No one outworks the Dogs – Huskies upset Redmen 4-1

Josh Roach returned from injury to the Huskies.

    The underdog role seems to fit the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team just fine.

    On Friday at the University Cup in Fredericton, N.B., the Huskies never trailed as they put together one of their best performances of the season to down the third seeded McGill University Redmen 4-1 in a quarter-final match before 2,739 spectators at the Aitken University Centre. With the win, the Huskies advance to the “frozen four” semifinal round of the U Sports elite eight national championship tournament for a third straight year.

    Entering the University Cup, the Huskies were pegged as a team that could be eliminated in one game due to the fact they were playing without star goaltender Jordon Cooke due to a knee injury. Cooke was named the U Sports goaltender-of-the-year and a first team U Sports all-Canadian in the 2015-16 and 2016-17 campaigns.

    The Leduc, Alta., product claimed honours as the Canada West goaltender of the year for a third straight season this past campaign and he was named a second team U Sports all-Canadian.

    Taran Kozun started his fifth straight post-season game, and the rookie, who was the WHL goaltender of the year in the 2014-15 campaign while playing for the Seattle Thunderbirds, was stellar making 33 saves to pick up in goal for the Huskies.

    The Huskies had injuries to three key forwards in sophomore Wyatt Johnson, who is battling a concussion, and first liners Josh Roach and Michael Sofillas were pegged to possibly return from undisclosed ailments. Roach, who is in his fifth and final season with the Huskies and was the team’s scoring leader with 13 goals and 24 assists in 27 regular season games, had a higher likelihood of returning than Sofillas.

Connor Cox had a goal for the Huskies on Friday.

    Roach, who was a second team all-Canadian all-star, and Sofillas played and helped the Huskies go up 1-0 with a power-play goal at the 12:42 mark of the first period.

    Working the point, Roach fed the puck down low on the right side of the Redmen zone to centre Logan McVeigh. McVeigh passed the puck out front to Sofillas who knocked home the game’s first  goal.

    Just 63 seconds into the second, the Huskies entered the Redmen zone on a three-on-two rush. Defenceman Connor Cox drove down low to the left side of Redmen goal and fired home the rebound from a shot taken by right-winger Levi Cable to put the Huskies up 2-0.

    With 2:23 to play in the second, the Redmen cut the Huskies lead to 2-1, when forward Antoine Dufort-Plant potted the rebound from the point shot from defencemen Maximilian Daigle for a power-play goal.

    Huskies extended their lead to 3-1 at the 9:58 mark of the third on a bit of a positive bounce goal. A point shot from defenceman Jordan Fransoo deflected off the stick of Andrew Johnson, off Redmen defenceman Nathan Chiarlitti, flipped high in the air and as it was coming down was knocked into the Redmen goal by Huskies left-winger Carson Stadnyk.

Carson Stadnyk scored for the Huskies.

    Skilled centre Kohl Bauml iced the win for the Huskies scoring into an empty net with 65 seconds remaining in the third.

    Louis-Philip Guindon turned away 29-of-32 shots to take the setback in goal for the Redmen.

    The Redmen posted a 22-4-2 record in the regular season and a 7-2 mark in the OUA playoffs. The Huskies posted a 20-7-1 record during the regular season and 2-3 mark in the Canada West playoffs.

    The Huskies now advance to play their “forever rivals” in the second seeded University of Alberta Golden Bears in a semifinal on Saturday (1 p.m. Saskatchewan time, Sportsnet 360).
    Between the regular season and playoffs, the Golden Bears have won five of the six head-to-head meetings with the Huskies including sweeping the best-of-three Canada West championship series 2-0.

    The Golden Bears prevailed in their quarter-final match earlier on Friday 8-6 over the seventh seeded Acadia University Axemen.  

    Saturday’s earlier semifinal features the top seeded tournament host and defending University Cup champion University of New Brunswick Varsity Reds taking on the fifth seeded St. Francis Xavier University X-Men. The Varsity Red came into the tournament having won the Atlantic University Sport conference title.

Kohl Bauml had an empty-net goal for the Huskies.

    Last year, the Varsity Reds as the host squad defeated the Huskies 5-3 in the championship final of the University Cup.
    For the first time since the championship tournaments in both men’s and women’s hockey in U Sports switched to an elite eight format in the 2014-15 campaign, the Huskies have both their men’s and women’s teams qualified for the semifinal round in the same year.

    At the women’s tournament in London, Ont., the seventh seeded Huskies will take on the host and third seeded University of Western Ontario Mustangs in one semifinal on Saturday, while the other semifinal sees the top seeded University of Manitoba Bisons battle the fourth seeded Concordia University Stingers.

    The bronze medal and champion games for both elite eight tournaments are slated for Sunday.

@HuskiesMHKY have beaten @McGillAthletics 4-1, and advance to the @USPORTS_Hockey Semi-Finals! Watch it live on Sportsnet 360, and on Sportsnet NOW‼️

Les @HuskieAthletics ont battu les @HockeyRedmen 4-1 et accèdent à la demi-finale de hockey masculin U SPORTS! ✨#ChampSZN 🏆 pic.twitter.com/HGS24MD3AE

— Coupe U Cup (@coupeUcup) March 17, 2018

    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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Roach writing memorable farewell tour with Huskies

Josh Roach leads Canada West in scoring with 10 goals and 20 assists.

    Josh Roach is going all in to try and make his swan song his most memorable campaign with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team.

