Wong’s passing touch golden in Blades 5-3 victory

Cougars’ Heidt pots goal, assist in hometown area return

Trevor Wong had three assists for the Blades on Friday.

No one, but no one can share the puck like Trevor Wong.

The Saskatoon Blades captain’s passing touch was at another level on Friday night at the SaskTel Centre. With his Blades taking of the visiting Prince George Cougars in a heavyweight tilt type regular season contest early in the 2023-24 campaign, Wong dished out three beauty helpers to deliver the host side to 5-3 victory in front of an appreciative crowd of 4,516 spectators.

The win allowed the Blades to improve to 10-5, while the Cougars fell to 11-5.

A sizable contingent of spectators were decked out in Prince George #27 jerseys and were out to support Cougars star centre Riley Heidt, who is from the Saskatoon area. Heidt was able to pick up one goal and one assist in the setback for the visitors.

Riley Heidt had a goal and an assist for the Cougars.

The contest overall was an entertaining one that was played at a very fast pace. The Blades jumped out to a 4-0 lead by the 6:20 mark in the second causing the Cougars to basically swim upstream for the rest of the contest.

The hosts broke through on the scoreboard at the 6:10 mark of the opening frame shortly after the expiration of a power play. During a net scramble, Blades sturdy 20-year-old defenceman Charlie Wright pinched down from the point and popped home a loose puck at the right side of the Prince George net to give the hosts their 1-0 edge.

A short time after the Blades went ahead Heidt had a good chance to pull his side even. Heidt, who was selected in the second round and 64^th overall by the Minnesota Wild in the NHL Entry Draft held last June, moved in close to the left side of the Saskatoon goal. After receiving a cross ice pass, Heidt had a close in shot and rebound chance, but he was denied by Blades star netminder Austin Elliott.

The Blades celebrate a goal from Charlie Wright (#47).

With 76 seconds remaining in the first, the Blades pushed their advantage out to 2-0 on the first of the year from right-winger Misha Volotovskii. Volotovskii received a cross ice pass from Wong at the left side of the Prince George goal and fired home a shot past a sprawling Cougars netminder Ty Young.

The Cougars started the second period on a two-minute power play, and after they were unable to score, momentum shifted more in the Blades favour.

At the 4:13 mark of the second, Wong had the puck at the right side of the Prince George goal and passed the puck across the front of the net to left-winger Tyler Parr. 

Parr quickly wired home his second of the season to push the Blades advantage out to 3-0.

Misha Volotovskii had the Blades second goal on Friday.

Just over two minutes later, the Blades increased their comfortable lead to 4-0, when left-winger Rowan Calvert drove into the Prince George zone and wired home his first of the campaign.

Calvert’s goal chased Young out of the Prince George net having stopped 8-of-12 shots to take the setback in net for the visitors. Joshua Ravensbergen turned away 10-of-11 shots sent his way playing the rest of the contest in relief.

With 4:04 remaining in the second, the Cougars cracked on the scoreboard with a power-play goal coming from import defenceman Viliam Kmec. Kmec fired home a shot from the top of the right faceoff circle to cut the Blades lead to 4-1. Heidt picked up an assist on Kmec’s tally.

Egor Sidorov netted his 10th goal of the season on Friday.

The Cougars looked like they might make the game have a dramatic finish, when right-winger Oren Shtrom batted home a gritty tally at the right side of the Saskatoon net to cut the Blades lead to 4-2 with 6:37 remaining in the third.

The Blades proceeded to kill the visitor’s attempt to grab momentum just 10 seconds later, when their top line broke into the Prince George zone. 

Wong had the puck at the left side of the Prince George goal and passed the puck across of the face of the net to star import right-winger Egor Sidorov. 

Sidorov promptly buried his 10^th of the season to give the Blades a 5-2 advantage.

Tyler Parr had a goal for the Blades on Friday.

Heidt tallied for the Cougars on the power play with 1:32 remaining in the third to trim the Blades edge to 5-3. The goal stood up after a video review.

The Blades proceeded to hold off the Cougars for the final 98 seconds to seal the win.

Elliott stopped 26 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Blades.

The Cougars return to action on Saturday when they travel to Prince Albert to take on the Raiders (7 p.m., Art Hauser Centre).

The Blades get back at it on Sunday when they host the Regina Pats (4 p.m., SaskTel Centre).

The Blades salute their faithful at the SaskTel Centre at game’s end.

Friday clash between the Blades and Cougars left one wishing both teams were in the same conference. With how much skill the two sides have, it seems unfortunate they only meet once in a campaign.

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

-------

If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

2023 NHL Entry Draft will be memorable for WHL

Connor Bedard went first overall in the NHL Entry Draft.

The 2023 NHL Entry Draft will be remembered as two of the WHL’s best days.

Of course, the 33 players who were selected from the WHL in the NHL Entry Draft on Wednesday and Thursday in Nashville, Tennessee, still have to skate out careers in hockey’s top professional league. With that said, it wouldn’t be a surprise to look back on this year’s NHL Entry Draft a couple of decades from now, and one would reflect on it being a great one for the WHL.

No matter what happens in the future, this NHL Entry Draft will be known as the one where Regina Pats phenom centre Connor Bedard, who will turn 18-years-old on July 17, was selected first overall by the Chicago Blackhawks. The North Vancouver, B.C., product might have been the most watched junior aged player ever over the three campaigns he played with the Pats.

