A unique championship night you wish could last forever

Huskies first Canada West title at Merlis a lasting memory

Collin Shirley (#11) and family celebrate a Canada West title win.

Had anyone known how the world was going to change in the three proceeding weeks, maybe the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team and their supporters would have soaked in the Canada West title win a little longer?

Likely, that goes down as 20-20 vision thinking.

On February 29, 2020, the Huskies downed the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds 3-1 in Game 2 of the Canada West Championship series to sweet the best-of-three set 2-0. The series clinching game was played before a standing room record crowd of 2,667 spectators at Merlis Belsher Place.

The Huskies pour off their bench after their Canada West title win.

The best place to be was on the ice surface with the Huskies family and friends following the win, which was the first conference title the team won since moving to Merlis before the start of the 2018-19 campaign. Laughter and jokes filled the air and smiles could be seen all over the place.

People were racing to get photos taken by mobile phone cameras posted on their social media accounts most notably on Instagram. A lot of the pictures included the Dr. W.G. Hardy Trophy and the Canada West championship banner.

The Huskies raise the Dr. W.G. Hardy Trophy.

A lot of other photos were pictures filled with all sorts of combinations of Huskies players, Huskies coaches, Huskies staff members, family members and friends.

It was as joyful a Saturday night as anyone could have asked for. Looking back on that night, everyone who had a link with the Huskies soaked in and enjoyed that night like they should have.

No one knew how the world would change.

After a full week of practices at home, the Huskies departed for Halifax, N.S., for the David Johnston University Cup, which is the U Sports men’s hockey national championship tournament.

Tanner Lishchynsky takes the Dr. W.G. Hardy Trophy for a spin.

On the U Sports awards night on March 11, 2020, Huskies netminder Taran Kozun was named the recipient of the Senator Joseph A. Sullivan Trophy as the U Sports player of the year, and he took honours as the U Sports goaltender of the year.

Huskies fifth-year right-winger Levi Cable captured the R.W. Pugh Fair Play Award as the most sportsmanlike player in U Sports. Huskies centre Jared Dmytriw was named to the U Sports all-rookie team.

Before the awards night took place, talk of a coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was starting to filter into conversations. Teams at the David Johnston University Cup were told there would be no post-game handshakes during the tournament and players to use their own personal water bottle during practices and games.

Jeff Faith, left, and Evan Fiala ham it up.

On March 12, 2020, the Huskies got to play their quarter-final game falling 3-2 to the University of Western Ontario Mustangs. The Huskies were missing a number of players including Cable as a flu bug worked through the team.

 At the end of the night, word came down that the rest of the U Sports men’s hockey championship has been cancelled due to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic. In other locations, the remainder of the U Sports women’s hockey national championship tournament and the U Sports men’s and women’s volleyball national championship tournaments were also cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic fears.

On March 13, 2020, a large number of sports governing bodies in Canada had halted sanctioning of events including Hockey Canada due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a crazy twist, pretty much all of the Huskies who were battled the flu recovered by the morning of March 13, 2020. Due to the fact they couldn’t return to Saskatoon until taking their scheduled return flights after the tournament was supposed to end on March 15, 2020, the Huskies players, coaches, staff and families took in some site seeing before journeying back west.

Levi Cable was the most sportsmanlike player in U Sports.

At the moment, the Huskies still haven’t returned to the ice for any games since that Canada West title clinching win over the Thunderbirds and that quarter-final U Sports tournament loss to the Mustangs.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to grip the world, all U Sports nationals for the 2020-21 campaign were cancelled and all regular season play for the Canada West Conference in 2020-21 was cancelled. Ultimately, all four conferences that play under the U Sports umbrella cancelled their 2020-21 campaigns due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

For almost a year now, the world has experienced various levels of restrictions brought on to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Merlis Belsher Place has been turned into a COVID-19 field hospital in waiting. The processing of some COVID-19 tests and COVID-19 vaccinations take place there now.

Jared Dmytriw made the U Sports all-rookie team.

The developments in the world make those that were at Merlis Belsher Place on February 29, 2020 look even more fondly back on that day. On that day and night, no one was really even thinking about a COVID-19 pandemic.

That day and night played out like most championships winning game days would.

During the 2019-20 campaign, the Huskies men’s hockey team had a season where it seemed the intangibles all fell into place.

The Huskies actually stumbled out of the gates going 0-3-1 over their first four regular season games in 2019-20. They roared back to finish second in the Canada West Conference with a 22-4-2 record.

U of S ended up hosting the Canada West Championship series after the first place University of Alberta Golden Bears, who were 23-5 in the regular season, were upset in their Canada West semifinal series by the Thunderbirds, who were fifth in Canada West with a 9-14-5 regular season record.

Taran Kozun was the U Sports player of the year.

With Merlis being the site of the Canada West Championship series, the Huskies faithful came out in droves. The Huskies slipped past the Thunderbirds 3-2 in Game 1 of the series on February 28, 2020 playing in front of 2,281 spectators.

That set the stage for the record gathering of 2,667 spectators in the Huskies series clinching win in Game 2 on February 29, 2020.

The Huskies came out flying in Game 2 going ahead 2-0 after 20 minutes on goals from Carson Stadnyk and Cable. Cable, who was playing in his 175^th consecutive game for the Huskies including action in the U Sports regular season and post-season, netted his second of the contest with 2:37 remaining the second period, while U of S was working on the power play.

Carson Stadnyk came through with key goals.

The hosts took that 3-0 lead into the second intermission holding a 23-13 edge in shots on goal.

Thunderbirds left-winger Jake Kryski scored to put the visitors on the board with a power-play goal with 3:16 remaining in the third to round out the 3-1 final in favour of the Huskies.