    On personal front, the 25-year-old ensured statistically his fifth-and-final season with the Dogs would be his most productive offensively picking up a pair of assists in a 4-1 U Sports regular season victory over the University of Manitoba Bisons on Saturday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink. With those helpers, Roach has career highs in goals (10), assists (20) and points (30), and he leads the Canada West Conference in scoring with a three-point edge over Luke Philp of the University of Alberta Golden Bears.

Josh Roach had two assists for the Huskies on Saturday.

    To go along with the points, Roach has posted a plus-16 rating in the plus-minus department, which is also a career high. He still has eight regular season games to go to build on those totals.

    “Obviously, it is nice,” said Roach, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 190 pounds. “You start the season, and you set personal goals for yourself.

    “To reach them with a month left in the season is obviously something pretty special.”

    Roach is building off a solid 2016-17 campaign where he recorded eight goals and 18 assists in 24 regular season games. For most of the past two campaigns, he has been part of a character forward unit that has developed into a dynamic scoring force with centre Logan McVeigh and left-winger Michael Sofillas.

    “Me and my linemates have been clicking,” said Roach, who is a Huskies assistant captain. “We’ve played the last few years out there, so we are comfortable out there.

Josh Roach has played in three University Cup tournaments.

    “We can feed off of each other and know where each other are. Playing with consistent guys who think the same way as you definitely helps.”

    During his time with the Huskies, the local product has gone through what seems like a lifetime of experiences. In three of his first four seasons, Roach and the Huskies appeared in the U Sports national championship tournament – the University Cup – in 2014, 2016 and 2017. The Huskies fell in the tournament’s title game in 2014 and 2017.

    Amongst those appearances at nationals was an emotional Canada West championship win at the Rutherford Rink in early March of 2016, which marked the high point in a campaign where the Dogs were playing to honour the memory of the late Cody Smuk. Smuk was the team’s all-heart, glue guy type gritty forward, who played from 2010 to 2014 and passed away from cancer in June of 2015.

Josh Roach is a plus-16 so far this season.

    Roach was one of Smuk’s former teammates, and during the on ice Canada West title celebrations in 2016, Roach and Huskies captain Kendall McFaull helped bring Smuk’s family on to the ice for the team picture with the trophy and championship banner.

    Roach said that day is still his most memorable moment with the Huskies, and the education student can’t believe how quickly his time with the team is passing by.

    “Looking back on it, it doesn’t seem like that,” said Roach. “Everybody says when you come in that enjoy it, because it goes by fast.

    “You don’t expect it when you first start, but it is crazy looking back now.”

    The skilled winger said his four seasons in the junior A ranks from 2009 to 2013 with the Humboldt Broncos and then the Flin Flon Bombers in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League helped prepare him to play at the Canadian university level. He was an offensive defenceman during his hockey career until being moved up to forward due to his scoring touch in his first campaign with the Huskies.

    From 2009 to 2012, Roach was a standout with the Broncos, and he helped them win a league championship and advance to the semifinal of the Royal Bank Cup, which is the national championship tournament for the junior A level.

Left-winger Michael Sofillas is one of Roach’s key linemates.

    During his time in Humboldt, Roach played under then Broncos head coach and general manager Dean Brockman, who is now the head coach of the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades, and that experience proved to be very valuable.
    “Having a players’ coach like Dean (Brockman) throughout my junior career obviously was something a lot of guys don’t get to experience,” said Roach. “He definitely helped me along in my career. I have a lot to thank for him.”

    Against the Bisons on Saturday night, Roach picked up helpers on the Huskies second and third goals. The Huskies jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period on singles from left-winger Collin Shirley and Sofillas.

    Defenceman Blake Heinrich scored for the Bisons at the 10:10 mark of the third period to cut the Huskies lead to 2-1.

Centre Logan McVeigh is Roach’s other key linemate.

    U of S sealed victory with a power-play goal from offensive defenceman Jesse Forsberg with 1:39 remaining in the third period and an empty-net tally from right-winger Parker Thomas with 45 seconds to play in the third. The win allowed the Huskies to officially lock up a berth in the Canada West playoffs.

    Jordon Cooke turned away 24 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Huskies, who are rated fourth in the U Sports Top 10 rankings. Byron Spriggs turned away 39-of-42 shots to take the setback in goal for the Bisons.

    Roach said that victory over the Bisons was an up and down game for his team.

    “I thought we had our moments when we played well,” said Roach. “We were pretty sloppy in our own end.

    “We definitely didn’t play to our strengths. Fortunately, we were able to come away with the ‘W.’”

Josh Roach has been part of many Huskies victory celebrations like this one.

    The win allowed the Huskies to improve to 16-3-1 and move into a tie for first in Canada West with the Golden Bears, who are also 16-3-1. The Golden Bears are rated second in the U Sports Top 10 rankings.

    The Bisons fell to 11-7-2 and sit nine points behind the Huskies and Golden Bears in the Canada West standings.

    Roach is looking forward to the sprint to the finish.

    “Obviously, we want to finish strong,” said Roach. “If we can do our job and set ourselves up pretty good going into the post-season, I think we will be good.

    “We just have to play our game and just keep at it.”

    The Huskies return to action on Friday, when they host the University of Calgary Dinos (6-11-3) at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

Early Bisons goal does in Huskies women’s hockey team

Jessica Vance stopped 19 shots for the Huskies on Saturday.

    The U of Manitoba Bisons women’s hockey team ensured an early goal would prove costly to the visiting U of Saskatchewan Huskies.

