Connor Howe celebrates scoring a goal for the Raiders.
PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. - The slate is clean for the Prince
Albert Raiders.
What happened last season was last season. The current
2026-27 campaign is a brand new journey.
The Raiders had a season to remember in 2025-26. They topped
the East Division and finished second overall in the WHL’s regular season
standings with a 52-10-5-1 mark. Going into the post-season, the Raiders were
rated fourth in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings.
In the WHL Playoffs, Prince Albert won the Eastern
Conference Championship Series in six games over the Medicine Hat Tigers. The
Raiders then fell in five games in the WHL Championship Series to the Everett
Silvertips.
The new season marks a new beginning for the Raiders.
“You’re always trying to write your own story,” said Raiders
head coach Ryan McDonald. “This is a different group than it was last year.
“The nice thing about our returning guys is you learn from
your experience. We have lots of guys in that dressing room with experience of playing
in round three, Game 6 against Medicine Hat and playing in the finals against
Everett here in Game 5. You lean on those experiences and those lessons that
you’ve learned.
“They help teach the young guys in the next group coming in
how to play and what is expected in certain situations. They’ve been in those
pressure situations to lean on it and know what it feels like.”
Star netminder Michal Orsulak is a key returnee for the Raiders.
In the early stages of this season, the Raiders have started
out with a 1-1 record. They downed the visiting Regina Pats 7-4 last Friday at
the storied and historic Art Hauser Centre.
One night later at the InnovationPlex in Swift Current, the
Raiders fell 5-2. That contest was highlighted by a second period line brawl
that saw the 10 skaters on the ice break off into five legitimate one-on-one
fights. Last Monday, the WHL fined both the Raiders and Broncos $1,500 each for
the brawl.
The Raiders could be involved with more rough stuff in their
next two games, when they take on their archrivals the Saskatoon Blades (0-1-1)
in a home-and-home series.
The two sides go at it Friday at 7 p.m. at the Art
Hauser Centre and face each other again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel
Centre. The Saturday clash will be the Blades regular season home opener.
The Raiders and Blades have already gone at it three times
earlier this month in the pre-season with Prince Albert winning two of those
encounters. Both sides will have some pretty good familiarity with each other.
Still, the Raiders enter the season with a number of key
departures. At the conclusion of last season, they graduated one of their best
20-year-old groups in recent memory in captain Justice Christensen, centre
Aiden Oiring and right-winger Brayden Dube.
Also gone are 19-year-old centre Braeden Cootes to the NHL’s
Vancouver Canucks, 20-year-old centre Max Heise and 18-year-old defenceman
Daxon Rudolph – both- to the University of Denver Pioneers in the NCAA Division
I ranks.
Darius Hordal is one of the Raiders new defencemen.
The Raiders do return 14 players from last season, and they
will have all those returnees available when they face the Blades on Friday. On
Tuesday, the Raiders got 19-year-old left-winger Brandon Gorzynski back from
training camp activities with the NHL’s Dallas Stars. On Wednesday, 18-year-old
right-winger Jonah Sivertson was returned to the Raiders after attending NHL
training camp activities with the Vegas Golden Knights.
The rest of the returnees in the Raiders forward group
include Maddix McCagherty, Ben Harvey, Evan Smith, Connor Howe, Riley Boychuk,
import Alisher Sarkenov and Owen Corkish. The Raiders also return Benett Kelly,
Hubert Clarke and Brock Cripps on the back end. Prince Albert brings back both
goalies from a season ago in import and star Michal Orsulak and Steele Bass.
“Everyone is welcome, and I think we’re very good with just
the vets speaking up to the new guys and the young guys,” said Howe, who has
two goals and an assist in the Raiders first two games. “I think it is really
good.
“We’ve got good leadership.”
The Raiders will be looking to newcomers like 16-year-old
rookie right-winger Athens Shingoose and defencemen Liam Myhre and Darius
Hordal to come through with contributions. Still, the Raiders will look to lean
on their veterans who are back from last season.
“We have a lot of similar guys,” said Harvey, who has two
goals and three assists in the Raiders first two games. “Our core is pretty
similar from last year, and we’ve learned a lot off our success and off the
loss at the end.
The Raiders enjoy their win last Friday at the Hauser.
“We want to take the things that we’ve learned and apply
them this year and help teach the new guys the way it is to win and the winning
culture we have here.”
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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A VHS re-release of The Transformers: The Movie from 1995.
Sunday became my “Transformers Day” in Saskatoon.
Going by the show times that were originally announced for
the 40th anniversary showing for The Transformers: The Movie and
juggling my work schedule, my plan was to see it today (Sunday). At first, the
only Sunday showing was set for 10:20 a.m. at the Landmark Cinemas on the far east
edge of the city. I live on the west side of Saskatoon, so the theatre that was
showing the Transformers movie was one of the longest cross-city trips I could
do.
Late Saturday night, I double checked the show times and
noticed the Landmark Cinemas added more showings on Sunday including at 12:10
p.m. and 7:20 p.m. I saw in social media reaction from Transformers fans online
that they were pleasantly surprised to be watching this movie in full theatres
in various other communities.
In the local mainstream media outlets in Saskatoon and in
numerous centres in Canada, there are pretty much no entertainment reporters or
movie reviewers left. I had no idea what I would experience when I would head
out to see this movie again in the theatre for the first time in 40 years.
For a quick history lesson about The Transformers: The Movie,
it was produced with the budget of US$6-million, and it brought in
US$5.9-million in its original 1986 box office run domestically to be
considered a bomb. The Transformers: The Movie didn’t have many folks coming
out for a repeat viewing due to the death of Optimus Prime, who was the heroic
leader of the Autobots voiced by the late, great Peter Cullen - a product of
Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
A ticket for The Transformers: The Movie.