In his three seasons with the Pats, Bedard, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 185 pounds, appeared in 134 career regular season games posting 134 goals and 137 assists for 271 points to go with a plus-48 rating in the plus-minus department. That included recording 71 goals and 72 assists for 143 points to go with a plus-39 rating for this past regular season. His goal and point totals were tops in the WHL and his assist total equaled Prince George Cougars star centre and Saskatoon area product Riley Heidt for the league lead.

Bedard proceeded to have a monster post-season series posting 10 goals, 10 assists and a plus-eight rating in the WHL Playoffs as the Pats fell in seven games in a best-of-seven first round series to the Saskatoon Blades. The Blades claimed a 4-1 victory in a series deciding Game 7 on April 10 at the SaskTel Centre before a sellout crowd of 14,768 spectators.

Connor Bedard had 271 points in 134 WHL career regular season games.

His stock really took off at this past world juniors held in Halifax, N.S., and Moncton, N.B. Bedard set numerous Canadian team records helping Canada take the gold medal final 3-2 in overtime over Czechia this past January 5 in Halifax.

Bedard was named the most valuable player at world juniors along with picking up accolades being named the event’s best forward and a tournament all-star.

His tallies for assists (14) and points (23) were new Canadian records for a single world juniors along with setting a new record for points in a tournament by any player aged 18 or younger. In 16 career games played at world juniors, Bedard set new Canadian career records at the event for goals (16) and points (36).

Upon returning to the Pats, Bedard usually played in front of sold out rinks or record crowds wherever he was during the final four months he played in the WHL. There were public appearances in Regina where he would spend six hours signing autographs. Bedard experienced characteristics of fandom that were unheard of for junior hockey and often things you only saw in the NHL in Canadian cities for players like Oilers phenom centre Connor McDavid in Edmonton.

Bedard handled the fandom that came his way in humble and spectacular fashion, which is something most his age wouldn’t be able to do.

Brayden Yager is a first round selection of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Bedard headed a 17-year-old class in the WHL this past season that might be the deepest the circuit had ever seen with that age group. Two potential big future NHL stars from the Saskatoon area include centres Brayden Yager and Heidt.

Yager, who turned 18-years-old in early January, piled up 28 goals and 50 assists in 67 regular season games for the Moose Jaw Warriors in 2022-23 to go with a plus-six rating. He went in the first round and 14^th overall to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Yager just might be one of those star players that leads the Penguins in an era after Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang.

Heidt appeared in all 68 regular season games with the Prince George Cougars in 2022-23, and he had 25 goals to go with his 72 assists for 97 points. He was selected in the second round and 64^th overall by the Minnesota Wild.

Due to the fact it is not easy to travel to Prince George, Heidt, who turned 18-years-old in March, wasn’t seen by scouts as much as the other players taken in the NHL Entry Draft. Had he been seen more playing on a team located on the Trans-Canada Highway, he likely would have been selected earlier in the draft.

Tanner Molendyk is a first round draft pick of the Nashville Predators.

One of the most astute picks in the first round might ultimately belonged to the Nashville Predators, when they took Saskatoon Blades defenceman Tanner Molendyk. Molendyk, who turned 18-years-old in February, appeared in 67 regular season games in 2022-23 with the Blades posting nine goals, 28 assists and a plus-31 rating.

He is one of the smoothest skaters among those in the 17-year-old age group this past season, and he has steadily improved as his WHL career has progressed. In the 18 games the Blades played in the 2023 WHL Playoffs, Molendyk posted three goals, five assists and a plus-two rating.

Where Molendyk really turned heads was in the Blades seven game first round series win over the Pats. Molendyk and defensive partner and Blades captain Aidan De La Gorgendiere, who turned 21-years-old in February, were matched up against Bedard every time the Blades coaching staff could get them out against the Pats captain.

While Bedard put up impressive point totals, Molendyk handed that challenge better than anyone could in junior hockey, and he came out of that series with just a minus-one rating despite the offensive numbers put up by Bedard. For anyone that saw Molendyk play in those games, they had to believe he was someone they needed to draft.

The Anaheim Ducks drafted Egor Sidorov in the third round.

Blades import right-winger Egor Sidorov was one of the players from this past season’s 18-year-old class that heard his name called at the NHL Entry Draft. A year ago, Sidorov was passed over in the NHL Entry Draft. He ensured he wasn’t going to be passed over this year.

During the 2022-23 campaign, Sidorov appeared in 53 regular season games with the Blades recording 40 goals, 36 assists and a plus-25 rating. He posted nine goals, 10 assists and a plus-three rating appearing in 16 games in the 2023 WHL Playoffs for the Blades.

Sidorov, who turned 19-years-old on June 18, was selected in the third round and 85^th overall by the Anaheim Ducks.

On the more gritty front, Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Terrell Goldsmith was taken in the fourth round and 102^nd overall by the Arizona Coyotes. Goldsmith, who turned 18-years-old in May, appeared in 58 regular season games with the Raiders in 2022-23 recording three goals, six assists, a minus-six rating and 102 penalty minutes.

Goldsmith is a defensive-defenceman that brings an imposing physical game that is aided by the fact he stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 220 pounds. NHL teams are looking for players to make life miserable in front of their net for opposing players, and Goldsmith can certainly do that.

Terrell Goldsmith was drafted by the Arizona Coyotes.