    On Saturday at the Wayne Fleming Arena in Winnipeg, Man., fourth-year forward Nicole Carswell scored her first goal of the season at the 2:41 mark of the first period, and that tally proved to be enough to give the Bisons a 1-0 victory in a U Sports regular season clash over the Huskies. Bisons netminder Lauren Taraschuk turned away 26 shots to pick up her third shutout of the season and bring an end to the Huskies four-game winning streak.

    Jessica Vance turned away 19 shots to take the setback in goal for the Huskies after coming out victorious in her five previous straight starts.

    The Bisons, who are rated first in the U Sports Top 10 rankings, improved to 14-5-1 to sit second in the Canada West Conference one standings point behind the first place University of British Columbia Thunderbirds (14-4-2).

    The Huskies fell to 12-7-1 to sit fourth in Canada West and five standings points back of the Thunderbirds.

    U of S returns to action on Friday with a road encounter in Calgary against the U of Calgary Dinos (6-12-2).

Gerlach delivers OT win to Blades

Max Gerlach scored the overtime winner for the Blades on Saturday night.

    Max Gerlach showed off the type of excitement he can bring to the Saskatoon Blades in dramatic fashion.

    On Saturday night at the Centrium in Red Deer, the 19-year-old centre netted two goals and an assist to deliver the Blades to a dramatic come-from-behind 3-2 WHL regular season overtime victory over the host Rebels before 4,301 spectators. Gerlach was acquired by the Blades in a deal with the Medicine Hat Tigers that came before the WHL’s trade deadline on Wednesday.

    The Rebels jumped ahead 2-0 on a first period goal by Grayson Pawlenchuk and a second period tally from Mason McCarty.

    Before the second period ended, Gerlach potted his first goal as a member of the Blades to cut the Rebels edge to 2-1.

    With 1:43 to play in the third period, Gerlach teamed with Blades captain Evan Fiala to set up right-winger Josh Paterson for his 21^st goal of the season to tie things up at 2-2.

    At the 1:21 mark of overtime, Gerlach laser beamed his second goal of the contest to the top left corner of the Red Deer net to win the game for the Blades.

    Rookie Nolan Maier turned away 23 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Blades, who improved to 22-19-2-1 to hold the second wildcard spot in the WHL’s Eastern Conference with a seven point edge over the Prince Albert Raiders (16-19-6-2). The Raiders have one game in hand on the Blades.

    Rookie Ethan Anders turned away 35 shots to take the setback in goal for the Rebels, who fell to 10-23-8-3.

    The Blades return to action on Sunday, when they travel to Cranbrook, B.C., to take on the Kootenay Ice (18-22-3).

    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 win, everyone pitches in

Carson Stadnyk, right, looks to try a wraparound for the Huskies.

    It seemed like everyone was getting in on the action for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team.

    On Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, six different player scored for the Huskies as they dumped the visiting University of Manitoba Bisons 6-2 in a U Sports regular season contest before 393 frigid spectators.
    The contest provided an interesting clash as the Huskies came in rated fourth in the U Sports Top 10 rankings and had dropped a 4-2 decision last Saturday in Lethbridge to the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns.

Logan McVeigh had three assists for the Huskies.

    The Bisons were rated ninth in the U Sports Top 10 rankings and were coming in high on confidence having won their last two outings by sweeping the University of Alberta Golden Bears in a two-game series on Jan. 5 and 6 in Winnipeg and having won four straight overall. The Golden Bears are rated second in the U Sports Top 10 rankings.
    U of S didn’t take the Bisons lightly jumping out of the gates with a fast start. Just 51 seconds into Friday’s clash, fourth-year right-winger Parker Thomas knocked home his fifth goal of the season at the left side of the Bisons net to give the Huskies a 1-0 edge.

    The hosts went ahead 2-0 with 1:29 to play in the first when sophomore left-winger Carson Stadnyk netted his fourth of the campaign. The Huskies outshot the Bisons 16-7 over the opening 20 minutes.

Josh Roach leads Canada West in scoring with 10 goals and 18 assists.

    The Bisons found their legs in the second period coming with a big push back. Sophomore centre Remi Laurencelle scored 63 seconds into the second on the power play for the Bisons to cut the Huskies edge to 2-1.

    At the 8:11 mark of the second, the Bisons cashed in on a three-on-one opportunity down close near the Huskies goal. Bisons third-year defenceman Adam Henry pinched down to the left side of the Huskies goal and converted a tick-tack-toe passing play from forwards Zach Franko and Michael St. Croix to tie things up at 2-2.

    Just as the Bisons seemed to have all the momentum, the Huskies recaptured it when gritty fifth-year centre John Lawrence wired home his sixth of the season from the left slot to give the hosts a 3-2 edge with 9:05 to play in the second.

Michael Sofillas had a goal and an assist for the Huskies.

    Centre Jordan Tkatch and right-winger Josh Roach netted singles at the 2:58 and 10:21 marks respectively of the third period to put the Huskies up 5-2.

    With 66 seconds to play in the third, the Huskies rounded out the scoring when right-winger Levi Cable and centre Logan McVeigh teamed up to spring left-winger Michael Sofillas on a breakaway towards an empty net, and he potted the puck easily into the vacated cage.

    Taran Kozun turned away 27 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Huskies, who sit second in the Canada West Conference with a 15-3-1 record. Byron Spriggs turned away 34-of-39 shots taking the setback in goal for the Bisons, who sit third in Canada West with an 11-6-2 mark.

Netminder Taran Kozun begins to celebrate a win with two teammates.