Back in 1986, it was not common to kill off main characters
in animated series, and Optimus Prime is often remembered as the shocking first
time this happened.
As the decades have gone on, The Transformers: The Movie
developed a cult following with numerous physical media releases and various
returns to theatres. The 40th anniversary return has been dubbed
“The Apology Tour” by Hasbro for killing off Optimus Prime in 1986.
It is followed by a 12-minute animated short called Optimus
Prime: Awakening. That is the final time Cullen reprises his role as Optimus
Prime.
The 40th anniversary showing hit theatres this
past Thursday with Cullen’s recent passing coming this past August 26 adding a
new dimension to the experience. The voice acting great was the first and is
destined to go down as the definitive voice of Optimus Prime.
When I arrived at the Landmark Cinemas at 12:05 p.m., I was
surprised to see the parking lot in front of the theatre was pretty much full.
The Transformers: The Movie was the only thing showing at the 10:20 a.m. and
12:10 p.m. time slots at that location.
The Landmark Cinemas in Saskatoon.
The people I saw at the theatre were like 95 per cent
families. Lots of dads were coming with their kid or teenage sons, and lots of
dads were coming with their kid or teenage daughters.
After I got out of my car in front of the parking lot at the
Landmark Cinemas, I saw a dad getting out of a big pickup truck with two
teenage daughters. By their appearance, they came from the rural area and
likely came some distance as the daughters were putting comforter blankets
away. The daughters gave off the vibes they were there doing something special
with their dad.
When I walked into the theatre, the concession line was
really long. It was filled with families hanging together in their family
groups. There were a handful of geek/nerd types in the concession, but they
were a really small minority.
I went to purchase my ticket to get into the showing, and I
realized there were both a premier seat and a standard seat showing. The premier
seat showing was sold out, so I got into the standard seat showing.
Classic animated Optimus Prime.
The theatre room I went into was packed. With family
turnout, the majority of the folks in the standard seat room were young kids.
Right there, I was having flashbacks of seeing The
Transformers: The Movie back in 1986. Back in 1986, I saw that film on the last
day it was in theatres in Winnipeg thanks to my oldest sister taking me. While
the repeat viewings weren’t happening at that time, the theatre had a decent
crowd with a lot of kids in attendance when I went.
During the showing I went to at the Landmark Cinemas, you got
the feeling everyone in the room had seen this movie at least two or three times.
It did hit differently watching The Transformers: The Movie on the big screen,
because you realized this was how this film was meant to be seen.
As the movie advanced on, there were a lot of times a voice
in my head was mouthing all the characters’ lines. In my life, the only two
movies I have likely seen more than The Transformers: The Movie are another
1986 release in Top Gun and Major League from 1989. At times, the lines from
those flicks feel like they are burned into the memory.
Another thing it felt like I noticed watching The
Transformers: The Movie this time around was how smoothly the film ran. The
flow was noticeably better from my view compared to movies I have seen in
theatre in recent years.
I was impressed to see most of the kids in the theatre were
locked in watching the film from their seats. It kind of went against the preconceived
notion that kids today have attention spans that are super short.
A promo photo of the late Peter Cullen.
I enjoyed the Optimus Prime: Awakening short. To me, the
whole short was about Optimus Prime making his journey into the afterlife after
dying in the 1986 movie.
On the crazy timing front, I thought it worked as a
beautiful tribute to Cullen playing Optimus Prime and closing the book on that
part of the history of the Transformers franchise. When Cullen was recording
the lines for this short, I don’t think it was going through anyone’s mind that
he would pass away shortly before this hit theatres. When the short ended, a
tribute dedication was shown for Cullen.
I came away feeling good enough from this experience that I
went down to 8th Street Quentin’s Comics and Toys on 8th
Street in Saskatoon and picked up a couple of Transformers figures from the
Studio 86 Series Line that is dedicated to The Transformers: The Movie.
I also attended the 7:20 p.m. showing in the premier seat
theatre with my mom. She actually enjoyed the experience.
This time there were only about 50 per cent families in the
crowd and a larger turnout from the geek/nerd crowd. It was still a great time.
This anniversary run for The Transformers: The Movie was
originally supposed to wrap up on Monday in North America. The run at the
Landmark Cinemas is running through to Wednesday.
An Optimus Prime from 1984.
At the moment, the film is set to show at 12:20 p.m. on
Monday, at noon and 7:20 p.m. on Tuesday and at noon and 6:50 p.m. on
Wednesday.
In my life, I was born eight years before Transformers made
its debut in 1984 and most of my knowledge of the franchise’s story arc comes
from the original Generation One line.
It is pretty rudimentary of all the
different iterations and story tellings that have occurred around the decades.
Thanks to life being busy, I am not able to consume and
follow all the interpretations of Transformers as they come out.
I have been
able to see all the Michael Bay live action Transformers films along with the
Transformers One animated picture.
When I went to the 40th anniversary showing of
The Transformers: The Movie, I realized there were a lot of folks similar to me
in that way, and a number of people in my age group still have a fond place in
their heart for the original 1986 animated movie.
Yours truly at the Landmark Cinemas in Saskatoon.
To be able to share watching
it in theatre with family was a priceless moment that was never conceived for
the bucket list.
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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PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – The Prince Albert Raiders were living
up to their legacy of being more than just a hockey team to the folks in “Hockey
Town North.”
On Friday before a standing room crowd of 2,916 spectators
at the storied and historic 2,580 seat Art Hauser Centre, the Raiders downed the
visiting Regina Pats 7-4 in the WHL regular season opener for both clubs. It
was a night where the Raiders raised banners for finishing first in the WHL’s
East Division and capturing the Eastern Conference Championship last season.