A number of other players from the WHL taken in this year’s NHL Entry Draft have the potential to be outstanding picks. They include centre Zach Benson of the Winnipeg Ice who are now the Wenatchee Wild going to the Buffalo Sabres in the first round and 13^th overall.

Other astute selections included the Predators selecting centre Kalan Lind of the Red Deer Rebels in the second round and 46^th overall, the Seattle Kraken picking defenceman Caden Price of the Kelowna Rockets in the fourth round and 84^th overall, the San Jose Sharks nabbing defenceman Luca Cagnoni of the Portland Winterhawks in the fourth round and 123^rd overall, the Wild getting defenceman Kalem Parker of the Victoria Royals in the sixth round and 181^st overall and the Washington Capitals selecting left-winger Brett Hyland of the Brandon Wheat Kings in the seventh round and 200^th overall.

One of the coolest moments was seeing the Winnipeg Jets take netminder Thomas Milic of the Seattle Thunderbirds in the fifth round and 151^st overall. Milic, who turned 20-years-old in April, was overlooked due to his lack of size as he stands 6-feet and weighs 179 pounds. NHL clubs often look for a goaltender who stands usually about 6-foot-3 minimum and will pass up smaller goalies including ones that can stop the puck.

Milic backstopped the Thunderbirds to the WHL Championship Series in each of the past two seasons. The Thunderbirds captured the WHL title this past season downing the Ice in five games in a best-of-seven championship series. 

Zach Benson was a first round pick of the Buffalo Sabres.

In the Memorial Cup tournament that determines a CHL champion that was held in Kamloops B.C., Milic backstopped the Thunderbirds to the event’s championship game this past June 4, where they fell 5-0 to the QMJHL champion Quebec Remparts.

On top of his post-season success with the Thunderbirds, Milic backstopped Canada to its gold medal win at this past world juniors.

During the 2022-23 regular season, Milic, who is from Coquitlam, B.C., appeared in 33 games for the Thunderbirds posting a 27-3-2 record, a 2.08 goals against average, a .928 save percentage and four shutouts. He appeared in all of the Thunderbirds 19 games in the WHL Playoffs posting a 16-3 record, a 1.95 goals against average, a .933 save percentage and one shutout.

At the Memorial Cup tournament, Milic played in all the Thunderbirds five games at that event posting a 3-2 record, a 2.41 goals against average and a .915 save percentage.

In Canada’s run to winning gold at this past world juniors, Milic appeared in six games posting a 5-0 record, a 1.76 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. Voted the WHL’s Top Goaltender and a first team CHL all-star, Milic has pretty much done almost all you can do at the junior level and more than most will ever do.

Thomas Milic was selected by the Jets in the NHL Entry Draft.

It would have been a crime had he not gotten an NHL shot. It is heartwarming to see he will get his chance to make his NHL dream come true.

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

-------

If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

Bedard era almost certainly ends for Pats, WHL

It seems certain Connor Bedard will be in the NHL next season.

For Connor Bedard, part of his heart will always be in Regina.

On Wednesday, the Regina Pats 17-year-old phenom centre met the media for a season ending availability as the players cleared out of the locker room. The atmosphere for the scrum for Bedard had the vibe of a farewell.

In his three seasons with the Pats, the North Vancouver, B.C., product appeared in 134 career regular season games posting 134 goals and 137 assists for 271 points to go with a plus-48 rating in the plus-minus department. That included recording 71 goals and 72 assists for 143 points to go with a plus-39 rating for this past regular season. His goal and point totals were tops in the WHL and his assist total equaled Prince George Cougars star centre and Saskatoon area product Riley Heidt for the league lead.

Bedard proceeded to have a monster post-season series posting 10 goals, 10 assists and a plus-eight rating in the WHL Playoffs as the Pats fell in seven games in a best-of-seven first round series to the Saskatoon Blades. The Blades claimed a 4-1 victory in a series deciding Game 7 on Monday at the SaskTel Centre before a sellout crowd of 14,768 spectators.

Connor Bedard topped the WHL with 143 points this season.

Bedard, who was skating through his only appearance in the WHL Playoffs, picked up an assists on the Pats lone goal in Game 7 and was in on 20 of the 26 goals the Pats scored in the series. Barring something unforeseen, Bedard will be the first overall selection in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft set for June 28 to 29 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, and he will be skating in the NHL next season as an 18-year-old.

“I’ve had so much fun these last three years here whether there’s more or not,” said Bedard. “The people are so nice and for me, I love it here.

“I’m super grateful that I got to play here.”

With Bedard in their lineup, the Pats finished sixth overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference and 11^th overall in the league with a 34-30-3-1 record. He was asked if he had second thoughts about not asking for a trade to one of the league’s top five teams, and Bedard said he had always intended to stay in Regina.

Connor Bedard led the WHL with 71 goals this season.

“I don’t have any regrets staying here,” said Bedard, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 185 pounds. “I just love being here and love playing here and I never want to leave.

“I just got so much support from the whole city and everything. To see kids are looking up to me and everything, that is pretty special.”

When it came to dealing with the fact the 2022-23 campaign was over, Bedard said it was still tough to take.

“It is sad no matter what,” said Bedard, who was the first player to be granted exceptional player status to play full time in the WHL at age 15. “Obviously, I’m not sure of the future or anything.

“I’m just kind of saying my thank yous to everyone whether I will be back next year or not. It is always tough to leave a group of guys you were with all year.”

Connor Bedard had 20 points in the Pats seven post-season games.