Kozun made 17 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Huskies. Saskatoon product Rylan Toth turned away 26 shots to take the setback in goal for the Thunderbirds.

Pandemonium filled the ice after time expired on the third period clock.

One of the most heartwarming scenes from the post-game celebration was when legendary Huskies head coach Dave Adolph gave his gold medal to Ben Bauml, who is the younger brother of Huskies fifth-year centre Kohl.

Ben, who has Down syndrome and is non-verbal, has been Kohl’s biggest fan throughout Kohl’s hockey career. The brothers have a tight bond.

Huskies fans cheer after their team scores a goal.

Ben attended all of the Huskies home games and became a big part of the team’s culture. He joined the Huskies in the dressing room for post-victory celebrations, and he was in the front row for the on-ice team picture after the Canada West title game victory.

Adolph wanted to make the night a little extra special for Ben with the gift of the Canada West gold medal.

No one knew at the time that would ultimately be Adolph’s last victory behind the bench as Huskies head coach. He announced on December 7, 2020 that he would be retiring.

Adolph’s retirement becomes official this coming May 1. All-world hockey bench boss, Mike Babcock will be coming home to Saskatoon to take over as the Huskies head coach for the next two seasons.

Looking back, all those linked with the Huskies wished those celebrations on the night of February 29, 2020 could have gone on a little longer.

The Huskies pose for a team photo after a Canada West title win.

With how the world changed following that night, the Huskies first Canada West title win at Merlis is treasured that much more.

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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Ridley resumes journey to 4,000 as Tigers play-by-play voice

Bob Ridley calls a Tigers playoff game in March of 2019.

In a season that will be like no other, Bob Ridley will hit a special milestone that no one will likely ever reach again.

When the upcoming WHL regular season gets going on Friday with action in the league’s Central Division, Ridley will resume his journey to call his 4,000^th game as the play-by-play voice of the storied Medicine Hat Tigers.

At the moment, Ridley has called 3,998 games as the Tigers play-by-play voice. Ridley’s total includes 3,566 of the Tigers 3,567 regular season games, the club’s one standings tiebreaker game, all of their 411 games in the WHL playoffs and all 20 of their contests in the Memorial Cup tournament. The Tigers won the Memorial Cup as CHL champions in 1987 and 1988.

No one has called more games as the play-by-play voice of one hockey team at any level than Ridley has. He drove the Tigers team bus over most of that stretch as well, and he has been Tigers only play-by-play voice since the modern version of the team took the ice in 1970-71.

On Friday, the Tigers open their regular season traveling to Red Deer to take on the Rebels. The two sides go at it again on Saturday at the Tigers home rink in Medicine Hat now called Co-op Place to mark Ridley’s 4,000^th game.

The 76-year-old from Vulcan, Alta., called his 3,998^th game on March 10, 2020, when the Tigers downed the visiting Rebels 4-3 in overtime at Co-op Place.

Centre Ryan Chyzowski scored the winner and his second marker of the contest at the 1:46 mark of the extra frame.

To date, that was the last game the Tigers played as the WHL paused all action on March 12, 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that had gripped the world.

Bob Ridley gets set to drive the Tigers bus in the 2012 WHL playoffs.

The remainder of the 2019-20 campaign ultimately got cancelled.

Originally, Ridley was set to call his 3,999^th game on March 13, 2020, when the Tigers were scheduled to take on the Broncos in Swift Current. The Broncos and Tigers were slated to meet on Saturday, March 14, 2020 at Co-op Place in what was originally supposed to be Ridley’s 4,000^th game.

Effort was made to ensure Ridley’s 4,000^th game would be a Saturday home contest. The Tigers and the crew at CHAT Television in Medicine Hat were working on some special festivities for the night.

A number of Tiger alums had marked that date on the calendar expecting to return to Medicine Hat for a milestone night that no one else in hockey will likely ever duplicate.

The Tigers were skating through their 50^th season in 2019-20, and Ridley’s 4,000^th game was expected to be a big high point for the team in that campaign.

With the way things are in the current day, it is still a big thing that Ridley’s 4,000^th game will happen. There is still a little fear that the COVID-19 pandemic might throw a wrench into things to cause a delay, but the milestone moment has as much certainty as possible in these times of happening.

Due to restrictions and lockdowns observed to varying degrees around the world to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have seen milestone moments not unfold as planned. Events like wedding, graduations, reunions, championship sporting events and various other special moments have been sidelined in the pandemic.

In some cases, events like weddings and graduations have gone ahead and been celebrated in a different way.

As no spectators are allowed in WHL facilities this season, Ridley’s 4,000^th game will just have to be celebrated in a different way, and it should still be celebrated in the abbreviated campaign the WHL is holding.

Bob Ridley calls a game at The Arena in Medicine Hat.

When Ridley starts the play-by-play call of his 4,000^th game, you can be sure the tributes will pour in over various social media. You can bet a large number of people who have connections to the Tigers all across the world will go online to check out the CHAT 94.5 broadcast of that game.

It will feel all warm and fuzzy inside to hear Ridley calling his 4,000^th game.

One day, there should be a place for Ridley in the Hockey Hall of Fame. He will always be “the Dean” of major junior hockey broadcasters.

Way back in August of 2006, the Tigers held a tribute night for Ridley in Medicine Hat. Maybe when the COVID-19 pandemic comes to an end, another tribute night could be held.

The Tigers alums love going to reunions and another potential tribute night for Ridley might be the most welcomed reunion of all.

“Goals For Mental Health” WHL style, other notes

WHL goal cellys in Canada mean more money for mental health.

The WHL will take part in a new fundraiser for mental health in the shortened 2020-21 campaign.

On Wednesday, the WHL announced it was taking part in the “Goals For Mental Health presented by RE/MAX” fundraiser for the Canadian Mental Health Association in Western Canada.