On their opening day roster on Friday night, the Raiders
took the ice with 12 returning plays from last season’s squad that finished second
overall in the WHL’s regular season standings with a 52-10-5-1 mark and
advanced to the WHL Championship Series falling in five games to the Everett
Silvertips. The Raiders are still without two more potential returning skaters
from last year’s squad as 19-year-old left-winger Brandon Gorzynski is still
taking part in NHL training camp activities with the Dallas Stars and
18-year-old right-winger Jonah Sivertson is in camp with the Vegas Golden
Knights.
Benett Kelly skates on to the ice during pre-game introductions.
Raiders head coach Ryan McDonald said it was important to
see the East Division and Eastern Conference championship banners to up into
the Hauser’s rafter, because it further cements the history that was made last
season.
“It was a real special night in a number of ways,” said
McDonald. “Watching the banner go up and the trophies sitting there, the guys
who were here with us last year it is an amazing accomplishment and something that
you should be very proud of.
“You watch those banners go to the rafters, and you’re a
part of this history and this culture forever when those are up there.”
The Raiders raise two championship banners to the rafters.
The Raiders also ran a stirring video tribute for club mainstay
in the late Mark Odnokon. Odnokon passed away this past May 24 due to cancer,
and he was still a Raiders assistant coach at the time of his passing.
In living to age 63, Odnokon is viewed as a Raiders lifer. In
the early 1970s growing up in Prince Albert, he went to Raiders games as a
ticket buyer and used to camp out for tickets in the team’s early playoff runs
when they were in junior A as part of the SJHL.
He was a stick boy for the Raiders first Centennial Cup
winner in 1976-77, was a late season call up for their second Centennial Cup
championship team in 1978-79 and was a full-time player for their final two
Centennial Cup triumphs in 1980-81 and 1981-82.
After serving as head coach and general manager of the
SJHL’s Melfort Mustangs from 1988 to 1990, Odnokon returned to the Raiders as
an assistant coach in the 1990-91 season. He was pretty much a part of the
Raiders staff for most of the years he lived from that moment until his passing,
when he served as a skills coach and the team’s Respect Champion. It was really
only broken up for a long stretch from the mid 1990s to the early 2000s when he
was a scout for the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks.
The Raiders paid tribute to the late Mark Odnokon.
McDonald, who was born and raised in Prince Albert and
played for the under-18 AAA Prince Albert Mintos and the Raiders, said Odnokon
has been present in his hockey journey, and he still feels the physical void of
the forever hockey coach not being there. Odnokon’s celebration of life took
place fittingly at the Hauser this past May 31.
““Ozzy” was a huge part of those banners and the fabric of
the culture that we have here in Prince Albert with the Raiders,” said
McDonald. “He is a man who has been at this rink since I’ve been a kid.
Ben Harvey had one goal and three assists for the Raiders.
“He has been a part of it every single way with me whether
it was working NorSask Hockey School, coming to the rink as a player playing
for the Prince Albert Raiders to assistant and to head coach. It is hard to
come and him not be here with his laughter, his humour, his work ethic and
everything that he brings. He was the ultimate glue guy of a teammate.
“You heard all the stories at his funeral. Also as a coach
too, he kept that coaching office extremely light, extremely close, and he is
sadly missed.”
Raiders sophomore 17-year-old right-winger Ben Harvey said
he still feels Odnokon’s physical absence. Following all the pre-game
ceremonies, Harvey went out and had a huge night recording a short-handed
empty-net goal, three assists and posting a plus-five rating in the plus-minus
department.
The Raiders celebrate a goal from Maddix McCagherty (#17).
“Obviously, heavy hearts out to “Oz” and his family,” said
Harvey, who has 14 goals, 13 assists and a plus-21 rating in 45 regular season
games in 2025-26 as a 16-year-old rookie with the Raiders. “You never want to
see that.
“He is a big part of our organization and was out with us
every day.”
Harvey said Odnokon will always stand for all the good
values and characteristics of what the Raiders are and mean to the community of
Prince Albert.
“He means a lot to this organization itself,” said Harvey. “It
was nice to do a little tribute video there.
“We’re playing for him this year, and he is definitely in
our hearts.”
Following the pre-game festivities, the Raiders exploded out
to 3-0 a lead. Just 70 seconds into the contest, Raiders 18-year-old defenceman
Benett Kelly slipped a see-eye point shot through a screen to put the hosts up
1-0.
Carsyn Dyck sets up to score a breakaway goal for the Raiders.
The Raiders proceeded to show their skill with 17-year-old
left-winger and local product Connor Howe finishing off a couple of nice setup
passes with goals to give Prince Albert a 3-0 lead at the 14:14 mark of the
first. Howe would finish the contest with a plus-four rating.
With any opening game of a regular season, there were
moments when the sailing wasn’t entirely smooth. Just 45 seconds after Howe’s
second tally, Pats 20-year-old right-winger Keets Fawcett scored on the power
play to trim the Raiders lead to 3-1.
At the 5:29 mark of the second, the Raiders pushed their
edge out to 4-1 with a grittier goal, when 20-year-old centre Maddix McCagherty
backhanded home a rebound in close that came from a long range shot taken by 18-year-old
rookie defenceman Darius Hordal. McCagherty also had two assists and a plus-three
rating on Friday.
PIMS the Parrot meets the Raiders young fans.
Veteran right-winger Jace Egland popped a single home for
the Pats just over four minutes later to trim the Raiders lead to 4-1. Carsyn
Dyck, who is a 20-year-old veteran centre, proceeded to slip home a shot on a
breakaway just over two-and-a-half minutes later for the Raiders to put the
hosts up 5-2. Dyck previously played in the WHL for the Portland Winterhawks
until being released this past off-season allowing him to be added to the
Raiders roster.