    Roach, Sofillas and Stadnyk all had an assist each to go along with their respective goals. Roach continues to lead Canada West in scoring piling up 10 goals and 18 assists in 19 regular season games.

    McVeigh finished with three assists on the night to give him 18 helpers on the campaign to match his career high.
    The Kenaston, Sask., product was a plus-three in the plus-minus department.

Offensive defenceman Jesse Forsberg had a stellar night collecting three assists and posting a plus-four rating in the plus-minus department.

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

Vance returns to haunt Bisons

Jessica Vance picked up a special win in Winnipeg.

    Jessica Vance posted arguably one of her sweetest victories in her U Sports career on Friday night in Winnipeg, Man.

    The sophomore netminder with the U of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team turned away 22 shots to back her squad to a 3-1 regular season victory over the host U of Manitoba Bisons, who are rated first in the U Sports Top 10 rankings. The Bisons were the Prince Albert, Sask., product’s first team, but she found herself buried on U of M’s goaltending depth chart.

    After dressing for one game as a backup early last season for the Bisons, Vance elected to leave the U of M side and joined the Huskies to play closer to home.

    Her teammates provided good offensive support in Friday’s clash before 400 spectators at the Wayne Fleming Arena. Just 2:38 into the opening frame, sophomore defender Kayla Kirwan netted her third goal of the season with checking winger Danielle Nogier drawing an assist.

    After a scoreless second period, the Huskies went ahead 2-0 at the 12:02 mark of the third, when third-year winger Rachel Lundberg netted her first goal of the campaign with rookie center Chloe Smith drawing an assist.

    Bisons fourth-year forward Lauryn Keen scored just over two-and-a-half minutes later to cut the Huskies edge to 2-1.

Kayla Kirwan scored for the Huskies on Friday night.

    Huskies sophomore left-winger Emily Upgang sealed the victory for the visitors scoring into an empty net with 72 seconds remaining in the third.

    Fifth-year netminder Rachel Dyck turned away 16-of-18 shots to take the setback in goal for the Bisons (13-5-1).

    To show how much the goalies are ruling the Canada West Conference in women’s hockey, Keen topped the conference in scoring last season with nine goals and 25 assists appearing in all 28 of her squad’s regular season games. Keen has five goals and four assists in 17 regular season games so far in the current campaign.

    Vance continued her stellar season winning her fifth straight start. She now has a 7-2 record, a 1.00 goals against average, a .958 save percentage and four shutouts on the campaign.

    With Vance in net, the Huskies have won their last four straight games to improve to 12-6-1.

    The two teams face each other again on Saturday in Winnipeg.

    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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Golden Bears take opening round with Huskies

The Huskies and Golden Bears scrum it up late in the third period on Friday.

    As crazy as this sounds, a 6-1 final in favour of the University of Alberta Golden Bears didn’t do justice for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team.

    On Friday night at the Ancient Rutherford Rink, the forever rivals renewed acquaintances for the first time in the regular season during the 2017-18 U Sports campaign.
    The Golden Bears entered the contest rated first in the U Sports Top 10 rankings, while the Huskies were rated third.

    The two teams could have easily been locked in a 1980s style shootout as opposed to the lopsided win the final result was.
    The Golden Bears made good on their chances, while the Huskies couldn’t finish on their golden scoring opportunities.

    There is a good chance Huskies head coach Dave Adolph, his staff and his players will review the game tape and wonder what might have been.

Dylan Bredo had a pair of goals and an assist for the Golden Bears.

    At the start of the first period, Huskies defenceman Tanner Lishchynsky and star centre Kohl Bauml both rang shots off the post of the Golden Bears net.

    After those chances came and went, Golden Bears fourth-year defenceman Dylan Bredo slipped home a point shot to put the visitors up 1-0 at the 11:32 mark of the opening frame.

    Bredo’s goal didn’t put the brakes on the Huskies push. A short time after U of A went ahead, the Huskies had another golden scoring chance, when right-winger Parker Thomas passed the puck from behind the U of A net to linemate Alex Forsberg in front of the goal.

    Forsberg appeared to have a shot pegged for the top left corner of the U of A net, but he was robbed by the glove hand of Golden Bears netminder Brendan Burke.

    Bredo proceeded to put the Golden Bears up 2-0, when he scored from the low left slot with 1:42 to play in the first period.

Jamie Crooks celebrates his hat trick goal.

    The Huskies answered that with a power-play goal with 23 seconds to play in the opening frame, when centre Logan McVeigh slipped a pass from behind the U of A net to linemate Michael Sofillas. Sofillas buried his fifth goal of the season to cut the U of A lead to 2-1.

    Just 47 seconds into the second, left-winger Taylor Cooper potted his third goal of the season to give the Golden Bears a 3-1 edge.

    The Huskies proceeded to get on the power-play twice, but they couldn’t find the back of the net. The opportunities included a misfire by McVeigh on a backdoor passing play.

    Right after the second of those to power-play chances expired, the Golden Bears got up ice in clunky fashion with numbers resulting in a goal from left-winger Jamie Crooks.

    After 40 minutes, the Huskies trailed 4-1, while the shots on goal were even at 22-22. U of S had four power-play chances after two periods resulting in one goal. U of A had two power-play chances over the opening 40 minutes but was unable to cash in on those opportunities.

    The first and second periods included the usual pushing and shoving and beaking after the whistle, and the Huskies did a great job of keeping their emotions in check during that span of time.

    The Huskies needed to score early in the third to get some traction, but Crooks potted his second of the game at the 4:15 mark to put the visitors up 5-1. After that, garbage time ensued, where tempers did flare up.