Due to Bedard’s outstanding season, it came as no surprise on Wednesday when he was named the player of the year for the East Division. He will find out on May 10 if he takes home the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy as the player of the year for the entire WHL.

At this past world juniors held in Halifax, N.S., and Moncton, N.B., Bedard set numerous Canadian team records helping Canada take the gold medal final 3-2 in overtime over Czechia this past January 5 in Halifax.

Bedard was named the most valuable player at world juniors along with picking up accolades being named the event’s best forward and a tournament all-star.

His tallies for assists (14) and points (23) were new Canadian records for a single world juniors along with setting a new record for points in a tournament by any player aged 18 or younger. In 16 career games played at world juniors, Bedard set new Canadian career records at the event for goals (16) and points (36).

Connor Bedard has 271 career regular season points in 134 games.

“What he has done all year is outrageous,” said Pats head coach and general manager John Paddock. “To have 19 points in six games in playoffs like who does that?

“In the last 10 days or so, I’ve had more people from the league just sort of side conversations they had never seen anything like it what he is able to do. I had an NHL scout say to me after the game on Saturday like he has so much determination to get it done. If you want to rate the determination on a scale of 10 like everything else, he is 11.

“It has been great to have a front row seat to see him for this season.”

Bedard has the respect of his foes from the WHL Playoffs in the Blades.

Connor Bedard enjoys playing in Regina.

“I’m such a massive fan of Connor Bedard,” said Blades head coach Brennan Sonne. “He is a winner. He is a worker.”

Sonne had a short friendly chat with Bedard in the handshake line following Game 7. The Blades bench boss told the ultra-talented centre he will be cheering for him.

“We’re both from the lower mainland in B.C.,” said Sonne, who is from Maple Ridge, B.C. “We’ve heard about him since he was 12 and 13.

“He’s done a lot of people proud in the province of British Columbia, and I’ll be continuing to cheer for him the rest of his career. Unless, we are playing against him, and then I will try and shut him down. Huge fan, incredible talent, he is the real deal.”

Blades star left-winger Jake Chiasson, who has a signed NHL entry-level contract with the Edmonton Oilers, said Bedard deserves the praise that comes his way.

Connor Bedard (#98) celebrates one of his 10 post-season goals.

“I have a lot of respect for Connor (Bedard),” said Chiasson, who is from Abbotsford, B.C. “Being from the geographical area, you kind of tend to lean towards those guys a little more than other province guys just with similarities.

“What Connor (Bedard) did for this league is great. It made it exciting.”

Chiasson said a lot of people were looking forward to the series between the Blades and the Pats. The attendance figures backed that observation up as the Pats sold out each of their three home games with 6,499 spectators packing into the Brandt Centre for each of those contests. The Blades drew 47,729 spectators total for their four home dates of the set.

Chiasson said it was a good experience for his Blades to play Bedard and the Pats in the post-season.

“You’ve seen for a while he has been selling out buildings, and I can only imagine how much that does for the league,” said Chiasson. “I’m just really grateful to be able to play against him, to go head-to-head with him.

Connor Bedard is slated to go first in the NHL Entry Draft.

“I’m sure he is going to have a long good career coming up here. It was definitely a moment to look back on playing him in a series of a playoff round.”

Blades hard working right-winger Vaughn Watterodt said he marvels at what Bedard can do on the ice.

“He (Bedard) is amazing,” said Watterodt. “He is a special player.

“He is going to do special things. It was fun to play against him.”

Bedard’s humility once again showed through during his final presser when he was asked about the NHL Draft Lottery, which is set for May 8. That lottery will determine which NHL club will select first overall in the NHL Entry Draft.

“It is a long time until that,” said Bedard.  “For (NHL Draft) lottery day, I will watch it as a fan, and if I am fortunate enough to go one, that’s awesome, but there are so many great players in the draft.”

It was brought up that it seemed inevitable that Bedard will go first overall in the NHL Entry Draft. Bedard tried to play it off that wasn’t a for sure thing.

Connor Bedard skates off the ice after a Game 7 loss on Monday.

“If I get that honour, it would be unreal,” said Bedard. “I’d be super grateful to kind of the people that have helped me with that, but it is a long time away.

“For me, it is just kind of focusing on what I can do now to improve myself as a player and everything. That would be unbelievable, but we will see what happens obviously.”

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

-------

If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

Game 7 showdown to close epic Bedard and Pats/Blades series

Connor Bedard has an incredible 19 points in six post-season games.

Connor Bedard is having the time of his life in his first and only run through the WHL Playoffs.

The Regina Pats 17-year-old phenom centre and captain has seemingly tasted the best of what WHL post-season hockey can bring in his team’s best-of-seven first round playoff series with the Saskatoon Blades. The series is tied 3-3 and will be decided in Game 7 on Monday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon.

With the host Prince George Cougars posting a 5-4 overtime victory over the Tri-City Americans in Game 6 on Sunday to take that series 4-2, the only first round series that still hasn’t been decided in the WHL Playoffs is the one between the Pats and Blades.

The Blades entered the series as favourites having finished fourth overall in the WHL standings with a 48-15-4-1 record and were rated 10^th in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. The Pats finished sixth overall in the Eastern Conference with a 34-30-3-1 mark.

Egor Sidorov has eight points in six post-season games.