Before the second frame closed out, Fawcett netted his
second of the contest and centre Ellis Mieyette, who will turn 20-years-old in
October, tallied with 51.2 seconds remaining in the frame to cut the Raiders
lead to 5-4.
Riley Boychuk jets into the offensive zone on a rush.
The Raiders ensured the Pats wouldn’t spoil the opening game
party in the third. With 4:07 remaining in the frame, Raiders star 18-year-old
centre Ben Harvey burst into the offensive zone on a rush with his team working
on the power play.
Harvey got in close to the Regina net and put a backhanded
pass to import right-winger Alisher Sarkenov at the right post of the Pats
goal. Sarkenov potted the puck into the open side of the cage to push the
Raiders lead out to 6-4. Harvey would add his short-handed empty-net goal with
2:15 remaining on the clock to round out the scoring in the contest.
Maddix McCagherty had two assists to go with his goal.
Star 19-year-old import netminder Michal Orsulak made 20
saves to pick up the win in goal for the Raiders.
Taylor Tabashniuk turned away
10-of-13 shots starting in goal for the Pats and was pulled after the first
period. Drake Mooney turned away 12-of-15 shots playing the rest of the way in
relief and took the loss in goal for Regina.
The Pats were without 16-year-old
star centre Maddox Schultz and veteran defenceman Kolten Bridgeman with undisclosed
injuries.
The only other downer for the Raiders was that 18-year-old
rookie left-winger Cash Lanigan was given a major penalty for kneeing, which
also saw him get kicked out of the contest. The major penalty will
automatically be reviewed by the WHL office for a possible suspension.
The Raiders return to action on Saturday when they travel to
Swift Current to take on the Broncos (6 p.m., InnovationPlex). The Pats get back at it on Friday, September 25, when they travel to Brandon to face the Wheat Kings
(7 p.m. local time, Assiniboine Credit Union Place).
The Raiders salute their faithful at the Art Hauser Centre.
As the Raiders go forward in the season, Howe would like to
see the 2026-27 Raiders create another banner raising ceremony for September of
next year. He admitted it was pretty sweet to see the banners from last season
get raised on Friday night.
“I think it means a lot to us all that hard work from last
year,” said Howe. “I think we’re trying to do that again this year, so I think
it should be a good year.”
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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I can still hear Mark Odnokon’s laugh when I told him Terry
Simpson was selling up his captains and players again saying he didn’t have
anything to do with the success of the Prince Albert Raiders.
During this particular chat, I was talking to Odnokon, who
was often referred to as “Ozzy,” about the 1981-82 Raiders that won the team’s
final SJHL and Centennial Cup national junior A championships before the team
graduated to the major junior ranks the next season. Odnokon, who was a feisty
winger in his playing days, served as an assistant captain with that 1981-82
Raiders team along with Robin Bartel, while Bob Lowes was the captain.
Of course, Simpson is the iconic head coach and general
manager of the Raiders, who has been retired from the game for some time now.
Simpson always tried to deflect credit to his captains and players for the many
successes the team had. He was trying to sell that he really didn’t need to do
anything for a Raiders team that went 57-3 in the regular season and 20-3 in
the post-season in that 1981-82 campaign saying the captains ran the show.
“Stanks,” said Odnokon, giving a pause before going on.
“You’ve been around for a long time.
“You know better than that. Don’t let him (Simpson) get away
with that.”
This column of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click right here.
Autobot leader is heart of the Transformers
franchise
Optimus Prime’s 1986 death in The Transformers: The Movie.
Optimus Prime’s death in 1986 allowed him to live forever.
Optimus Prime is the iconic main hero in the Transformers
franchise as the leader of the Autobots in their war against the Decepticons.
Over the 42 years that franchise has been running since 1984 including numerous
story adaptations, fans and followers of Transformers pretty much all know
about Optimus Prime’s death in The Transformers: The Movie from 1986.
For kids that grew up in the 1980s when The Transformers:
The Movie came out, Optimus Prime’s death was jarring, especially when it came
26 minutes and eight seconds into the film that ran about 90 minutes in length.
Back in 1986, main character deaths in fictional animation,
comics and other stories targeted to children didn’t happen. Even if superheroes
like Superman or Spider-Man had died in comic books or in animation, they were
usually revived or brought back to life sometimes as early as that same comic
book or episode the death happened.
Likely the only experience kids might come across at that
point in time with main character deaths came from the Japanese animated
Robotech series that first aired in North America in March of 1985. In order to
see Robotech, you have had to be in a community that was fortunate enough the
television stations picked up and showed that series in syndication. Also, Robotech
first aired without a toy line until one came out for it a short run in 1986.
For those that didn’t live in the 1980s or grew up in it, it
was the ultimate decade when it came to marketing to children. That was due to
the United States government removing many of the restrictions regarding the
placement of promotional content within children’s television programming. (*A
big thank you to President Ronald Reagan on that front*).
Classic animated Optimus Prime.
The standard practice was for companies to create a toy line
and then have an animated series hit television networks to market the toy
line. Thanks to that marketing strategy, toy lines like Masters of the
Universe, Transformers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were all created and
took off from that decade. Hasbro rebooted the G.I. Joe toy line in 1982, and
it is still carrying on in the present day.
On the girls’ side, Hasbro’s Jem and The Holograms line
based off the female rock bands of that time rose up to rival Mattel’s iconic Barbie
line for about three years. The Jem line was tightly linked to the 1980s music
scene resulting in rare reboot attempts.
The Transformer toy line produced by Hasbro debuted in early
1984 and an animated series to promote the toys hit television screens on
September 17 of that year. It ran two seasons before The Transformers: The
Movie arrived in theatres on August 8, 1986.
