Supporting cast seals sweep

Huskies head to nationals for fourth time in five years

Huskies defenceman Tyler Borstmayer celebrates his first career CIS goal.

    The unsung heroes delivered when the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team needed them the most.

    All season, the Huskies prided themselves on the fact they had more depth and balance throughout their lineup than they did a season ago. That showed when the team topped the Canada West standings with a 22-6 mark.

    During the clutch moments, the rookie line of Levi Cable, Kohl Bauml and Andrew Johnson seemed to lift the Dogs to another level. Their ability as a unit to flat out create offence has been a game changer.

    In a long playoff run, teams can’t just rely on their top offensive line. The deeper you go in the post-season the harder it becomes to score. Others need to step up and deliver on the scoreboard.

    Others did just that on Saturday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, as the Huskies posted a 5-3 victory over the U of Calgary Dinos to sweep a best-of-three Canada West semifinal series 2-0. U of S’s high scoring rookie line accounted for one goal, which Cable dumped into an empty net with 12 seconds to play to lock up the final outcome.

    With the Dinos doing their best to limit the Huskies top unit, U of S had to look towards other sources to score and pull out victory.

Cameron Blair has three assists for the Huskies on Saturday.

    The challenge to have others score also got that much bigger, when the Dinos jumped out to a 2-0 just 5:44 into the contest on singles from Ryan Suchorab and Danny Gayle. The tallies silenced a packed Ruthy for a short time, and one had to wonder if a series deciding Game 3 was going to be needed on Sunday.

    Despite the Dinos fast start, the Huskies, who are rated third in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport top ten rankings, gained some traction when gritty rookie forward Jaimen Yakubowski, who had three points in 15 regular season games, tallied at the 11:50 mark of the opening frame. Yakubowski’s goal re-energized the packed and raucous crowd at the Rutherford Rink and was an early momentum changer.

    While the Huskies continued to mount pressure, Dinos netminder and former Saskatoon Blades star Steven Stanford was doing his best to keep the host side at bay. U of S broke through again on the scoreboard at the 13:49 mark of the second, when an on ice point shot from sophomore defenceman Tyler Borstmayer found its way to the back of the Dinos goal. Borstmayer’s first ever CIS goal pulled the Huskies even at 2-2.

Parker Thomas played a strong energy game for the Huskies.

    With 3:43 to play in the second, Kendall McFaull, who is earning a reputation as the Huskies “Captain Clutch,” put home an accurate off-speed point drive to put the Dogs up 3-2. Early in the third, the Huskies lead expanded to 4-2, when Connor Cox, who is a former Saskatoon Blades blue-liner, laser beamed home another point shot through a screen.

    In the four-goal outburst, sophomore forward Cameron Blair quietly helped set up three tallies. He almost matched his regular season total of assist in one game. Blair played in all of the Huskies 28 regular season games collecting seven goals and four assists.

    The Dinos still didn’t go quietly. U of C star forward Elgin Pearce potted his sixth of the post-season with 1:17 to play in the third to cut the Huskies edge to 4-3. U of S clamped things down defensively from there, and Cable’s goal ensured a comeback was not to be.

    Stanford, who stopped 77 shots in a 4-3 double overtime loss to the Huskies in Game 1 on Friday, turned aside 38 of 42 shots to take the loss in goal for the Dinos in Game 2.

    Cooke made 21 stops to earn the win in goal for the Huskies, who took all six of their encounters with the Dinos this season.

The crowd at the packed Rutherford Rink cheers a Huskies goal.

    Besides the offence, the Huskies also received strong contributions from players like energy forward Parker Thomas, who was key for the green and white on the forecheck.

    U of S advances to host the best-of-three Canada West championships series against their forever rivals - the U of Alberta Golden Bears. The Golden Bears, who have won the last two CIS titles, swept their semifinal series slipping past the Mount Royal University Cougars 4-3 in Edmonton on Saturday. Game 1 of the Canada West championship series will start this Friday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink.

    The Huskies also earned a berth to the eight-team CIS championship tournament, which runs March 17-20 in Halifax. That will mark their fourth appearance at nationals in the last five years.

    If the Huskies want their playoff success to continue, they need the X-factors to keep producing along with their top players. If that keeps happening, they might just win it all for the second time in team history.

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

Captain Kendall comes through

McFaull nets double OT winner in Huskies 4-3 playoff victory

The Huskies celebrate Kendall McFaull's double overtime winner.

    Kendall McFaull’s most unlikely power-play goal might have been the biggest of his hockey career.

    With 3:33 remaining in a second overtime period, McFaull slipped home a bad angle shot to give his University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team a 4-3 Canada West playoff victory over the U of Calgary Dinos on Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink. McFaull’s power-play marker came from an awkward angle from the left side of the Dinos goal and gives the Huskies 1-0 lead in a best-of-three Canada West semifinal series between the two clubs.