The series has seen big swings including the Pats winning the first two contests and the Blades claiming three straight contests taking Games 3 to 5. The Pats posted a 5-3 victory in Game 6 before a sellout crowd of 6,499 spectators at the Brandt Centre to force a series deciding Game 7. At one point in the series, three straight games were decided in overtime.

“It has been some of the most fun hockey I’ve ever been a part of just the intensity,” said Bedard. “Every play, every little mistake matters so much.

“I think for me finally getting that experience obviously last year with disappointment of not making it and getting here now it has been a lot of fun.”

During the regular season, Bedard topped the WHL in goals (71) and points (143) to go with a plus-39 rating in the plus-minus department. His 72 assists equaled Prince George Cougars star centre and Saskatoon area product Riley Heidt, who turned 18-years-old in March, for the league lead.

So far in the post-season, Bedard has been magical. The North Vancouver, B.C., product has been in on 19 of the Pats 25 goals recording 10 goals and nine assists for 19 points to go with a plus-10 rating. His goal and point totals in the post-season lead the WHL.

Stanislav Svozil has 12 points in six playoff games.

Barring something unforeseen, Bedard will be the first overall selection in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft set for June 28 to 29 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Even with that in his future, Bedard is looking forward to Game 7 against the Blades like child getting a much wanted gift on Christmas Day.

“It is my first ever Game 7, but I think I’ve been in a lot of those types of situations with world juniors and that stuff,” said Bedard. “It is definitely different.

“We’ve played them six times in nine days. It was definitely different. For me obviously, my first time will be on Monday.”

Bedard added it only seems right that the series between his Pats and Blades goes to a Game 7.

Trevor Wong has eight points in six post-season games.

“It has been such a back and forth series,” said Bedard. “It really does deserve to go to a Game 7.

“They are a great team. I think for us to be playing the way we are with them I think it should end in a Game 7 with just how tight everything has been. We’ll watch video and what not and see where we can do better and see where we did well.”

The Pats enter Game 7 with star import defenceman Stanislav Svozil sitting second in WHL post-season scoring with 12 points coming off three goals and nine assists to go with a plus-nine rating. Pats star import right-winger Alexander Suzdalev is third in WHL post-season scoring with 11 points coming off three goals and eight assists to go with a plus-five rating.

Star import right winger Egor Sidorov and star centre Trevor Wong lead the Blades in post-season scoring with eight points each. Sidorov has his eight points coming off five goals and three assists to go with a plus-four rating, while Wong has his eight points coming off two goals and six assists to go with a plus-one rating.

Alexander Suzdalev has 11 points in six post-season contests.

Star offensive-defenceman and 21-year-old captain Aidan De La Gorgendiere tops the Blades in blue-line scoring with seven assists to go with a minus-three rating. The Blades have been trying to match up De La Gorgendiere against Bedard.

Drew Sim has gone the distance in goal for the Pats in the series posting a 3-3 record, a 3.37 goals against average and a .901 save percentage. Ethan Chadwick has seen the bulk of work for the series in the Blades net posting a 3-2 record, a 3.23 goals against average and a .847 save percentage. Chadwick has remained between the pipes for the Blades since replacing Austin Elliott in the second period of Game 2.

Since March 5, the Pats and Blades have gone head-to-head nine times between the regular season and playoffs, and the Blades have won five of those encounters. Blades head coach Brennan Sonne said there will be no secrets in Game 7.

“Our focus is us,” said Sonne. “We’ve now played this team nine times in the last however many weeks.

Aidan De La Gorgendiere has seven assists in the playoffs.

“We know each other well. We know what they’re bringing. They know what we’re bringing.

“It is all about the war. For only half the game (in the Game 6 loss on Saturday), we brought that. That is our main focus.”

In the Blades 4-2 victory in Game 5 at the SaskTel Centre, they got out to a fast start jumping out to a 2-0 lead by the 5:26 mark of the first period recording the contest’s first six shots on goal. Saskatoon never trailed in that encounter.

Sonne wants his squad to repeat that effort but with being a touch better.

“I want 60 minutes of Blades hockey, and we’re good,” said Sonne. “If we do that, then we’re fine.

“We did a really good job in Game 5. It was about 90 to 95 per cent. We need 100, because our season is on the line and family is on the line and I sure hope we get it.”

Drew Sim has been the workhorse in goal for the Pats.

Pats head coach and general manager John Paddock said both clubs had played each other so well that the series deserved to go to a Game 7. After talking to some scouts, Paddock believes the Pats and Blades have delivered a treat of a series to the fans.

“From scouts’ scuttlebutt that have seen other games or who have seen all these games, I think it has been the best series that has gone on in the league,” said Paddock. “I think that in itself it signifies what is going on.”

The Pats last played in a Game 7 on April 2, 2018 when they dropped a 3-2 decision to the Broncos in Swift Current in a first round series. The Broncos advanced on to win the WHL championship. Regina as the host squad played in the title game of the Memorial Cup tournament that year falling 3-0 to the Acadie-Bathurst Titan, who claimed the CHL title.

The Blades last played a Game 7 on April 1, 2009 when they dropped a 4-3 decision to the Lethbridge Hurricanes at the SaskTel Centre in a first round series. The Hurricanes were then swept by the Calgary Hitmen 4-0 in Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Ethan Chadwick has been the Blades main goalie in the playoffs.

If the Pats win on Monday, they will advance to play the Winnipeg Ice in an Eastern Conference semifinal series. 

The Ice finished first overall in the regular season with a 57-10-1 record and were rated third in the final CHL Top 10 rankings.