Over the first two seasons of the Transformers animated
series, Optimus Prime was established as the main hero. Voice actor Peter
Cullen, who passed away on August 26 of this year, was the first and is
destined to be the definitive voice of Optimus Prime.
When auditioning for the role of Optimus Prime, Cullen
followed the advice of his older brother, Larry Cullen, who served as a Marine
in Vietnam. After mentioning the audition to Larry, the older brother told his
younger brother to not be a Hollywood hero that yells and acts tough if he was
going to play a hero.
The advice was given, “If you are going to be a hero, be a
real hero. Be strong enough to be gentle.”
The result saw Peter Cullen establish Optimus Prime as a
father figure of the Autobots as well as being their leader. Optimus Prime came
across as a character you would envision being the ideal dad that you could be
proud of.
An Optimus Prime from 1984.
While the storytelling of the original Transformers animated
series might look campy, it was good in fleshing out the characters. The
characters – especially those that came out in the 1984 line – had worked out
backgrounds that allowed audiences to identify with them. It was done in a way
that wasn’t seen at that point in time in a series targeted for children.
As a 10-year-old in 1986, I didn’t see The Transformers: The
Movie on the first day it hit theatres. I started hearing from my friends
really quickly on the playground that Optimus Prime died in the movie. The
first thing that ran through my mind was that it wasn’t possible.
On the last day The Transformers: The Movie was in theatres,
my oldest sister took me to see the film. I had already dealt with the deaths
of two uncles at that point in my life, so I had a rudimentary understanding of
what real life death was like.
When the opening credits of the movie ran and I saw a list
of new characters that didn’t appear at that point in the animated series and
Peter Cullen wasn’t put on that list for voicing Optimus Prime, I knew
something was up. I was surprised to see like half my toy collection get blown
away in that movie and was stunned by Optimus Prime’s death scene where he
turned from red to grey due to his injuries from his final battle with infamous
Decepticon leader Megatron.
I actually enjoyed watching the movie in the theatre, and I
was fine in the theatre. I was still stunned that Optimus Prime was killed off in
the movie, and I admit I did have a cry about it before falling asleep when it
was bedtime one night shortly after being at the movie.
A VHS copy of The Transformers: The Movie from 1987.
Little did I know at the time, I found out through the
decades lots of kids took Optimus Prime’s death a lot worse than I did. There
were kids who had to leave the theatre after Optimus Prime’s death scene.
There were kids locking themselves in their bedrooms for
lengthy stretches of time due to the fact Optimus Prime had died. I was unaware
that a grassroots letter writing campaign from fans and parents was flooding the
Hasbro offices to bring Optimus Prime back.
That reaction sharply contrasted the really cold corporate
treatment of Hasbro to the young franchise at the time. The original 1984 line
of Transformers was being discontinued and the new 1986 line was hitting retail
store shelves.
The executives at Hasbro saw The Transformers: The Movie as
the vehicle to basically write off the 1984 toy line and introduce all these
great characters in the 1986 Transformers toy line.
Screenwriter Ron Friedman, who wrote for the Transformers
animated series, advised against killing off Optimus Prime and told Hasbro
executives they would have to bring him back if they went in that direction.
Hasbro executives said they had no plans to bring Optimus Prime back and had
other great plans for the franchise and told Friedman to kill him off in the
movie script that he was writing. Friedman followed orders.
As a result, The Transformers: The Movie was produced with
the budget of US$6-million, and it brought in US$5.9-million in its original
box office run domestically to be considered a bomb. The Transformers: The
Movie didn’t have many folks coming out for a repeat viewing due to the death
of Optimus Prime.
To add to that factor, 1986 was the year Top Gun was in
theatres and folks of all sorts had “the need for speed” coming out to see that
flick in droves. Movies in theatres in 1986 included Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,
Aliens, The Karate Kid: Part II, Stand by Me, Crocodile Dundee, Platoon and
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
A VHS re-release of The Transformers: The Movie from 1995.
As Friedman predicted, Hasbro had to bring Optimus Prime
back permanently, which they did at the conclusion of season three of the
animated series with the two part episode “The Return of Optimus Prime” that
aired in late February of 1987.
In another twist that came out years later, G.I. Joe: The
Movie was in production at the same time and plans were originally set to kill
off one of the main G.I. Joe heroes in Duke. G.I. Joe: The Movie was intended
to come out first, but production delays resulted in The Transformer: The Movie
being finished first and thus hitting theatres.
Due to the reaction to Optimus Prime’s death, the scene of
Duke’s death had been animated, but the story dialogue was changed to announce
Duke went into a coma and it was stated at the end of the film he lived.
The
soundtrack there didn’t go with the footage of Duke taking a fatal wound to the
heart. G.I. Joe: The Movie premiered on direct-to video on August 25, 1987 and
hit television syndication in September of 1987.
Had G.I. Joe: The Movie came out first with Duke’s death as
part of the film, his passing likely wouldn’t have hit the same as Optimus
Prime’s. Duke was written as a typical military fictional hero that yelled, acted
tough and was tough. Plus, it could be argued characters like Snake Eyes, Storm
Shadow, Hawk, Flint, Lady Jaye, Roadblock and Scarlett were as equally or more
popular than Duke.
As the decades have gone on, The Transformers: The Movie developed
a cult following with numerous physical media releases and various returns to
theatres. It is slated to make an upcoming return to theatres for its 40
anniversary running in most North American markets starting on Thursday and
running through five days later to the following Monday.
A DVD of The Transformers: The Movie re-release from 2006.
The 40th anniversary return is being dubbed “The
Apology Tour” by Hasbro for killing off Optimus Prime in 1986. It will be
followed by a 12-minute animated short called Optimus Prime: Awakening. That
will mark the final time Cullen reprises his role as Optimus Prime.