As part of this fundraiser, RE/MAX will be donating $15 to the CMHA for every goal scored by the 17 WHL teams located in western Canadian markets.

The WHL plans to announce ways for fans to take part in the campaign as the upcoming season goes on.

The fundraiser will be delivered in support of the CMHA’s Talk Today program, which will have new digital integrations for the 2020-21 regular season.

The WHL has worked with the CMHA to deliver Talk Today programming in all 22 WHL markets since January 2017. Talk Today includes an educational component for WHL players providing mental health training specific to suicide awareness.

The training helps teach individuals the importance of talking about mental health, how to acknowledge signs of suicide, seek help when they’re in need of support and connect others in need of support to suicide first aid resources.

Each team is also linked to a CMHA mental health coach, who can provide support and mental health resources to individuals in need.

Talk Today is a mandatory program within the WHL’s Players First support services programs. The WHL’s Players First programs provide educational, mentorship and support services that touch on many issues including bullying, mental health, leadership and extensive health and safety initiatives.

• On Monday, it was revealed that Alan Miller will be stepping down as the general manager of the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors to become Hockey Canada’s new director of player personnel within the Program of Excellence. Miller will start his position with Hockey Canada this coming Monday.
• On Wednesday, the Medicine Hat Tigers announced their leadership group for the 2020-21 campaign. Overage centre Ryan Chyzowski was named the team’s new captain. Overage centre Brett Kemp and overage defenceman Cole Clayton will be full time alternate captains. Corson Hopwo and Lukas Svejkovsky, who are both 19-year-old right-wingers, will share responsibilities as the third alternate captain.
• On Wednesday, the WHL announced the first game of the regular season in the U.S. Division will see the Portland Winterhawks take on the host Tri-City Americans in Kennewick, Wash., on March 18. The Winterhawks are slated to play their first two home games at the Accesso ShoWare Center in Kent, Wash., on March 21 and 26. The Accesso ShoWare Centre is home to the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds. The location for the Winterhawks other 10 home games are listed as still to be determined.
• On Wednesday, the WHL announced its games will be streamed on WHL Live on CHL TV. Back on Feb. 16, the CHL announced Verizon Media Platform would be its streaming partner for this season. For WHL games, a season pass will cost fans $59.99 or a 24-hour pass will cost $6.99. As fans aren’t allowed to attend WHL games this season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many were looking for information regarding live streams for games. You can find more information on WHL Live on CHL TV by clicking right here.
• Tickets are on sale for the February jackpot for the Saskatchewan Amateur Football Mega 50/50 lottery. The funds from this 50/50 lottery will go to support the CJFL’s Saskatoon Hilltops and Regina Thunder and the WWCFL’s Saskatoon Valkyries and Regina Riot. One prize will be drawn per month, and the remaining draw dates are Sunday, February 28, 2021, March 31, 2021, April 30, 2021 and May 31, 2021. Tickets can be purchased by clicking right here, and purchasers must be in Saskatchewan in order to buy tickets.
• Last Friday, the junior A Alberta Junior Hockey League received approval from the Government of Alberta to resume its 2020-21 regular season under the protocols of a new return to play plan. All AJHL teams will use weekly private PCR testing through DynaLIFE Medical Labs to test for COVID-19. The testing runs through the end of the season. If a player or staff member of an AJHL team tests positive for COVID-19 at any point in the remaining season, the team will be required to isolate and suspend in person activities for 14 days. The AJHL last had games take place on November 14, 2020. A start date and updated schedule are still to be announced. On Sunday, the Canmore Eagles elected to opt out of returning to play the current AJHL season leaving 14 out of the circuit’s 15 teams to continue on.

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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“Babs” coming home to coach Huskies and it is good

Mike Babcock pictured in a Sports Illustrated from 2010.

The University of Saskatchewan Huskies blew up the Internet and some social media lines early Saturday afternoon.

As the lunch hour started in Saskatchewan, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported that all-world coach Mike Babcock was expected to be announced as the new head coach for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team in the coming week.

Just short of an hour later, Huskie Athletics put out a release that Babcock, who grew up in Saskatoon and is a graduate of Saskatoon’s Holy Cross High School, will indeed become the Huskies next head coach.

Babcock will lead the Huskies on a full-time volunteer basis for the next two seasons.

Babcock will be taking over for legendary Huskies head coach Dave Adolph, who announced on Dec. 7, 2020 that he would be retiring. Adolph, who holds the U Sports career record for coaching victories at 488, will officially retire on May 1, and Babcock will take over the head coach role from that point.

In an interview with Kevin Mitchell of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Babcock said he was a transfer coach and his goal was to work with Dave King, who is still the greatest coach the Huskies men’s team has ever had, and a hiring committee to find a new long-term head coach for the program.

Babcock, who has been working as a studio analyst for NHL broadcasts produced by NBC Sports, also stressed to Mitchell that he wants to win in the short term.

Babcock’s coaching career is long and distinguished. It began back in 1988, when he was head coach of the Red Deer College Kings men’s hockey team that plays out of the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association.

The highlights of the 57-year-old’s time behind the bench include guiding the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings to a Stanley Cup title in 2008.

Mike Babcock shown in a Sports Illustrated from 2010.

He coached Canada’s men’s hockey team to gold medal wins at the Winter Olympics in 2010 and 2014. In 2018, Babcock became a member of the Order of Hockey in Canada.

Babcock played one season on defence for the Huskies way back in 1981-82 and received an honourary doctor of Laws from the U of S in 2016.

As impressive as all those accomplishments are, Babcock’s best work as a coaching likely took place during the 1993-94 season, when he was the head coach of the now defunct University of Lethbridge Pronghorns men’s hockey team.