Josh Roach controls the puck at the point during a Huskies power play.

    Huskies star defenceman Jesse Forsberg got in scrum with Golden Bears centre Tyson Baillie with 10:53 to play, and the officials sent them off with minors for roughing and game misconducts.

    A short time later, Huskies fourth-year defenceman Jordan Fransoo received minors for tripping and checking from behind and a game misconduct during one sequence.

    The most dangerous altercation occurred with 2:15 to play, when Golden Bears right-winger Steven Owre hit Huskies defenceman Sam Ruopp knee-to-knee. Huskies feisty forward Jaimen Yakubowski went after Owre, and a scrum ensued.

    Owre received a major penalty for kneeing and a game misconduct. His infraction will be reviewed for a possible suspension for Saturday’s clash between these same two clubs at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

    Yakubowski received a minor for roughing and a game misconduct, and Ruopp picked up a roughing minor.

U of S’s Kendall McFaull (#2) and U of A’s Jayden Hart battle for the puck.

    All the penalties did was allow Crooks to complete his hat trick with 33 seconds to play on a rare four-on-three power play.

    The officials should be given credit for kicking players out of the game, when the contest was basically decided on the scoreboard. While there were 73 minutes in penalties handed out in the third period, there could have potentially been a lot more dished out had the officials not handled things the way they did.

    Burke made 27 stops to pick up the win goal for the Golden Bears, who improved to 11-0 to remain first in the Canada West Conference. Jordon Cooke turned away 29 shots to take the setback in goal for the Huskies, who fell to 8-2-1 but still remained second in Canada West.

    The Huskies couldn’t be faulted for their effort on Friday. If they bear down on their golden scoring chances and clean up a couple of mishaps defensively, Saturday’s encounter can easily have a different storyline.

Dogs get a visit from a special Nova Scotian

Nova Scotia product Lindsay Horne, right, performs a ceremonial faceoff.

    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team a special and familiar visitor this weekend.

Coal Harbor, Nova Scotia, product Lindsay Horne traveled at his own expense this weekend to Saskatoon to see the Huskies in action. Horne is well-known to the Huskies.

    At the 2016 University Cup national championship tournament in Halifax, N.S., Horne was assigned as the Huskies volunteer host. Horne performed various assigned duties that included driving team staff members to various destinations, picking up baggage and delivering it and setting up facilities.

    Besides being the volunteer host, Horne became a fan of the team. He made tournament organizers aware of the squad’s tradition in the 2015-16 campaign of warming up in #24 jerseys to honour the late Cody Smuk, who was the Huskies gritty, hard-working forward that passed away of cancer in June of 2015.

    Horne, who is a full-time sales representative for Choisy Laboratories, organized his sons and their classmates to become a Huskies cheering section wearing #24 shirts at each game the Dogs played.

    When the Huskies returned to the University Cup in 2017 held in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Horne took time off work, drove to Fredericton and convinced the organizing committee to let him serve as the team’s volunteer host once again. Horne was named an “Honourary Huskie” by the Dogs for his efforts.

    Horne followed the Huskies U Sports game broadcasts online, but he had a desire to see a contest live in the Rutherford Rink and maybe assist in a rust clean up.

    He visited the U of S campus and the team’s practice on Thursday. Before Friday’s game, Horne dropped the puck for a ceremonial faceoff.

    There was one rust break in Friday’s game, where the puck hit the Rutherford Rink roof dropping rust to the ice surface, but Horne didn’t have to help with the cleanup.

    Horne will be in attendance when the Huskies face the U of Alberta Golden Bears on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

Pandas end Huskies winning streak

Kori Herner scored for the Huskies on Friday.

    The defending U Sports national champion U of Alberta Pandas women’s hockey team brought the U of Saskatchewan Huskies four-game winning streak to an end.

    On Friday at the Clare Drake Arena in Edmonton, the Pandas, who are rated first in the U Sports Top 10 rankings, downed the Huskies 3-1.

    The Pandas carried a big advantage in play outshooting the Huskies 20-6 over the first two periods. Thanks to the play of Huskies netminder Jessica Vance, the hosts were only able to build a 1-0 lead on a second period goal by Pandas captain Cayle Dillon.

    Fifth-year forward Ashley Morin extended the Pandas lead to 2-0 at the four-minute mark of the third.

    Just 29 seconds after that tally, fifth-year forward Kori Herner potted her second goal of the season for the Huskies to cut the Pandas edge to 2-1. Huskies sophomore checking forward Danielle Nogier picked up her first career U Sports regular season point with an assist on Herner’s goal.

    U of S played a strong third, but Pandas third-year forward Autumn MacDougall scored with 5:02 to play in the third to round out the scoring in U of A’s two-goal win.

    Vance made 23 stops to take the loss in goal for the Huskies (7-3-1). Kirsten Chamberlin turned away 16 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Pandas (7-2-2).

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday in Edmonton at the Clare Drake Arena.

Wheat Kings’ Thompson stones Blades

Cameron Hebig scored the Blades lone goal on Friday night.

    The Saskatoon Blades fired everything including the kitchen sink at Brandon Wheat Kings goalie Logan Thompson but were only able to get one goal past the overage veteran.

    Thompson made 42 saves to back the Wheat Kings to a 4-1 victory over the Blades before 6,242 spectator at the SaskTel Centre. The Blades pulled in their second largest crowd of the season due to the clash with Brandon being the annual game where the “blue and gold” honours First Nations.