In Saskatoon, it will run at 3:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. on
Thursday at the Scotiabank Theatre. Those will be the only showing at that
location.
The Transformers: The Movie will start a short run at the
Landmark Cinemas on Thursday at 3:45 p.m., 6:50 p.m. and 9:20 p.m. It will show
there once on Friday at 12:50 p.m., and once on both Saturday and Sunday at
10:20 a.m. The Landmark Cinemas run ends on Wednesday, September 23 at 6:50
p.m.
The Transformers: The Movie is endeared by the generation
that first watched it for being a film that treated its audience as being more
mature.
The initial reaction to the death of Optimus Prime causing
Hasbro to bring him back in short order made him an iconic hero. In various new
stories and interpretations of the Transformer franchise over the decades, plots
involving Optimus Prime’s death often via self-sacrifice and later coming back
to life have been featured frequently.
In the early 1990s, even Superman and Spider-Man storylines
of dealing with a more permanent death before coming back to life were rolled
out in the comics.
A 40th anniversary edition of G1 Optimus Prime from 2024.
For most Transformers fans, Cullen’s recent passing means
they will check out the re-release of The Transformers: The Movie in theatres
as part of the way they remember the man who gave Optimus Prime his voice.
Ultimately, Optimus Prime’s death in The Transformers: The
Movie in 1986 and the backlash that followed made him very much different from
any other fictional hero especially because Cullen presented him as the hero
that was strong enough to be gentle.
It made Optimus Prime the iconic fictional character he is,
and he will be remembered by the public at large forever.
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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The Berries raise the Harry Hallis Memorial Trophy as WCBL champs.
The Saskatoon Berries are the boys of spring and summer in “The
Bridge City.”
They made Cairns Field the place to be in Saskatoon, and in
three years, they created the best day ever locally to be at a baseball park.
On Sunday, August 16, the Berries thumped the Sylvan Lake
Gulls 11-1 in Game 2 of the WCBL Championship Series at Cairns Field to sweep
the best-of-three set 2-0. The Berries captured their first league championship
in just their third year of existence in front of a record crowd of 2,579
spectators.
Before that moment, the Berries faithful, known as the “Jam
Fam,” got a trial run about what winning a league title at home might feel
like.
Merek Yeager delivers a pitch for the Berries in the WCBL final.
Just four days earlier on Wednesday, August 12, the Berries downed the
Moose Jaw Miller Express 7-4 to sweep the best-of-three WCBL East Division
Championship Series at Cairns Field. The crowd of 2,467 spectators, which was
the Berries record crowd at that time, were roaring at the final pitch and that
roar amplified after the final out was caught in right field.
The song “Oh, What a Night” that was released in 1963 by The
Four Seasons echoed in the park as the Berries stormed the field in
celebration. It felt like that night was the perfect night, but there was no
certainty that scene would play out again in the WCBL Championship Series
against the Gulls.
AP catcher Aiden Kilshaw was a key player in the Berries post-season run.
In Game 1 of the WCBL final played on Saturday, August 15 at
Gulls Stadium in Sylvan Lake, the Berries pulled out a 4-1 victory. In
Saskatoon, excitement started to immediately build for a potential league
championship win the next night at Cairns Field.
The Berries weren’t going to be denied a series sweep. Game
2 of the WCBL final started with the Berries jumping out to a 3-0 lead after
two innings of play, before the Gulls responded with one run in the top of the
third to cut Saskatoon’s advantage to 3-1.
The host side exploded for five runs in the bottom of the
sixth to surge ahead 8-1 and cruised to victory from that point. The
sixth-inning surge allowed the “Fam Jam” to soak in and enjoy the championship
victory.
The Berries celebrate scoring two runs in Game 2 of the WCBL final.
A great Saskatchewan story played out on the mound in that
WCBL title clinching game. Merek Yeager, who is a 19-year-old from Muenster,
Saskatchewan, got the start on the hill for Saskatoon. The right-handed hurler
picked up the win striking out four batters and scattering seven hits and a
walk over six innings of work.
Brooks Jones, who is a left-handed pitcher from Lawrence,
Kansas, struck out five batters in holding the Gulls scoreless in the seventh
and eighth innings.
Howetown product Colin Plain, who has been with the Berries
for all three seasons of their existence, got the call to close out the night
in the ninth inning. The right-handed hurler struck out three out of the four
batters he faced, while giving up a double in the mix to start the celebration in
earnest.
Ethan Murdoch drives a hit for the Berries in the WCBL final.
At the plate, first baseman Josh Henson nailed a three-run
homer to start the surge in the sixth inning. Henson’s round-tripper put the
Berries up 6-1 and turned the feeling of what could be a close game into a
fairly secure comfort belief that the great night was truly on for the
Saskatoon side.
As an extra bonus, catcher Aiden Kilshaw, who was originally
from Swift Current and moved to Saskatoon, nailed a solo shot in the seventh
inning to give the Berries an 8-1 advantage at that point in time. Kilshaw, who
will turn 18-years-old on September 4, was an associate player who joined the
Berries on a full-time basis after his final season concluded in late July with
the Saskatoon Cubs 18U AAA team.
One year earlier, Kilshaw helped the Cubs win their seventh
Saskatchewan Premier Baseball League championship. With the Berries in the 2026
post-season, Kilshaw went 9-for-27 at the plate for a .333 batting average, two
home runs and 10 RBI.
Gael Salinas became a fan favourite with the Berries.
Right-handed relief pitcher Wesley Shackelford, who is from
Belleville, Texas, was named the MVP of the WCBL playoffs. In four games of
work, Shackelford threw nine scoreless innings striking out 14 batters, while
giving up one hit and one walk.