With the Pronghorns not having that much success in their history, Babcock guided them to a first place finish in the Canada West Conference with a regular season record of 19 wins, seven losses and two ties. The Pronghorns moved on to down the University of Guelph Gryphons 5-2 in the U Sports national championship game to capture the David Johnston University Cup at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

Babcock and his wife, Maureen, have often returned to Saskatoon and visited the Emma Lake area during summer months in the off-season. The bench boss was often involved in community fundraisers including one for the Leslie & Irene Dube Urology Centre of Health at St. Paul’s Hospital in 2014 and the One Voice fundraiser to raise money for the Neural Health Project at the U of Saskatchewan in 2015.

The hope of the Neural Health Project is to develop a more complete approach to the treatment of mental illness through a combination of conventional and alternative therapies. Babcock had a big hand in helping raise over $1-million at the One Voice fundraiser held on July 24, 2015 at TCU Place.

Collin Shirley is tabbed to return to the Huskies.

When Babcock comes back to town to take over the Huskies, it is safe to say the residents in Saskatoon and area and dare I say the province of Saskatchewan will be treating the return like a homecoming.

It was also noticeable that the last team Babcock coached in the NHL was the Toronto Maple Leafs for four complete seasons and a partial fifth campaign from 2015 to 2019. The Leafs fired Babcock on Nov. 20, 2019 with the team having lost six straight games to sit at 9-10-4.

In the aftermath of the firing, media reports came out that Maple Leafs right-winger Mitch Marner was asked to rank his teammates in order of how hard he though they worked back in his rookie campaign in 2016-17 by Babcock. Babcock later revealed the list to Marner’s teammates.

Babcock confirmed that report, expressed regret asking Marner to participate in something like that wasn’t a good idea and apologized to Marner at the time.

Shortly after the situation with Marner’s rookie season became public, Swedish right-winger Johan Franzen, who played for Babcock in Detroit, accused the bench boss of verbally abusing him. Chris Chelios, who is one of the all-time top defencemen to play in the NHL and one of Franzen’s former teammates, said the verbal abuse to Franzen did happen.

Chelios believed Babcock didn’t treat some of the Red Wings veterans well and dropped criticism there.

Within 50 minutes of the Huskies posting a Twitter post on Babcock’s hiring, the post attracted 65 responses and 151 quote retweets. Most of the responses had harsh words for the hiring, but most didn’t appear to come from Twitter handles from Saskatoon and area.

Evan Fiala is expected to return to the Huskies back end.

Some of the handles seemed to campaign to get Babcock fired before he even arrives in Saskatoon.

Other harsh responses were troll type comments putting down the quality of play in U Sports. On that front, the truth is U Sports is indeed a high-quality league when it comes to competition and the level of play in men’s and women’s hockey is quite outstanding.

Usually in most cases, Huskie Athletics might get five replies at most to a Twitter post.

The quote retweets on the Babcock post were more split in reaction.

On the Huskies Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts, a sizable number of the likes were from accounts I recognize from Saskatoon and Saskatchewan.

I personally believe those situations that were talked about in the aftermath of Babcock’s firing from the Maple Leafs are not that big of a deal. I believe a lot of the troll comments are from ultra-passionate Maple Leafs fans who can’t get over the fact their team hasn’t won the Stanley Cup since 1967.

Babcock apologized in the Marner case and it is impossible for any coach to be liked by every single player he or she has coached.

In the case of Chelios, he built a reputation for running his mouth over his hockey career, so him not having anything nice to say is not new.

On a personal front, Babcock has always been great to me. I moved to Saskatoon in the summer of 2014, and we had lengthy visits at the fundraiser for St. Paul’s Hospital in 2014 and the One Voice fundraiser in 2015.

Our talks mostly revolved around stories regarding mutual friends in hockey. Even in our first meeting, I was comfortable enough to talk with him about the issues with anxiety I dealt with, when they arose when I worked as a sports reporter with the Medicine Hat News in 2012.

Layne Young was a breakout forward with the Huskies in 2019-20.

When I first met Babcock, I didn’t talk to a lot of people about that subject. He was very empathetic and understanding, which led to me attending the One Voice fundraiser.

The One Voice fundraiser in 2015 was one of the best and most positive energy nights out I’ve ever had in my life.

For anyone that battled mental health issues, that night at the One Voice fundraiser was basically the night out we needed.

I believe Babcock has come to help the Huskies out of the goodness of his heart.

Let me repeat myself, I believe Babcock has come to help the Huskies out of the goodness of his heart.

Saskatoon is a community he cares a lot about, and he has a lot of ties to this community. He wants to help get the Huskies going with some positive momentum, when U Sports returns from its pause that started in March of 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The ultra-passionate fan type trolls elsewhere can say what they want, but I am confident enough to say that view isn’t shared by most of those in Saskatoon or Saskatchewan as a province.

Babcock coming to coach the Huskies is a great homecoming moment for “The Bridge City.”

When he gets here, I believe he will enjoy working with some quality returnees and high-character players like Collin Shirley, Evan Fiala and Layne Young. It should be noted the last time the Huskies skated on home ice they won the Canada West Conference title back on Feb. 29, 2020 at Merlis Belsher Place.

The Huskies celebrate their 2020 Canada West title win.

Right now, all that needs to be said on Babcock’s front is, “Welcome home coach, and we wish you the best of luck.”

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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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.

It's sweet Wouters, Paddock, overagers will get final bow

Chase Wouters (#44) enjoys an OT winner in the 2019 WHL playoffs

So what would it have been like had Chase Wouters never suited up again as captain of the Saskatoon Blades or Max Paddock never put on the pads again to play goal for the Prince Albert Raiders?