    The Huskies, who are rated third in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport top ten rankings, will try to lock up the series in Game 2 on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink.

    “It feels great,” said McFaull about his overtime winner. “It was definitely the biggest goal of my career. I thought we had tonnes of chances early to put it away, and we still couldn’t get it.

    “It is nice the guys stuck with it. We never tailed off and kept going after it.”

McFaull’s winner spoiled a spectacular performance by Dinos goaltender Steven Stanford. The former star of the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades turned away an incredible 77 shots taking the loss in goal.

Kendall McFaull was the Huskies' hero on Friday.

    The Huskies peppered Stanford with shots from all sorts of angle, but the Calgary product kept giving his side a chance to stay in the game. One of his best stops came in the first overtime session, when he turned away Huskies centre Logan McVeigh from close in with a kick stop.

    “He (Stanford) was definitely playing strong,” said McFaull. “He made some huge saves and tried to change the momentum of the game, but the guys just stuck to it. We kept coming back at him.”

    Jordon Cooke made 34 saves to pick up his first career Canadian Interuniversity Sport playoff win in goal for the Huskies. While he wasn’t as busy as Stanford, Cooke had to come up with a game-saving stop early in the second overtime, when he sprawled out to deny high-scoring Dinos forward Elgin Pearce on a breakaway.

    The two teams entered the third locked in a 2-2 tie. Just 70 seconds into the frame, Chris Collins netted his second goal of the post-season to put the Dinos up 3-2.

    The Huskies responded with a big push back and second-year forward Michael Sofillas potted the equalizer with 6:42 to play in the third.

    Josh Roach and Kohl Bauml each had the other singles for the Huskies. Dylan Walchuk and Kevin King picked up singles for the Dinos.

    Near the halfway point of the first overtime, fifth-year forward Max Ross thought he scored the winning goal for the Dinos and even celebrated, but the puck did not find its way to the back of the Huskies goal.

    On the overtime winner, McFaull had to dig the puck out from under McVeigh before scoring the winner.

Steven Stanford made 77 stops in a brilliant effort for the Dinos.

    “The puck was just sitting in his feet,” said McFaull. “I got lucky and was able to scoop it out and put it into the net.”

    If Game 3 is needed to decide this series, it will be held on Sunday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink. Including play in the regular season, the Huskies have won all five of their encounters with the Dinos in the 2015-16 campaign.

    In the other Canada West men’s semifinal series, the U of Alberta Golden Bears took Game 1 of their best-of-three set with a 7-1 victory over the Mount Royal University Cougars in Edmonton on Friday.

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

Huskies look to continue magic in post-season

A Matthew Spafford goal will likely blow the roof off Rutherford Rink.

    The University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team was expected to make some noise in 2015-16, but they blew past all expectations.

    In the Canada West Conference pre-season coaches’ poll, the Huskies were voted second behind the University of Alberta Golden Bears, who have won the last two Canadian Interuniversity Sport titles. Early season excitement for the Dogs had be to tempered by the fact they finished sixth in Canada West in 2014-15 with a 10-15-3 record and dropped a best-of-three first round playoff series to the Mount Royal University Cougars 2-1. The losing mark ended a run where the Huskies had recorded winning records for 18 seasons.

    That down year looks like just a weird blip on the radar screen now.

    The Huskies stormed through the 2015-16 regular season campaign matching their club record for wins finishing first overall in Canada West with a 22-6 record. U of S also won 22 games posting a 22-3-3 mark in 1999-2000 and a 22-5-1 record in 1987-88.

    Now they get to enjoy the spoils of fact all their opponents in the Canada West playoffs have to play under the rusty rafters of the ancient Rutherford Rink. After going out to support the U of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s during a bye week, the Huskies men’s team found out their opponent for a best-of-three Canada West semifinal series will be University of Calgary Dinos, who posted 12-12-4 record in the regular season.

Huskies forward Levi Cable turns the corner on Dinos rearguard Dan Gibb.

    Game 1 is set for Friday at 7 p.m. at the Ruthy. Game 2 and Game 3, if necessary, follow on Saturday and Sunday respectively at the Rutherford Rink with a 7 p.m. puck drop set for both nights. The Huskies won all four of their regular season meetings with the Dinos.

    U of C advanced to play the Huskies after taking a best-of-three quarter-final series against the U of Manitoba Bisons 2-1 in Winnipeg.

    One of the big backbones to the U of S success has been the play of sophomore goaltender Jordon Cooke. Cooke set a new Huskies record for wins in a regular season at 19 posting a 19-5 record, a .921 save percentage, a 2.52 goals against average and two shutouts. The old record 18 regular season wins was shared between Jeff Calvert (1998-99) and Ryan Holfeld (2012-13).

