the number she did on the host University of Alberta Pandas on Friday night.

    Hendricks turned away 28 shots through regulation and overtime, which included making seven saves in a scoreless three-on-three five minute overtime period. The Vancouver product proceeded to stop all three shooters she faced in a tiebreaking shootout to lift Huskies to a 3-2 victory.

    In contrast, Pandas goalie Lindsey Post only face 10 shots through regulation and overtime and made eight saves over that stretch. Post stopped only one of two shooters in the tiebreaking shootout in her side’s setback.

    Despite the lopsided edge the Pandas had in the shots department, the Huskies held leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in regulation thanks to goals by star defender Julia Flinton and standout forward Kaitlin Willoughby, who returned after missing two games due to injury. Flinton netted the lone goal in the shootout.

    Cayle Dillon and Ashley Morin had the regulation replies for the Pandas.

    The win was the fourth in a row for the Huskies, and it moved them into first place in the Canada West standings with a 7-1-1 mark. They sit a point up on the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns. The Pandas fell to 4-4-1.

    These two clubs go at it again on Halloween Saturday in Edmonton.

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