It appears questions on those fronts will be pushed off until this coming May.

Wouters and Paddock are slated to get the chance to hit the ice again.

The WHL’s five teams based in Saskatchewan along with the two clubs in Manitoba will each play a 24-game regular season schedule in a bubble environment at the Brandt Centre in Regina without fans. Team will be able to practice in the neighbouring Co-operators Centre.

Those seven clubs make up the WHL’s East Division for this coming season, and they are slated to hit the ice on March 12.

At the moment, the WHL’s Central Division containing the league’s five teams based in Alberta are set to hit the ice on Feb. 26 with club’s playing in their home centres. The U.S. Division will begin play on March 19 with all games expected to be held in the state of Washington.

The teams in those divisions will each play a shortened 24-game regular season.

Plans are still in the works to get the B.C. Division back into action.

Max Paddock protects the Raiders goal in 2020.

For the overage players from 17 teams that have been cleared to return to play, they will get the chance at the moment to have a final bow.

With anything right now, there is always a possibility the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic can throw a wrench into things.

The overages won’t play in front of a physical crowd. In the case of Wouters and Paddock, they won’t get to play one last time in their home centres.

The returning overagers will get a chance to put on a WHL jersey again. Back on March 12, 2020 when the 2019-20 WHL campaign was paused and the remainder of the season was later cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there seemed to be a real chance the overagers for the 2020-21 campaign wouldn’t hit the ice in the WHL again.

All the returning WHL players watched as the overagers from the 2019-20 campaign basically all saw their major junior careers come to a sudden end at the same time. Teams did tribute videos and pieces for the departing overagers on team websites and social media platforms.

There was still a sting those graduating overagers took that they actually didn’t expect their respective WHL careers to end when they last stepped off the ice.

The same fate could have happened to this year’s overage class. It does feel good to know that they won’t have their careers come to a sudden end.

In Wouters case, he was selected in the first round and 18^th overall by the Blades way back in the 2015 WHL Bantam Draft. After playing two games as a 15-year-old call up in 2015-16, Wouters has been a career regular on the Blades roster since.

He has appeared in 259 regular season games posting 65 goals, 94 assists and a plus-10 rating in the plus-minus department.

Chase Wouters has played 259 regular season games for the Blades.

Wouters had a memorable playoff moment scoring the overtime winner to lift the Blades to a 3-2 victory over the Moose Jaw Warriors at the SaskTel Centre in Game 1 of a first round series in 2019. The Blades swept the best-of-seven set 4-0 before falling 4-2 in a best-of-seven second round series to the eventual WHL champion Prince Albert Raiders.

Wouters has represented the Blades with class for his whole career and done seemingly every community appearance that was asked of him. It is heartwarming to know he will get to wear Blades colours once again.

Paddock got his start WHL start with the Regina Pats. As a 17-year-old rookie in 2017-18, Paddock was in goal when the Pats made it to the championship final as the host team of the 100^th Memorial Cup tournament, which determines a CHL champion.

Paddock turned away 41-of-43 shots as the Pats were blanked 3-0 by the QMJHL champion Acadie-Bathurst Titan.

The Brandon, Man., product proceeded to play through a 2018-19 season where the Pats were going through a major rebuild after hosting the Memorial Cup.

Paddock remained with the Pats until he was traded to the Raiders on January 9, 2020 for sophomore left-winger Jakob Brook, a second round selection in the 2020 WHL Bantam Draft and a conditional third round selection in the 2022 WHL Bantam Draft that depended on Paddock suiting up with the Raiders as an overager.

In 114 career regular season games with the Pats, Paddock had a 44-49-10 career record, a 3.27 goals against average, a .901 save percentage and four shutouts.

In just over two months with the Raiders, Paddock appeared in 19 regular season games posting a 13-3-3 record, a 1.67 goals against average, a .935 save percentage and three shutouts.

With Paddock’s help, the Raiders were sitting first in the WHL’s East Division with a 36-18-6-4 record before the rest of the 2019-20 campaign was called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Max Paddock in goal for the Raiders in March of 2020.

At the moment, Paddock is with the AHL’s Stockton Heat on an amateur tryout contract. The Heat are playing out of Calgary, Alta., due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Paddock is expected to be back with the Raiders when the East Division starts regular season play on March 12.

Along with getting to make a final bow, Wouters, Paddock and the other overagers will get to compile recent game footage of themselves in action. They could use that football to potentially attract opportunities in the professional or Canadian university ranks.

While they will have that footage as a tool to attract future opportunities, they will get a change to be with their WHL teammates once more and get to create more of a proper closure to their junior careers.

Cozens on shaky ride in NHL COVID-19 campaign, other notes

Dylan Cozens in action for the Hurricanes in 2019.

Dylan Cozens showed he was ready for the NHL until COVID-19 protocols took him off the ice.

The former star centre with the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes began the 2020-21 season serving as an alternate captain for Canada’s world junior team. At world juniors played in a bubble environment at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alta., Cozens topped Canada in scoring posting eight goals, eight assists and a plus-11 rating in the plus-minus department in seven games.

Canada fell 2-0 in the gold medal game to the United States on Jan. 5.

Cozens then joined the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres for his rookie season as a professional. The product of Whitehorse in the Yukon Territories suited up for nine regular season games collecting two goals, one assists and a plus-one rating.

At that point, COVID-19 protocols came calling.

Cozens, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 188 pounds, dressed for the Sabres as they dropped a 5-3 decision at home to the New Jersey Devils on Jan. 31. Due to issues with COVID-19, the Sabres wouldn’t play a game again until this past Monday, when they dropped a 3-1 decision at home to the New York Islanders.

Cozens was placed on the NHL’s COVID-19 “protocol list” on Feb. 6. He returned to practice with the Sabres this past Tuesday, which means he is off the “protocol list.”