    Cooke’s success has also been helped by the fact the Huskies have one of the best group of defencemen in the country. Their top six blue-liners in captain Kendall McFaull, Connor Cox, Jesse Forsberg, Jordan Fransoo, Zak Stebner and David Stumborg have been outstanding.

    The only worry comes on Stebner’s front, as the fifth-year veteran has been out with a knee injury since the Dogs dumped the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds 6-2 back on Jan. 23 in Vancouver. Chances are good Stebner will be a go, and the Huskies will gladly welcome back the five goals, 10 assists and plus-14 rating he put up in the plus-minus department in 22 games.

Goalie Jordan Cooke has been huge for the Huskies all season.

    Fransoo topped all Huskies rearguards in offence putting up three goals and 16 assists in 26 games to go along with a plus-14 rating.

    The Huskies, who are rated third in the CIS top ten rankings, were able to take off this season due to huge impact of the rookie forward line of Kohl Bauml, Levi Cable and Andrew Johnson. Bauml and Cable were standouts in the WHL for the Everett Silvertips and Kootenay Ice respectively. Johnson came to the Huskies after a strong season in the junior A ranks with the West Kelowna Warriors after kicking around the WHL with the Moose Jaw Warriors, Seattle Thunderbirds and Swift Current Broncos over four-plus seasons.

    The trio appeared in all 28 of the Huskies regular season games. Bauml led the team in scoring with 12 goals and 21 assists, Cable was second with 16 goals and 12 assists, and Johnson was third with 13 goals and 13 assists.

    U of S also received solid offensive contributions from the rest of their forward group including Josh Roach, who had five goals and 13 assists in 25 games, Michael Sofillas, who picked up five goals and 10 assists in 24 appearances, Logan McVeigh, who netted seven goals and seven assists, and Jesse Ross, who had six goals and eight assists in 26 outings.

    The biggest cheers at Rutherford will likely be for fan and campus favourite Matthew Spafford, if he lights up the scoreboard. The fifth-year forward had two goals and an assist in 13 appearances.

Rearguard Jordan Fransoo works the point for the Huskies.

    The Dinos won’t be pushovers, as their roster is filled with former WHL players who are used to navigating the ups and downs of a season in a highly competitive league. Forwards Elgin Pearce and Chris Collins both topped the Dinos in regular season scoring netting 27 points. Pearce had 11 goals and 16 assists, while Collins netted 10 goals and 17 assists.

    Max Ross led all Dinos rearguards in scoring with five goals and 13 assists.

    Dinos starting goaltender Steven Stanford didn’t have one of his best years between the pipes posting a 9-8-4 record, a .881 save percentage, a 3.18 goals against average and two shutouts. The former star of the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades returned to form in the Dinos first round series victory posting a 2-1 record, a .932 save percentage and a 1.69 goals against average.

    The last time the Huskies and Dinos met in the post-season came back in 2012, when the Huskies claimed the Canada West championships series with a 2-1 triple overtime victory in a series deciding Game 3 on a winner from Brett Ward.

    The winner of this year’s series will earn a berth to the CIS championship tournament, which runs March 17 to 20 in Halifax. The series victor will also face the winner of the other best-of-three Canada West semifinal series between the Golden Bears and Mount Royal University Cougars in a best-of-three Canada West championship series.

    Four good teams remain in the Canada West post-season hunt. If the Huskies have their way, they will add a few more magical moments at what should be a crazy atmosphere at a packed Rutherford Rink.

Stars set to shine again on playoff stage

Captain Danielle Nogier and the Stars open the post-season on Friday.

  The Saskatoon Stars begin their playoff journey hoping to earn another trip to the Esso Cup.

    The defending Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League champs topped the regular season standings for a second straight year at 24-4, which was just shy of matching their 25-3 record in 2014-15. They open the post-season by taking on the Battlefords Sharks in a best-of-five quarter-final series. The Sharks finished last in the eight team league with a 3-23-2 record.

    It is beyond obvious to say the Stars will be heavy favourites to sweep this series. Game 1 is set for 7:15 p.m. Friday at the Agriplace Arena.

    Mackenna Parker, who is 15-years-old, finished second in the SFMAAAHL scoring race topping the Stars with 14 goals and 21 assists in 25 games played. Grace Shirley, who is 14-years-old, was second in Stars scoring with 18 goals and 14 assists. Offensive defender Willow Slobodzian led Saskatoon’s blue-liners in scoring with three goals and 12 assists.

    Standout 16-year-old netminder Emma Johnson is expected to carry the load for Saskatoon in goal. She posted a 13-4 record, a career best .942 save percentage, a 1,47 goals against average and three shutouts.