If the Blades win on Monday, they will advance to play the Red Deer Rebels in an Eastern Conference semifinal series. 

The Rebels topped the Central Division and finished fifth overall in the WHL standings with a 43-19-3-3 record.

Bedard expects Game 7 between the Pats and Blades to be a classic, because the players on both sides have a huge desire to keep playing.

“Both teams want it really bad,” said Bedard. “Both teams are going to be out there giving it their all playing as hard as they can.

The Pats and Blades are set for one last showdown on Monday.

“I think both teams are going to be desperate and really wanting that win.”

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

-------

If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

“Tour de Bedard” hits Saskatoon with record buzz

Blades to set team attendance record, could hit building mark

Connor Bedard leads the WHL in scoring with 134 points.

The Saskatoon Blades will see a crowd the size they’ve never seen before thanks to the buzz around Connor Bedard.

On Sunday, the Blades will host Bedard and his Regina Pats for a 4 p.m. regular season clash at the SaskTel Centre. Bedard is the Pats 17-year-old phenom centre who leads the WHL in goals (66) and points (134) to go with a plus-36 rating in the plus-minus department in 53 appearances this season.

The North Vancouver, B.C., product’s 68 assists are tied for tops in the WHL with Prince George Cougars 17-year-old star centre and Saskatoon product Riley Heidt.

Barring something unforeseen, Bedard will be the first overall selection in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft which will be held at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, from June 28 to 29. He is rated first among North American skaters in NHL Central Scouting’s Mid-Term Rankings.

The Blades are expecting to smash their single game attendance record as over 15,000 tickets have been sold for Sunday’s contest. The team’s current single game attendance record sits at 12,588 spectators, and that mark came back on February 9, 2013 when they downed the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes 5-2.

This season, the Blades attendance high was 7,868 spectators set back on November 13, 2023, when they downed Bedard and the Pats 5-2. Over 31 home dates, the Blades are averaging 3,864 spectators a game, which is an increase from the average attendance of 3,390 spectators that turned out for the Blades 34 regular season home dates in 2021-22.

It is expected that Sunday’s game will sellout as there were fewer than 100 tickets available as of Friday afternoon. It is uncertain what a sellout figure will look like for a sporting event for the SaskTel Centre.

The Blades are expected to threaten the current SaskTel Centre attendance record for a single sports event. That mark is currently held by the NLL’s Saskatchewan Rush, who the hold the top two single event attendance records for a sporting event in the history of the SaskTel Centre

The Rush drew a SaskTel Centre record 15,192 spectators on May 21, 2016 for their 12-9 victory over the Calgary Roughnecks in Game 2 of a best-of-three West Division semifinal series that they swept 2-0.

Connor Bedard, left, in action against the Blades on Nov. 13, 2022.

On June 4, 2016, the Rush drew the second highest attendance for a sporting event at the SaskTel Centre when 15,182 spectators saw them down the Buffalo Bandits 11-10 in Game 2 of the best-of-three NLL Championships Series. The Rush swept the series 2-0 to claim their second NLL title after having relocated to Saskatoon following their first NLL title victory in Edmonton in 2015.

The Rush claimed victory in dramatic fashion in their win over the Buffalos on June 4, 2016 to capture that year’s NLL championship. With that contest locked in a 10-10 tie with 12 seconds to play, Rush defenceman Jeff Cornwall ran coast-to-coast to score a breakaway goal to deliver the host side a league championship in thrilling style. Those two Rush contests were announced as sellouts.

At that time, the Rush were owned by Bruce Urban. Urban sold the Rush to what is now known as the Saskatoon Entertainment Group owned by Mike Priestner and his son Colin on May 10, 2021. That move brought the Rush and Blades under the same ownership.

The Rush games might end up with a higher attendance as a party alley was hosted in on the vehicle entrance leading to the SaskTel Centre’s playing surface. At Blades games, the vehicle entrances leading to the playing surface are usually filled with rink attendants and the team’s game night staff.

As for Bedard, his brand took a big jump upward after he set numerous Canadian team records at this past world juniors held in Halifax, N.S., and Moncton, N.B., Canada won gold taking the gold medal final 3-2 in overtime over Czechia this past January 5 in Halifax.

Bedard was named the most valuable player at world juniors along with picking up accolades being named the event’s best forward and a tournament all-star.

His tallies for assists (14) and points (23) were new Canadian records for a single world juniors along with setting a new record for points in a tournament by any player aged 18 or younger. In 16 career games played at world juniors, Bedard set new Canadian career records at the event for goals (16) and points (36).

Connor Bedard broke numerous Canadian records at world juniors.

Due to the increase in fandom for Bedard, the Pats had to suspend online sales of their jerseys shortly after the WHL trade deadline passed on January 10 after it was beyond a shadow of a doubt that Bedard would finish his major junior season playing for Regina. A notice on the Pats website said the move was made due to lower inventory levels.

On eBay, Bedard’s first Pats team issued hockey card with a top mint grade of 10 has sold for around $3,400 on a number of occasions. You can find a number of Bedard hockey cards on eBay for around $25, but anything that has a mint grade of 10 usually has bids starting at $1,250.

As for Bedard jerseys, sellers on eBay have autographed versions of his blue Pats jersey for sale in prices ranging from $998 to $2,200. Hockey Canada Bedard jerseys start at $200 for unsigned replica jerseys and go up $2,500 for an autographed jersey.