At this point, Cozens still hasn’t suited up for a game since that Jan. 31 encounter with the Devils. The Sabres travel to New Jersey on Saturday to face the Devils.

The Devils actually didn’t play any games between downing the Sabres on Jan. 31 and dumping the Rangers in New York 5-2 this past Tuesday due to issues with COVID-19.

Through Monday, the NHL has postponed 35 regular season games due to COVID-19, and all those postponements have been in the United States.

The NHL has been changing its protocols to try and prevent even more postponed games.

That included a change on Feb. 11 that said all players, coaches, training staff, equipment staff and other members of the team’s traveling party on the road will be required to remain at home during home games.

They can’t leave their place of residence except to attend practices and games, exercise outdoors on an individual basis, perform essential activities like going to the doctor or deal with family or other emergencies and other extraordinary circumstances.

The NHL also strongly recommended that household members limit their activities outside the home as well and is encouraging teams to provide way for household member to be tested for COVID-19 regularly.

As you can see, completing an NHL campaign where teams aren’t confined in bubble environments has been very challenging in the United States in these COVID-19 times. Players like Cozens have experienced highs and pitfalls of these present day moments.

• Tickets are on sale for the February jackpot for the Saskatchewan Amateur Football Mega 50/50 lottery. The funds from this 50/50 lottery will go to support the CJFL’s Saskatoon Hilltops and Regina Thunder and the WWCFL’s Saskatoon Valkyries and Regina Riot. One prize will be drawn per month, and the remaining draw dates are Sunday, February 28, 2021, March 31, 2021, April 30, 2021 and May 31, 2021. Tickets can be purchased by clicking right here, and purchasers must be in Saskatchewan in order to buy tickets.
• There has been a sizable grouping of minor hockey parents in Saskatchewan that have been saying if their kids in minor hockey can’t play than the WHL shouldn’t play. Those parents are trying to compare two different spectrums. In order to play, WHL clubs are providing private PCR testing through DynaLIFE Medical Labs as far as the COVID-19 testing component is concerned. Plus, the five Saskatchewan based clubs and two Manitoba based teams are playing in a bubble environment in Regina. Minor hockey bodies don’t have that type of money to afford those types of things. I guess if minor hockey players could play in a bubble environment where associations provide regular weekly COVID-19 testing, then you could have minor hockey in Saskatchewan.
• On Feb. 12, the junior A Manitoba Junior Hockey League cancelled the remainder of its 2020-21 campaign including regular season and playoffs due to continuing government restrictions brought in to battle the COVID-19 pandemic.
• In many Saskatchewan media outlets over the last few days, Saskatchewan Hockey Association general manager Kelly McClintock said there was really no hope of playing any more competitive minor hockey for the 2020-21 campaign. Those comments came after the Government of Saskatchewan decided on Tuesday to extend current Public Health Orders and restrictions to battle COVID-19 to March 19. Teams are still allowed to continue training with players in groups of eight.
• On Monday, the Saskatoon Blades acquired 2001 born right-winger Blake Stevenson from the Tri-City Americans for a conditional fifth round selection in the 2023 WHL Bantam Draft. In 2019-20, Stevenson appeared in 47 regular season games with the Americans collecting 10 goals and 10 assists. He is eligible to play in the WHL as an overager in 2021-22.
• On Tuesday, the Red Deer Rebels announced Troy Gillard would be the team’s play-by-play voice for the club’s shorted 24 WHL regular season schedule. Gillard will work the Rebels 12 home games with colour analyst Mike Moller. The Rebels open the regular season on Feb. 19 hosting the Medicine Hat Tigers.
• On Tuesday, the Everett Silvertips announced overage left-winger Cole Fonstad and overage defenceman Gianni Fairbrother were named the team’s co-captains for the 2020-21 season. Fonstad helped the Prince Albert Raiders win the WHL title in 2019 before a trade early in the 2019-20 campaign brought him to Everett. In 60 regular season games split between the Raiders and Silvertips in 2019-20, Fonstad had 15 goals, 59 assists and a plus-39 rating. This season, he had five goals and five assists in six games with the Estevan Bruins in the junior A Saskatchewan Junior Hockey league before play was halted due to government restrictions to battle the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019-20, Fairbrother appeared in 37 regular season games for the Silvertips posting five goals, 20 assists and a plus-six rating.
• On Thursday, the Regina Pats dealt 17-year-old defenceman Daylan Weigel to the Swift Current Broncos in exchange for a fifth-round selection in the 2021 WHL Bantam Draft. In 2019-20, Weigel dressed in one regular season game for the Pats. He played 42 regular season games in the Saskatchewan Male Under-18 AAA Hockey League collecting six goals and 20 assists with the Saskatoon Blazers. He suited up for the Blazers in four games this season collecting one assist before play was halted due to government restrictions to battle the COVID-19 pandemic.
• On Thursday, the Brandon Wheat Kings announced 19-year-old defenceman and Prince Albert, Sask., product Braden Schneider was named the team’s captain. In 2019-20, Schneider appeared in 60 regular season games for the Wheat Kings posting seven goals, 35 assists and a plus-nine rating. This season, he was a member of Canada’s silver medal winning team at world juniors appearing in six games collecting one goal, two assists and a plus-eight rating. He dressed for two games with the AHL’s Hartford Wolfpack posting one assist and a plus-two rating.

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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Normal playoff time makes U Sports absence even more eerie

The Huskies enjoy a players series OT win in 2019.

While whole world has been in the grips of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic for a little more than 11 months, it doesn’t prevent getting a weird feeling due to the absence of events that occur regularly on the calendar.