    After the two teams played through a scoreless opening frame, the Wheat Kings jumped ahead 3-0 in the second period with singles coming from the sticks of Baron Thompson, Cole Reinhardt and Linden McCorrister.

    At the 7:58 mark of the third, star overage centre Cameron Hebig scored the Blades lone goal to cut the Wheat Kings lead to 3-1.

    Stelio Mattheos netted a single to restore Brandon’s three-goal lead at the 12:55 mark of the third.

Nolan Maier, who is a 16-year-old rookie making his second career WHL regular season start, turned away 21 shots to take setback in goal for the Blades.

    The Wheat Kings have won their last four straight to improve to 13-6-0-1. The Blades fell to 8-11-1.

    “The Bridge City Bunch” returns to action on Saturday, when they travel to Moose Jaw to face the WHL leading Warriors (17-5).

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. A big thanks goes out to Michael P.J. Kennedy at the U of Saskatchewan for the huge assist with the section on Huskies fan Lindsay Horne.

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Character line has Huskies on verge of locking up first

Logan McVeigh has been on fire for the Huskies.

    The good guys are coming through to make a nice feel good story for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team.

    The forward line of second-year centre Logan McVeigh, third-year winger Michael Sofillas and fourth-year winger Josh Roach have emerged as the Dogs’ top offensive unit this season. On Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the trio combined for three goals and four assists to lead the Huskies to a 5-3 victory over the U of Manitoba Bisons.

    The win allowed the Huskies, who are rated second in the U Sports top ten rankings, to improve to 19-4-2. They need to earn one more point in the standings to clinch first in the Canada West Conference and home ice advantage through the conference playoffs for a second straight year.

    Coming into the 2016-17 campaign, McVeigh, Sofillas and Roach weren’t expected to be the Huskies top scoring forwards. They all have offensive ability and were expected to contribute on the scoreboard, but they are all best known for leading the way on the ice by example with their work ethic.

Josh Roach, left, celebrates a goal with Michael Sofillas.

    Working together as a unit, all three are having career seasons offensively. McVeigh leads the team in scoring with 13 goals and 16 assists. The Kenaston, Sask., product picked up a goal and two assists on Friday, and he has points in four consecutive games totaling six goals and four assists over that time.

    Sofillas, who had an assist on Friday, is third in team scoring piling up 11 goals and 13 assists, while Roach has eight goals and 16 assists to sit fourth in Huskies scoring. Roach had a pair of goals and an assist in Friday’s win.

    McVeigh is having the breakout campaign he had desperately been seeking since he piled up 20 goals and 34 assists in 39 regular season games in the midget AAA ranks with the Saskatoon Contacts back in 2009-10.

Josh Roach zips up ice for the Huskies.

    During a WHL career that spanned five seasons, McVeigh played for four teams including the Kamloops Blazers, Prince Albert Raiders, Medicine Hat Tigers and Regina Pats. He appeared in 328 regular season games collecting 55 goals and 96 assists.

    In each of his WHL stops, McVeigh was well respected by teammates, coaches and team staff. His compete level was always high and consistent, but he was never able to hit overdrive with his offensive output.

    Sofillas played two full seasons with the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes before finishing his junior career in Manitoba’s junior A ranks in 2013-14, where he netted 14 goals and 24 assists playing in 54 regular season games with the Dauphin Kings and Winkler Flyers. His WHL career totals didn’t approach what he put up in the MJHL.

    Roach played four seasons as a defenceman in the junior A ranks appearing in 203 regular season games with the Humboldt Broncos and Flin Flon Bombers of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. He totalled 43 goals and 105 assists over that time.

    The offensive defenceman was converted to a forward with the Huskies, where he has flourished. He has also been an assistant captain with the Huskies since his sophomore year.

    McVeigh, Sofillas and Roach all carry reputations of being guys you want to represent your team in the community and to see them take off in one of Canada’s top elite but still underrated leagues is truly special.

Michael Sofillas (#15) celebrates a win with goalie Jordon Cooke.

    Against the Bisons on Friday, the visitors recorded the first six shots on goal before the Huskies went up 1-0 on their first shot of the game coming off the stick of Jordan Tkatch. Just 53 seconds later, Roach netted his first of two goals on the night to put the Huskies up 2-0 on their second shot of the contest.
    Remi Laurencelle pulled the Bisons to within 2-1 before Huskies winger Levi Cable rifled home a goal top corner to give the hosts a 3-1 edge heading into the first intermission.

    McVeigh scored early in the second to give the Dogs a 4-1, before the Bisons attempted a rally. Blake Heinrich scored for the visitors before the second period expired, and Brett Brooks slipped home a goal on a power play in the third to cut the Huskies edge to 4-3.

    Roach sealed victory with an empty-net tally.

    Huskies superstar goaltender Jordon Cooke made 27 saves to pick up the win in goal for U of S. Byron Spriggs stopped 27 of 31 shots to take the loss in net for the Bisons (12-11-2).

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

Huskies women’s team blanked in Winnipeg

Cassidy Hendricks was solid in goal again for the Huskies.

    The Huskies women’s hockey team didn’t find any luck around the net Friday night in Winnipeg falling 3-0 to the host Bisons.

    Jordyn Zacharias scored the Bisons first goal at the 3:29 mark of the opening frame and their third marker at the 10:35 mark of the second period.
    Megan Neduzak picked up a single 49 seconds into the second stanza to count for U of M’s other tally.