In the current WHL campaign, Bedard is still rolling. On Friday night before a sellout crowd of 6,499 spectators at the Brandt Centre in Regina, the Pats dropped a 9-5 decision to their archrivals in the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors, but Bedard was in on every Pats tally posting a hat trick and two assists.

The Blades have sold out games in the past, but they haven’t sold out any games since the SaskTel Centre’s current configuration was put in place to accommodate the world juniors that were held in the building during the 2009-10 campaign.

When the Blades made it to the WHL final in 1992 and 1994, the SaskTel Centre was configured to hold a capacity of around 11,310 spectators at that time.

With all the anticipation surrounding Bedard’s visit, it is easy to forget the Blades (45-14-4-1) have a big game on Saturday when they host the 26-31-8 Brandon Wheat Kings (7 p.m., SaskTel Centre). If the Blades win that contest, they will lock up a second place finish in the WHL’s Eastern Conference and ensure they will finish at least fourth in the WHL’s overall standings.

In the first round of the WHL Playoffs, the two division winners are given the first and second seeds. From the second round onwards, the teams are reseeded by standings points.

Connor Bedard and the Pats will be in Saskatoon again on March 24.

In the Eastern Conference, the WHL leading Winnipeg Ice (53-9-1) have top spot in the conference and the East Division locked up. The Red Deer Rebels (42-17-3-3) have secured first in the Central Division and are third in the Eastern Conference.

If the Blades finish second in the Eastern Conference, they would have home ice advantage for any post-season meetings with the Rebels.

Still, Sunday’s encounter with Bedard and the Pats is the main event of the weekend. For anyone who misses that contest, Bedard and the Pats return to Saskatoon on Friday, March 24 for another regular season battle with the Blades set for 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

As of Wednesday, 13,600 tickets were sold for that contest on March 24. In short order, the “Tour de Bedard” hype gets to repeat itself all over again.

Raiders keep playoff hopes alive for another day

Tikhon Chaika made 36 saves for the Raiders on Friday.

The Prince Albert Raiders kept their mathematical shot for making the WHL playoffs alive.

 On Friday night, the Raiders traveled to Brandon and downed the host Wheat Kings 4-3 in a WHL regular season contest played before 3,725 spectators at Westoba Place. The Raiders relied on a trio of their top players to pull out victory.

Import netminder Tikhon Chaika made 36 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Raiders and also recorded an assist. Sloan Stanick, the team’s 19-year-old star left-winger, had a pair of goals, and 16-year-old star right-winger Ryder Ritchie had a goal and an assist.

In 57 games this season, Ritchie has 51 points coming off 20 goals and 31 assists. Stanick has 58 points coming off 26 goals and 32 assists appearing in 63 games for the Raiders. All of Stanick’s totals are career highs.

The win allowed the Raiders to improve to 27-34-3 to sit 11^th overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference. They sit five points behind the Calgary Hitmen (27-28-5-3) for eighth place and the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. Prince Albert has four games left on its regular season schedule, while Calgary has five contests left on its regular season slate.

The Wheat Kings fell to 26-31-8 with the setback to sit two points behind the Hitmen and three points ahead of the Raiders. Brandon is tied with the Swift Current Broncos (28-32-1-3) for the ninth and 10^th spots in the Eastern Conference.

The Broncos have four games left on their regular season schedule, while the Wheat Kings have three contests left on their regular season slate.

In Friday’s clash between the Raiders and Wheat Kings, Prince Albert jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period with goals coming from Ritchie and Stanick netting his first of the contest. Just 39 seconds into the second, Nate Danielson netted his 33^rd goal of the campaign to cut the Raiders edge to 2-1.

Ryder Ritchie had a goal and an assist for the Raiders on Friday.

At the 8:48 mark of the third, 18-year-old left-winger Carter Anderson scored for the Raiders to increase their lead to 3-1. Just 61 seconds later, import defenceman Andrei Malyavin replied for the Wheat Kings to cut the Raiders lead to 3-2.

Stanick netted his second of the contest with 2:23 remaining in the third to push the Raiders advantage out to 4-2. Nolan Ritchie responded 53 seconds later to trim the Raiders edge to 4-3. The Wheat Kings were unable to get the equalizer from there.

Carson Bjarnason turned away 17 shots to take the setback in goal for the Wheat Kings, who have lost three straight. Malyavin had an assist to go with his goal, while Quinn Mantei and Kayden Sadhra-King each had a pair of assists for Brandon.

Raiders captain Evan Herman and Wheat Kings 19-year-old right-winger Dawson Pasternak engaged in a fight at the end of the second period.

Friday’s contest started a three games in three nights road trip for the Raiders. The Raiders travel to Winnipeg on Saturday to face the WHL leading 53-9-1 Ice (7 p.m. local time, Wayne Fleming Arena). Those two squads go at it again on Sunday in Winnipeg (5 p.m. local time, Wayne Fleming Arena).

The Wheat Kings get back at it on Saturday, when they travel to Saskatoon to take on the 45-14-4-1 Blades (7 p.m., SaskTel Centre).

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

-------

If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

The WHL’s golden season of the 17-year-old

Circuit’s NHL Entry Draft prospects deep in high end talent

Connor Bedard leads the WHL in goals (44), assists (46) and points (90).

The mid to late 1980s era of the WHL is often romantically remembered as a golden era for ultra-passionate followers of the circuit.