In Canada’s sports scene, post-season action in U Sports would normally be well underway right now. Sports like football, rugby and soccer would normally play their nationals in the fall semester, so everyone with connections there would have felt that absence.

The winter semester usually sees sports conclude that run year round. Sports like basketball, hockey, track and field, volleyball and wrestling would have started their post-season paths.

Usually by this time of year, first round action would have taken place in basketball, hockey and volleyball. 

Kirsten Chamberlin tightly identifies with the Pandas.

Playoff fever would be well in the air and it would usually wrap up around the middle of March, when the last scheduled national championship tournaments are played.

At the moment, U Sports arenas and gyms sit empty across Canada on regular post-season game days.

On the grounds of the University of Alberta in Edmonton, the Butterdome multi-purpose sports complex is a field hospital in waiting. It was recently turned into a field hospital in waiting due to urgency created due to a big spike of new COVID-19 cases and COVID-19 hospitalizations in Alberta.

On the grounds of the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, the twin pad hockey rink facility in Merlis Belsher Place, which has two basketball courts, has been a field hospital in waiting for a number of months. It is being used to help process COVID-19 tests and be a centre to administer COVID-19 vaccinations.

Those are the realities of the pandemic, which in Canada has pushed U Sports to the backburner.

While some will argue how relevant U Sports is on Canada’s overall sporting scene, the truth is it still has sizable relevance.

Golden Bears players have deep links to their team.

Just ask members of the University of Alberta Golden Bears men’s hockey team and the University of Alberta Pandas women’s hockey team how deeply imbedded their identification is to their programs along with the alums of each squad. Wherever those players go, they will be Golden Bears and Pandas for life.

In Saskatoon, current players and alums have strong identifications with the U of Saskatchewan Huskies programs on campus. It seem like you could always find someone wearing gear with the Huskies logo on it anywhere in Canada or seemingly around the world.

Over the last decade, it has become common for the Huskies men’s and women’s basketball and hockey teams to host home playoff games. At the start of the post-season, there was always great anticipation when the first of these contests came around.

Right now, the start of that playoff fever is missing. It is noticeable because this is the time the intensity level gets dialed up another notch.

The Huskies claimed a U Sports women’s basketball title in 2020.

Over the past 10 years, the Huskies women’s basketball team and the Huskies men’s hockey team have hosted a number of Canada West Conference championship games and series.

On February 28, 2020, a standing room crowd of 2,515 saw the Huskies women’s basketball team down the Pandas 62-51 in a winner take all Canada West Championship game at the Physical Activity Complex. 

No one at that game figured that would be at the moment the last time they saw a Huskies basketball team play at home.

Of course guided by their brilliant head coach Lisa Thomaidis, the Huskies women’s basketball team advanced to win the U Sports title. 

Levi Cable came up big for the Huskies in the 2020 post-season.

The Huskies thumped the Brock University Badgers 82-64 in the U Sports title game at TD Place in Ottawa, Ont.

Following that win, the Huskies returned home to enjoy an on campus victory rally on March 11, 2020 right before shutdowns and restrictions started to take root to battle the COVID-19 pandemic.

On February 29, 2020, a record standing room crowd of 2,667 watched the Huskies men’s hockey team down the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds 3-1 in Game 2 of the Canada West Championship series to sweep the best-of-three set 2-0.

As the Huskies raised the Dr. W.G. Hardy Trophy as Canada West champions, no one at Merlis that night could have imagined that was the last time to this day they would see a Huskies hockey team play at home.

The Huskies were able to play their quarter-final game at the University Cup in Halifax, N.S., before the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Fans cheer the Huskies at Merlis Belsher Place on Feb. 29, 2020.

With a number of players legitimately down with the flu, the Huskies fell 3-2 to the University of Western Ontario Mustangs.

No one knew that would be the last contest Dave Adolph would work as the Huskies legendary and one of a kind character head coach. 

Adolph will officially retire as Huskies head coach on May 1 of this year.

Willie Desjardins, who was the captain of the Huskies men’s hockey team that won the U Sports national title in 1982-83, said as head coach and general manager of the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers on a frequent basis that legends are made in the playoffs.

In 2020-21, there were no opportunities for legends to be made as there is no U Sports action at all due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Huskies celebrate a Canada West title in 2020.

Anyone with attachments to U Sports has to hold on to hope that things will be different in 2021-22.

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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Remembering the night the West was won

Cougars captured conference crown in February 2001

The Cougars pictured after winning the 2001 Canada West title.

On the cusp winning their first Canada West Conference championship, the University of Regina Cougars women’s hockey team didn’t want to rely on second chances.

With Regina experiencing frigid conditions on Saturday, February 17, 2001, the Cougars arrived at Exhibition Stadium holding a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three Canada West Championship series against the defending U Sports champion University of Alberta Pandas.

The Cougars claimed a 2-1 overtime victory the previous night in the dungy confines of their ancient home rink with sophomore forward Erin Balfour netting the winning goal. Game 2 of the series marked the first time the Cougars were one win away from capturing the Canada West title.

I should note here that as this column looks back on events from 20 years ago, I’ve elected to identify those involved with these events by the maiden names they went by in 2000-01.

Looking back at the time, women’s hockey was still relatively a new sport in U Sports, which was then known as the Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union. Overall, women’s hockey was still a fledging sport that was on the verge of a serious growth curve.

The 2000-01 campaign marked the fourth season a national title was up for grabs in U Sports women’s hockey. In the United States during that same campaign, the first official National Collegiate Athletic Association national championship at the Division I level was contested for the first time.

The Pandas took part in the inaugural season for U Sports women’s hockey in 1997-98, fell in the national final the very next season before capturing their first national title in 1999-2000. As hockey is a prime sport at U of A in both the men’s and women’s games, the Pandas had already established themselves as a league power.