He picked up the pitching win in the Berries 7-3 victory
over the Regina Red Sox in Game 1 of a WCBL semifinal series on Friday, August
7 at Cairns Field. Shackelford earned the save in the Berries 5-3 win over the
Red Sox in a series-deciding Game 3 just two nights later.
Following that 2-1 series victory over the Red Sox, Shackelford
came in to get the save in the WCBL East Division Series clinching Game 2 win over
the Miller Express. He was on the hill for the Berries picking up the save in
their Game 1 victory of the WCBL final over the Gulls in Sylvan Lake.
The Berries begin celebrating their WCBL championship win.
The WCBL championship win closed out the playing career for
Berries right-fielder and Swift Current, Sask., product Ethan Murdoch. He was the first member of the Berries to lift the Harry Hallis Memorial Trophy after the squad became WCBL champions.
It
allowed second baseman, fan favourite and Guanajuato, Mexico, product Gael
Salinas cap a memorable first series with the Berries, which saw him represent
the club in the WCBL’s All-Star Weekend which Saskatoon hosted on July 18 and
19.
Part of the “Fam Jam” at Cairns Field cheers on the Berries.
The Berries win helped further build the WCBL legend of the
team’s head coach in Joe Carnahan. Officially hired by the Berries on July 5,
2023, Carnahan was part of six WCBL championship winners in Swift Current.
He was a player for three title wins in 2001, 2005 and 2006,
and he was the team’s head coach for championship victories in 2010, 2016 and
2017. Carnahan stepped down as the head coach and general manager of the Swift
Current franchise on September 21, 2020.
With Carnahan as head coach, the Berries got through their
growing pains quickly. In their inaugural 2024 campaign, the Berries finished
sixth overall in the 12-team circuit with a 31-26 record and fell in a
series-deciding Game 3 to the Miller Express in the East Division Championship
Series.
The Berries relish lifting the Harry Hallis Memorial Trophy.
In 2025, the Berries topped the league’s overall standings
with a 46-9 mark, and their win total was a WCBL record for most wins in one
regular season. They again fell in a series-deciding Game 3 in the East
Division Championship Series this time to the Red Sox, who advanced on to claim
the WCBL title.
This past season, the Berries finished fourth overall in the
WCBL with a 38-18 mark. They rolled in the post-season posting a 6-1 record
that included finishing with a five-game winning streak. They were 4-0 at home
and 2-1 on the road.
Steve Hildebrand, left, and Joe Carnahan enjoy their WCBL title win.
Carnahan was named the WCBL coach of the year for a fifth
time following the 2025 campaign. On July 11, Carnahan got to see one his
Berries grads in Carnduff, Saskatchewan, product Carter Beck, who played
centrefield, be selected in the first round and 26th overall by the
Atlanta Braves in the MLB Draft. Beck became the highest ever Saskatchewan born
player to be picked in the MLB Draft.
Of course, Berries president Steve Hildebrand played a big
role in bringing Carnahan to Saskatoon and creating a culture that allowed
Carnahan and the rest of the organization to realize all this remarkable early
success. They all helped create a game day atmosphere making Cairns Field a field
of dreams with various promotions and concessions that contained various items that
contained Saskatoon Berries.
It was fitting that following the WCBL title win on August
16 that a large number of the families and billet families of the Berries
players, coaches and staffers got to take part in the championship celebrations
on the Cairns Field turf. It started with a big fireworks show and ran long
into the night.
The Berries WCBL title win will be a forever memory.
Ultimately, the WCBL championship win was one that everyone
with the Berries organization was a part of resulting in a moment that will
always be a cherished and joyful memory for the rest of their lives.
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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Zaden Taylor already has a moment that ensures he will
forever be part of the Saskatoon Hilltops storied lore.
During last year’s CJFL Championship Game played on November
9 at Saskatoon Minor Football Field, Hilltops kicker Ryden Gratton booted a
37-yard field goal with 28.6 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to put the
host Saskatoon side up 21-18 over the Okanagan Sun. On the ensuing Sun drive,
Taylor, who has built a playmaking reputation at outside linebacker,
intercepted Sun quarterback Liam Kroeger to seal the 21-18 victory for the
Hilltops and allow them to raise the Canadian Bowl winning their 24th
CJFL title.
“I just remember getting
swarmed by my teammates and that amazing feeling,” said Taylor. “To have
something that incredible happen and a memory like that happen and get to
celebrate with my teammates literally right beside me as it happened, it was
pretty surreal.
“It is hard not to
overplay it in my head.”
When the Sun got the ball
at that point in the game, they needed to gain yards in chunks in order to get
in range for a game tying field goal. Taylor remembers things were happening at
a frantic pace on the play when the opportunity presented itself for him to
make his interception that closed out victory.
“That one I believe it was more of a broken play, because I
remember covering into the like hook/curl a little deeper,” said Taylor, who
stands 6-feet and weighs 215 pounds. “I remember feeling the receiver that was
trying to like hook around me was completely covered.
“I saw it was their main receiver. He kind of cut on it. It
looked to be like he was either coming from an out or he skied across the
field, and I saw (Liam) Kroeger’s eyes just all over him.
“I just break on the ball and try to make a play on it.”
Legendary Hilltops head coach Tom Sargeant has seen many
team members over the decades make countless big plays dating back to when he
first joined the club as a receiver way back in 1983. With Taylor’s
game-clinching interception occurring right in front of the Hilltops bench,
Sargeant said that moment was forever burned into his memory.
“It sealed the victory to our 24th national
championship,” said Sargeant, who has guided the Hilltops to 15 CJFL title wins
as head coach to go along with two victories as a assistant coach and his first
coming in 1985 as a player. “I’ll never forget that moment when he made that
play and ran over and gave me the football.