That time was viewed as a moment in league history when you seemingly couldn’t miss a game, because every team had a star you had to see. In particular, the quartet of Theo Fleury, Trevor Linden, Mike Modano and Joe Sakic were worth the price of admission alone in any contest they were skating in.

Fleury was piling up points and agitating opponents with the Moose Jaw Warriors. Linden at a young age was a clutch power forward and team leader with the Medicine Hat Tigers.

Modano was making magic skating circles around everyone lighting up scoreboards for the Prince Albert Raiders. Sakic was proving he was “no ordinary Joe” filling nets for the Swift Current Broncos.

Of course, all of those players went on to spectacular careers in the NHL becoming overall legends in the game along the way.

With that noted, the current day of WHL might have the most high end depth alone in just one age group that hasn’t been seen since the 1980s. That group would be the 17-year-old players who were born in 2005. Some of those players have already turned 18-years-old due to having a birthday in January or today, February 1.

The unquestioned top player in the current group is Regina Pats captain Connor Bedard. He is a generational talented that is the consensus pick to go first overall in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft. 

Oliver Tulk in action for the Hitmen last season.

The upcoming NHL Entry Draft will be held June 28 to 29 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

Bedard leads the WHL in goals (44), assists (46) and points (90), while posting a plus-30 rating in the plus-minus department in 36 regular season games. 

On Wednesday night, Bedard and the Pats helped the Calgary Hitmen attract 17,223 spectators to their home rink in the Scotiabank Saddledome to mark the highest attendance for a WHL contest this season. The game was shown before a national television audience on TSN.

Bedard didn’t disappoint. The North Vancouver product had a goal and picked up an assist on gritty centre Braxton Whitehead’s second tally of the contest, which forced a 5-5 tie with 33.8 seconds remaining in the third period.

The contest went scoreless through a three-versus-three overtime period to a tiebreaking shootout. Bedard scored the only goal in the shootout on a sick deke to a forehand shot to give the Pats the win in the tiebreaking session and a 6-5 victory in the game.

On the other side, the Hitmen have a fun draft eligible centre to watch in Oliver Tulk, who turned 18-years-old on January 19. Tulk, who plays feisty standing at 5-foot-8 and weighing 172 pounds, had an assist in Wednesday’s setback. He sits second in Hitmen team scoring with 42 points coming off 19 goals and 23 assists in 47 regular season games.

While it is pretty much a certainty Bedard is skating through his final days as a major junior player before joining the NHL next season, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he was joined there by some others in the WHL’s current 17-year-old class.

Just a 45-minute drive west on the Trans-Canada Highway, the Pats archrivals in the Moose Jaw Warriors have Saskatoon area product Brayden Yager on their roster. 

Brayden Yager has 56 points this season for the Warriors.

Yager, who turned 18-years-old on January 3, has turned heads as skilled centre that can play both ways. In 49 games with the Warriors, Yager has 20 goals, 36 assists and a plus-six rating.

Before moving to the WHL ranks, Yager played a number of seasons together with another Saskatoon area product in centre Riley Heidt, who is staring in his 17-year-old season with the Prince George Cougars. 

Heidt sits 10^th in the WHL scoring race with 60 points coming off 19 goals and 41 assists in 44 regular season games with the Cougars.

Yager and Heidt applied to get exceptional player status to play in the WHL on a full-time basis as 15-year-olds along with Bedard going into the 2020-21 campaign. 

Bedard was the only one of the three granted exceptional player status, but all three skated as 15-year-olds in the WHL playing a shortened regular season in a bubble style format due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

The Winnipeg Ice, who top the WHL’s overall standings with a 36-6-1 record, have a deep team that is paced by 17-year-old left-winger Zach Benson. Benson sits second in the WHL scoring race with 69 points coming off 27 goals and 42 assists, while posting a plus-43 rating in 42 games.

Out in Kelowna, 17-year-old left-winger Andrew Cristall has been piling up the points for the Rockets. In 36 regular season games, he has 62 points coming off 26 goals and 36 assists to go with a plus-14 rating. 

Zach Benson sits second in WHL scoring this season with 69 points.

Cristall has been out with a lower body injury since suiting up for the Rockets in a 5-1 setback to the Blazers in Kamloops on January 7, but his return status is listed as day-to-day.

On the back end, the Rockets have another good youngster that is a must-see player to watch in 17-year-old defenceman and Saskatoon product Caden Price. 

Price has five goals and 19 assists playing in 44 regular season games with the Rockets. He is rated 30^th among North American Skaters in the NHL Central Scouting Mid-Term Rankings.

Along with Price, the Saskatoon Blades have a good young rearguard to watch in 17-year-old Tanner Molendyk. Molendyk has six goals, 20 assists and a plus-26 rating appearing in 45 regular season games for the Blades.

He is rated 36^th among North American Skaters in the NHL Central Scouting Mid-Term Rankings. Molendyk is a sound shutdown defender, and he can wheel up ice and go coast to coast to lead an offensive rush.

The potential is there for any of these draft eligible prospects to end up in the NHL next season depending on which team drafts them and how much improvement they make by the time NHL training camps open. 

Time will tell if this group of young star has the impact in the NHL like Fleury, Linden, Modano and Sakic did.

Tanner Molendyk has 26 points for the Blades this season.

At the moment like in the mid to late 1980s, the WHL is enjoying another golden era where seemingly each team has a must see star.

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

-------

If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.