Brandy West in action for the Cougars in 2000-01.

The Cougars entered U Sports for the second official season a national title was contested in women’s hockey in 1998-99. They quickly became one of the league’s top teams as captain Brandy West was named the MVP of the Canada West Conference in 1999 and 2000.

In 2000-01, the Cougars topped the Canada West standings in their third season of existence and West was again named the MVP of the conference, and she would later be named the U Sports MVP for that campaign. Erin Tady, who was West’s linemate, would take home honours as the rookie of the year for the Canada West Conference and U Sports.

U of R was still looking for a breakthrough it wanted on the post-season front and didn’t get it when the Canada West champion was determined in a post-season tournament.

With the 2000-01 campaign marking the first time the Canada West women’s hockey final was decided via a best-of-three series like the Canada West men’s final traditionally had been, the Cougars were poised for the breakthrough they sought.

Still, there was a feeling that this Canada West final between the Cougars and Pandas was far from over. Game 1 could have gone either way as it was decided in overtime.

There was a sense a series-deciding Game 3 could be needed, and it would be a short turnaround as it was set for 1 p.m. the next day right on the heels of the night time clash in Game 2.

The Cougars came into Game 2 focused on the present and on just winning the game that night.

The focus was helped by the fact the players families would be in the stands like they had religiously been for each home game that season. 

Laura Paradis focuses in goal for the Cougars in 2000-01.

Back in those days when the 50/50 draw was made for that night’s contest, it was usually won by a player’s family member, who would donate the winnings back to the team.

It was another aspect on the Cougars side that showed how committed everyone was for trying to make the third-year team work.

A few more in the family and friends department showed up for Game 2 of the series between the Cougars and Pandas. Attendance at that game was 273 persons, which was a season high for the Cougars.

That smaller figure was another sign that women’s hockey was still in a fledging stage as a sport.

Those that saw Game 1 of the series took in an all-time classic battle, and everyone in the rink for Game 2 thought there would be another classic battle. What they saw was the Cougars having one of their finest nights in program history.

The Pandas ran into penalty trouble late in the first period of Game 2, and the Cougars showed how opportunistic they could be.

With 2:11 remaining in the first and working on a power play, Cougars third-year veteran forward Tanya Hutcheon tipped home a point shot to put the host side up 1-0. Defenders Andrea Creurer and Trina Rissling picked up assists on the play.

Just 54 seconds later, the Cougars top line scored an even-strength marker to go up 2-0 with West pulling the trigger on the tally and Tady and Julie Foster picking up assists.

Joell Fiddler patrols the back end for the Cougars in 2000-01.

After West’s goal, the Pandas took an unsportsmanlike penalty and another minor infraction for body contact right as the opening frame ended.

Just 1:42 into the second, Rissling potted the Cougars second power-play goal to extend U of R’s edge to 3-0. Rookie forward Kelsey Rezansoff and Balfour picked up assists on Rissling’s tally.

The Cougars went 2-for-4 on the power play in the contest, while the Pandas were 0-for-5.

After the game, Cougars head coach Sarah Howald noted the three-goal surge determined the outcome of the contest.

“I think Alberta lost their mind, and we took advantage,” said Howald.

While they had a big advantage on the scoreboard they didn’t expect, the Cougars effort didn’t let up the rest of the way. Territorially, they played the Pandas even through to the end of the contest.

With 6:57 remaining in the third, Pandas star centre Lori Shupak scored to cut the Cougars advantage to 3-1 with Mandy Kinjerski and Nicole Chapdelaine picking up assists on the play.

The Cougars defence anchored by all-Canadian all-star Joell Fiddler shut things down the rest of the way to ensure the 3-1 score held up as the game’s final outcome.

Laura Paradis turned away 20 shots to pick up the win for the Cougars. Stacey McCullough turned away 25 shots to take the setback in goal for the Pandas.

Following the game, West, who had been to two U Sports nationals as a major award nominee, was elated to be going to nationals with her team. It meant more to her to do that as opposed to going solo for a major award.

The 2000-01 Cougars are still best friends to this day.

“It is going to be the best time of my life,” said West, who was soaked in tears of joy. “There is nothing like a team playing the best sport in the world with your best friends in the world.”

The Cougars advanced to nationals that were held that year in Calgary. At nationals, they dumped the St. Francis Xavier X-Women 6-0 and slipped past Concordia University Stingers 3-2 to earn a berth in the U Sports title game.

In the national final that was broadcast across Canada on TSN, the Cougars fell behind 3-0 to the University of Toronto Varsity Blues but rallied back to even things up at 3-3 early in the third period. The Blues potted the winner later in the frame and held on for a 4-3 victory.

The Cougars returned to Regina with a silver medal and lots of optimism they would be back to that stage again. To date, the 2000-01 campaign marks the only time the Cougars have won a Canada West Conference title.

They returned to nationals in 2002 and 2003 as the tournament’s host team.

Following their loss in the 2001 Canada West Championship series, the Pandas proceeded to roll off a 110-game undefeated streak that included 109 wins, one draw and three U Sports titles. The Pandas have won the most national titles in the history of U Sports women’s hockey at eight.

Still, the events of the 2000-01 campaign created lifetime bonds for the Cougars. Any time there is a reunion of the program’s alums, it seems at least 13 members minimum from the Canada West title winning team make it to the reunion.

The Cougars return to U of R with their silver medals from nationals

In the current day, many of those players are coaching their children in minor hockey usually around the Regina area. Speedy checking forward and all-time beauty Natalie Cudmore has become the cool mom and ace volunteer hockey coach for her three kids in her hometown of Yorkton.

While life has taken the Cougars in different directions, they will always walk together thanks to the journey they took on that 2000-01 Canada West Championship winning season.

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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