    Rachel Dyck made 24 saves to pick up the shutout in the U of M net. Cassidy Hendricks stopped 28 shots to take the loss in the U of S net.

    The Bisons, who are ranked fifth in the U Sports top 10 rankings, improved to 18-5-2 with the win.
    The Huskies, who were shutout for a second straight contest, fell to 13-9-3. The Huskies sit fourth in the Canada West conference.

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday in Winnipeg.

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

Forsberg blasts Huskies to OT victory

Rearguard scores twice in comeback over Pronghorns

Jesse Forsberg celebrates his OT winner.

    A pair of Jesse Forsberg point blasts broke the hearts of the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns men’s hockey team.

    On Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the Pronghorns led the host University of Saskatchewan Huskies 2-1 going into the third period before Forsberg stepped up to the forefront. At the 11:55 mark of the third, the third-year defenceman wired a point blast past Pronghorns goaltender Garret Hughson to tie the contest up at 2-2.

    The contest proceeded to go to overtime, and at the 3:31 mark of the extra session while working on a four-on-three power play, Forsberg drove home the winner from the point to give the Huskies to a 3-2 victory.

    During the Huskies first five games, Forsberg has jumped out to a fast start netting three goals and three assists. The Waldheim, Sask., product is looking to surpass his Canada West career high totals of three goals and seven assists recorded in 16 regular season games last season.

    Forsberg’s heroics allowed the Huskies, who are rated third in the U Sports top 10 rankings, to find a way to improve to 4-1 against a foe that came out playing at a high level.

    In the opening frame, the Pronghorns had the Huskies pinned for lengthy stretches in their own zone holding a 17-6 edge in shots on goal. Thanks to stellar play of netminder Jordan Cooke, the hosts exited the first 20 minute locking in a 1-1 draw.

    Third-year centre Justin Valentino beat Cooke on the power play during a net scramble to put the Pronghorns up 1-0. The Huskies gained some traction when Logan McVeigh and Carson Stadnyk combined to set up Michael Sofillas for his third of the season to force a 1-1 tie with 2:50 remaining in the first.

Josh Roach charges into the offensive zone for the Huskies.

    The teams played an even second, but Cooke had to make a few bailout saves, when the Huskies made a number of turnovers in the centre ice zone.

    One of those turnovers did result in Valentino’s second of the night to give the Pronghorns a 2-1 edge with 6:07 to play in the second. After U of L received a giveaway in the centre ice zone, Valentino score after his side applied a stretch of sustained pressure in the offensive zone.

    The Huskies came out flying in the third playing their best hockey of the contest. After Forsberg picked up the equalizer, he almost didn’t have a chance to be the overtime hero.

    In the dying seconds of the third period, Huskies captain Kendall McFaull was set up alone at the side of the Pronghorns goal, but Hughson stretched over to deny the scoring chance.

    Cooke made 33 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Huskies. Hughson turned away 30 shots to take the extra time setback in goal for the Pronghorns, whose record moved to 1-1-1.

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

Huskies women’s team wins fourth straight

Kaitlin Willoughby zips up ice for the Huskies.

    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team won their fourth straight game overcoming a hot opposing goaltender.

    On Friday night in Lethbridge, U of Lethbridge Pronghorns netminder Alicia Anderson had a sensational outing making 43 saves, but the Huskies, who are rated 10^th in the U Sports top 10 rankings, weren’t kept at bay forever. They skated away with a 4-2 victory.

    Aislinn Kooistra gave the Pronghorns a 1-0 lead at the 5:40 mark of the first.

    The Huskies found the equalizer with 3:11 to play in the first, when sophomore winger Courtney Cormack netted her first of the season.

    U of S surged ahead 3-1 in the second, when fourth year veterans Kaitlin Willoughby and Kori Herner both netted singles. Jodi Gentile scored for the Pronghorns to cut the Huskies edge to 3-2 heading into the second intermission.

    Sophomore forward Shyan Elias scored for the Huskies on the power play in the third to help the visitors seal victory. Former Swift Current Wildcats star netminder Jasey Book turned away 14 shots to pick up her first career regular season victory for the Huskies in her first start. The Huskies improved to 4-1 with the win.

    The Pronghorns fell to 1-3-1 with the loss.

    Anderson, who is in her second season with the Pronghorns, has stopped 160-of-169 shots in three starts in the current campaign to post a .947 save percentage and a 2.98 goals against average. She has faced an average of 56 shots a game.

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday in Lethbridge.

CIS re-branded as U Sports

The U Sports logo.

    On Thursday, the governing body for university sports in Canada launched a re-brand of its name and logo.

    From now on, the governing body that was known as Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) will now be known as U Sports. The U Sports name will be used in both English and French. It oversees the competition involving teams at 56 universities, a total of around 12,000 student athletes, about 500 coaches and 21 national championships in 12 different sports.

    The logo is a simple standing “U” with a maple leaf in the middle. The maple leaf in the new logo evolved from a unique leaf found on an old CIAU (Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union) letterhead from the 1980s. The governing body for university sports in Canada ran under the CIAU name until switching to the CIS name in 2001.

    The change comes under the watch of current U Sports CEO Graham Brown, who was hired in the fall of 2015.

    In recent years, there has been some talk about changing the name for the governing body for university sports in Canada to a moniker that was viewed as less clunky. The U Sports name definitely achieves that objective.

    While it is not normal for a league to change its name in the middle of a season, the change still came during the early stages of the university sports season in Canada. The streamlined name comes just in time before most of the fall semester only sports begin their respective playoff cycles.