“Right then and there, we knew we were taking these to
celebrate a great team victory. Zaden’s been a kid that since he walked in on the
first day he has been very important to us. He started as a defensive back, and
then because of his football IQ and his playmaking ability and toughness, we
moved him to linebacker to the “sam” position.
“He has been patrolling that greatly for the last couple of
years and done a tremendous job. He is a team captain now, and as I said, he is
very important to our defensive success and team success.”
Taylor joined the Hilltops for their 12-0 CJFL championship
season in 2023 from the Delisle Composite High School Rebels nine-a-side
football program. At that time, he was the rookie looking to capitalize on
every repetition that came his way.
Zaden Taylor unloads a big hit on a Regina Thunder receiver last season.
This season, Taylor is now a grizzled fourth-year veteran
and a defensive captain. The 21-year-old is living the days he envisioned
getting here when he was a rookie.
“It is pretty cool to be on the other end of it,” said
Taylor, who had 25 total tackles, one quarterback sack and four pass knockdowns
in the Hilltops eight regular season games in 2025. “I remember as a rookie
watching those older guys play hoping I’d be there one day.
“Now that I’m here, it is as cool as I thought it would be.
To start for a team as prestigious as the Hilltops is pretty surreal, and it is
awesome.”
Taylor’s football journey began when he was a youngster
playing in Saskatoon Minor Football’s flag program, when his family lived in
Saskatoon. He got a taste of tackle football playing in the Kinsmen Football
League.
By the time Taylor entered high school, his family had moved
out to Asquith, which is a town located about 55 kilometres straight west of
Saskatoon. While going to Lord Asquith School, Taylor was allowed to play with
the Rebels due to the fact his school didn’t have a tackle football program.
As a result, Taylor was traveling by car 30 minutes from
Asquith to Delisle almost daily for football practices and games during the
high school season. During his high school days, Taylor said he found at that
time he really enjoyed the physicality of the game.
“I played hockey a lot as a kid, and I was always a big
physical player,” said Taylor, who played linebacker and a little bit of
running back for the Rebels. “Football kind of brings more physicality into a
sport.
“I just kind of enjoyed it from there. Hitting heads is
fun.”
The Rebels have built their own strong history having four
provincial titles starting in 2002. With that squad, Taylor gained an
experience of football being family.
“The camaraderie of that team is really fun,” said Taylor.
“You get to know the guys a lot, because we did a lot of summer practices
together – just like captains-led practices and all that.
“It was a winning culture out there. There was a lot of
winning to do out there and a lot of fun to have after the wins.”
When his high school days concluded, Taylor’s former Rebels
teammate in current Hilltops star running back Corbin Ebben just finished his
first season with the venerable CJFL club. Taylor’s then current Rebels
teammate in offensive lineman Tobin Kirkness was going to Hilltops winter
workouts, so defensive standout decided to give that experience a chance.
Zaden Taylor has built a playmaking reputation at outside linebacker.
“I had nothing else going on after high school,” said Taylor,
who was teammates with Kirkness on the Hilltops in 2023 and 2024. “I said, “Why
not, and I’ll give it a try.”
“It turns out I really enjoyed it even further being around
guys that were around my skill level to way better than me. It was a lot of fun
to learn from those guys.”
When Taylor joined the Hilltops, Sargeant said it was
noticeable how much the Rebels grad was improving each week, each month and
ultimately each year. The Hilltops coaches were devising ways to get Taylor
more involved on the defensive side of the game.
“He (Taylor) has got great instincts,” said Sargeant.
“Sometimes, we put him on a blitz opportunity to impact the game.
“He is one of those playmakers that knows how to get to the
ball, and when he gets there, he does something real productive. He is a
high-end player, and we’re very fortunate that he is a big part of our success
game in and game out.”
Now that Taylor is in his fourth year, Sargeant said the
coaches are looking forward to how the skilled linebacker will run with the
role of being a team leader.
“Well number one, we’re here to defend a national
championship,” said Sargeant. “We’re here to get the 25th national
championship for our tradition, for our fifth-year players and for the city of
Saskatoon.
“We’re embracing everything that comes our way. We know it
is not going to be easy. We know the spotlight is on us, so we’ve got to take
it on.
“I need my best players, my leaders, people like Zaden,
players like Zaden, they’ve got to be the best players and the best leaders. If
we do that, then we’ve got a chance to be playing in the biggest, best games,
and that is what it is all about.”
Taylor said a big turning point last season came when the
Hilltops fell in their regular season opener 31-11 to the Rifles in Winnipeg on
August 10, 2025 at Maple Grove Rugby Park. He said the veterans led by example
from that point onwards to winning the CJFL title.
“It was a tough start to the season,” said Taylor. “We lose
to Winnipeg.
“We had I think our third string quarterback in at the time.
We didn’t know what was going to happen going into that game, but I do believe
we were overconfident in it anyway. From there, the coaches really got on us,
and I think that was the biggest momentum changer.
“When you see all the older guys working as hard as they are
after a loss like that, it just motivates the entire team to get better, and
that is just exactly what happened.”
Taylor said he wants to carry on what he learned from his
former veteran teammates who have graduated from the historic squad. When his
Hilltops days wrap up, Taylor would like to continue playing the sport, but for
now, he wants to fully live in the moment playing for the blue and gold.
Zaden Taylor (#8) enjoys getting a sack last season.
“If an opportunity arises after my fifth year, I’d
definitely give it a lot of consideration,” said Taylor. “For right now, the
focus is finishing my years off here with the Hilltops and hopefully getting
two more championships.”
This piece first appeared in the Saskatoon Hilltops game program on August 23, 2026.
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