    Jordan Kulbida led the Sharks in scoring with five goals and seven assists. Chloe Marshall has been stellar in goal for the struggling Sharks posting a .906 save percentage. Her 2-12 record and 3.62 goals against average are a result from the high volume of shots she faced night in and night out.

    The 2016 post-season will mark the final times 17-year-olds Hollie Coumont, Rayah DeCorby, Danielle Girolami and captain Danielle Nogier will suit up for the Stars as they will all graduate from the midget ranks.

    Game 2 of the series is set for Sunday in Battleford, while Game 3 will be Wednesday at 7:15 p.m. at the Agriplace Arena.

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

Luck falls Huskies way

The Huskies celebrate an overtime winning goal.

    Lady Luck was on the side of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team.

    For a short time, it appeared the Huskies would fall victim to a comeback by the visiting University of Calgary Dinos on Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink. The Dogs led 3-1 after two periods of play only to see the Dinos rally back to force overtime after tying things up 3-3.

    After a scoreless five minute four-on-four overtime period, the Huskies received a huge break during the five-minute three-on-three session that followed. Sophomore Huskies forward Michael Sofillas fed the puck to linemate John Lawrence who proceeded to break towards the Dinos net for a scoring chance.

    Lawrence’s initial shot was stopped, but Dinos forward Elgin Pearce accidentally knocked the puck into his own goal while attempting to sweep it out of harm’s way.

    The Huskies themselves looked stunned for a moment before realizing they had pulled out a 4-3 victory at the 1:53 mark of the second overtime frame. The home side’s bench proceeded to empty out for a victory celebration in the offensive zone, while the crowd at Rutherford gave one of their loudest ovations of the season.

    For a while, it appeared the Huskies wouldn’t need any overtime goals to extend their current winning streak to four games. After playing through a scoreless opening 20 minutes, the Huskies drew first blood, when sophomore forward Cameron Blair sniped a shot past Dinos goaltender Steven Stanford to give the hosts a 1-0 edge.

John Lawrence picked up the Huskies OT winning goal.

    The Dinos tied things up at 1-1 just three minutes later, when Spencer Edwards potted a goal from in close off a scramble type situation.

    The Huskies jumped back out front 2-1 working on a power play, when Michael Sofillas slipped home his fourth goal of the season.

    Before the second period ended, Huskies centre Sean Aschim stole the puck from a Dinos defenceman in the University of Calgary zone and immediately fed a pass to his linemate Matthew Spafford, who was alone in front of the goal. The fifth-year forward wasted little time in tucking home his second tally of the campaign to put the Huskies up 3-1.

    While play though the first 40 minutes was fairly even, the Dinos came with a huge push back in the third period outshooting the Huskies 12-5. At the 5:55 mark, Dinos rookie forward Mitch Cook picked up his first goal of his Canadian Interuniversity sport regular season career to cut the gap to 3-2.

    With 29 seconds remaining in the third, Dinos fourth-year forward Dylan Walchuk deflected home a point shot from defenceman Drydn Dow to force a 3-3 tie. The Huskies protested that Walchuk’s goal was knocked home with a high stick, but the officials ruled the goal was good.

    The Dinos carried play in the first overtime period recording the only five shots on goal in the frame.

    The Huskies lone shot on goal in the second overtime period eventually led to Pearce’s accidental own goal.

    Jordon Cooke made 35 saves to earn the win in goal for the Huskies (16-3), who are ranked third in the CIS top ten rankings. Stanford, who is a graduate of the WHL's Saskatoon Blades, turned away 19 shots in goal for the Dinos (7-8-4).

    The Huskies and Dinos will go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink.

Russians power Dinos past Huskies

Iya Gavrilova had a goal and two assists for the Dinos on Friday night.

    Iya Gavrilova and Sasha Vafina came through when the University of Calgary Dinos women’s hockey team needed them the most.

    The two members of Russian’s 2014 Olympic team combined for three goals and two assists to push the Dinos past the visiting University of Saskatchewan Huskies 4-2 at the Father David Bauer Arena in Calgary.

    Gavrilova, who has two assists, netted the winner at the 12:59 mark of the third period, which broke a 2-2 tie. Vafina scored twice, while Stephanie Zvonkovic had the Dinos other tally.

    Feisty forward Marley Ervine and Lauren Zary replied with singles for the Huskies.

    Hayley Dowling made 24 saves to earn the win in goal for the Dinos. Jerrica Waltz turned away 21 shots to take the loss in goal for the Huskies.

    The Huskies, who are rated sixth in the CIS top ten rankings, fell to 11-6-2. The Dinos improved to 5-10-4, but they still sit last in the eight team Canada West Conference.

    Both squads go at it again on Saturday in Calgary.

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