    The early reviews for the new name have been good, so here is hoping the re-branded U Sports will be able to attract more national attention and sponsorships it deserves.

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

Huskies’ Bohlken buries Pandas in double overtime

The Huskies celebrate Leah Bohlken's double OT winning goal.

    Leah Bohlken appears to be a perfect fit as the new main power-play quarterback for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team.

    On Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the 19-year-old Moose Jaw product set up one goal on the power play and blasted home the double overtime winner on another power play. Bohlken’s efforts allowed the Huskies to pull out a 2-1 victory in their regular season home opener over the University of Alberta Pandas.

    While working with a four-on-three advantage in a second five-minute frame, Bohlken pinched down from the point into the left slot and converted a perfect backdoor pass from Huskies star winger Kaitlin Willoughby for the winning tally.

    “That was unreal,” said Bohlken. “That was a beautiful pass from Willow (Willoughby). (Lauren) Zary is working hard in the zone.

    “Everybody worked hard to keep it from going into our net. When you can put one away like that, I think it is pretty insane. It makes you pretty happy.”

    Bohlken assumed the role as the main power-play quarterback on the point in her sophomore season due to the graduation of first-team all-Canadian all-star Julia Flinton. Last season, Bohlken was paired up on the back end with Flinton on the Huskies top power-play unit.

Leah Bohlken controls the puck at the point for the Huskies.

    “I think last year she (Julia Flinton) helped me out a lot,” said Bohlken, who recorded two goals and six assists in 28 regular season games in 2015-16. “She walked me through and kind of showed me the ropes.

    “I got multiple opportunities from the coaches. Playing with her definitely helped. I’ve had practise from last year, so coming into this year, Flinton is not there on the point with me, but there is another girl that is right there in Kayla Kirwan.

    “I played a little bit with Kira Bannatyne. They are both there. They are both really good hockey players.”

    The Huskies converted on 2-of-8 power-play chances on Friday and could have had more goals with a little better finish around the net. On the team’s fourth power-play chance early in the second, feisty forward Brooklyn Haubrich nailed the post and winger Rachel Johnson missed an open cage.

    After starting out 0-for-4 on the power play, the Huskies cashed in on their fifth power-play chance at the 13:45 mark of the second. Kennedy Harris and Bohlken combined to get the puck over to captain Lauren Zary, who popped home her first goal of the season.

Huskies goalie Cassidy Hendricks stops Pandas forward Alex Poznikoff.

    When quarterbacking the power play, Bohlken’s style is a little different from Flinton’s. Flinton would often rush coast-to-coast with the puck and try to create a scoring chance via that route. Bohlken prefers to control things from the blue-line and set in a play from that spot.

    “I think that is important for any defence is to control the puck and look for your forwards down low (and) look for your defence partner,” said Bohlken. “To not panic with the puck is a huge thing.

    “I still do panic with it, but it is something that I am working on. I think like tonight is an example of how practice pays off. You have to be calm with it.

    “I am not perfect yet. I don’t think I will ever be perfect, but I am trying.”

Kaitlin Willoughby had a key assist for the Huskies.

    The Huskies did have one hiccup on the power-play that allowed the Pandas to even things up at 1-1 just before the seven-minute mark of the third, when Bohlken wasn’t on the ice.

    During a rush attempt into the offensive zone, the Huskies turned the puck over at the U of A blue-line. The Pandas quickly transitioned up ice the other way getting a short-handed goal from captain Sasha Lutz.

    After the Huskies controlled play for the first 40 minutes, the Pandas had a big territorial advantage in the third period and in the two overtime frames. Momentum swung back to the home side, when the Huskies went on their eighth and final power-play chance.

    The Pandas also failed to score on seven power-play opportunities, which also contributed to the final outcome of the contest.

    Cassidy Hendricks made 26 saves to earn the win in goal for the Huskies (2-1). Lindsey Post turned away 24 shots to take the extra time setback in goal for the Pandas (2-0-1), who entered Friday’s encounter rated eighth in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport top 10 rankings.

    The Huskies and Pandas will go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

    “Every game is a battle,” said Bohlken. “You have to come out in (every) period ready to play or else any team can take advantage and any team can get a goal like we did.

    “It wasn’t our best third period start, and it wasn’t our best third period. It wasn’t our best game. We still have a lot more in us.

    “Hopefully, we can get to playing our best and win some more games.”

Golden Bears prevail in OT over Huskies men’s squad

Michael Sofillas had a goal in a double OT setback for the Huskies.

    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team wasn’t able to find a magical finish in overtime in Edmonton.

    Taking on their forever rivals the U of Alberta Golden Bears, the Huskies saw a 2-1 lead disappear late in the third period before falling 3-2 in double overtime. Bears forward Jamie Crooks potted the equalizer with 8.9 second to play in the third.

    He proceeded to bag the winner at the 1:40 mark of a second five-minute overtime period firing home the winner high glove side on Huskies star netminder Jordon Cooke.

    Rookie Trevor Cox put U of A up 1-0 with a short-handed goal in the first period. Third-year forward Michael Sofillas potted the equalizer in the second for the Huskies to knot the score up at 1-1. Rookie Wyatt Johnson put the Dogs ahead 2-1 with an early third period goal.

    Cooke made 29 saves to take the extra time setback in goal for the Huskies (2-0-1). Kenny Cameron turned away 31 shots to backstop the Bears to victory in their regular season opener.

    The Huskies entered the game rated third in the CIS top 10 rankings, while the Bears were fourth. Both teams face each other again Saturday in Edmonton.

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