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| Dave Manson addresses the Raiders during a timeout last season. |
The 52-year-old Prince Albert product was a tough as nails
defenceman for his hometown WHL team from 1982 to 1986. He played a big part in
helping the Raiders win the WHL title and the Memorial Cup in 1985.
Manson was an assistant coach this season with the AHL’s
Bakersfield Condors, who are a farm team for the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers.
Before joining the Condors, Manson was an associate coach
with the Raiders from 2012 to 2018. He coached a number of players on the
current Raiders club.
The current Raiders won the WHL title for the second time in franchise history and are playing through the Memorial Cup tournament going on now in Halifax, N.S.
The current Raiders won the WHL title for the second time in franchise history and are playing through the Memorial Cup tournament going on now in Halifax, N.S.
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| Captain Brayden Pachal earned praise as a leader from Dave Manson. |
Manson loves seeing how tightly knit the current Raiders
have become as a team over the years.
“They are a team, and the team accomplishes more than
individuals,” said Manson. “They have great leaders in (captain) Brayden Pachal
and Parker Kelly.
“They have all the pieces. They’ve done a good job of adding
pieces to the puzzle. Every piece has kind of fit this year, so it has been
great to see and great to watch when I can.
“It is a big credit to coach (Marc) Habscheid and to Hunter
(Curtis Hunt). Hopefully, they can get her done here now.”
Manson saw Habscheid join the Raiders part way through the 2014-15 season as head coach and saw Hunt come on board as general manager before the start of the 2015-16 campaign.
Manson saw Habscheid join the Raiders part way through the 2014-15 season as head coach and saw Hunt come on board as general manager before the start of the 2015-16 campaign.
Manson and Hunt were teammates on the Raiders 1985 Memorial
Cup winner.
Habscheid was named the WHL’s coach of the year and Hunt
earned honours as the WHL’s executive of the year for their work in helping the
Raiders post the circuit’s best regular season record at 54-10-2-2.
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| Parker Kelly received props for his leadership from Dave Manson. |
Manson said the honours for both were well deserved. He said
Habscheid did what Raiders legendary head coach and general manager Terry
Simpson once did with the team.
Simpson guided the Raiders to four Centennial Cup
championships as junior A national champions and to the Memorial Cup title
after the Raiders joined the major junior ranks in 1982.
“Habby (Habscheid) has done a heck of a job,” said Manson.
“In his tenure as head coach, he has slowly improved that team every year, and
that is a credit to him.
“It is the same as what (Terry) Simpson was like back in the
day. You got a little better every day, and that is what you want to see. You
want to see that improvement.”
Manson has tracked the Raiders whenever he has had a chance.
When the Raiders won Game 7 of the WHL final 3-2 in overtime on May 13 in
Prince Albert, Manson was behind the Condors bench as they were eliminated by
the host San Diego Gulls 6-2 in Game 6 of a second round AHL playoff series.
After the May 13 games for both the Condors and the Raiders
were finished, Manson was able to watch video of overage centre Dante Hannoun
scoring the Game 7 overtime winner for the Raiders.
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| Dave Manson was happy Raiders fans got to see their team’s run up close. |
“I’m very proud,” said Manson. “I’ve always been very proud
of the Raider organization.
“They don’t have to win a championship to make me proud, but
the fact that they are having the success that they are having this year just
puts a smile on my face. You play a small part in it, but a credit to the
coaching staff they have now. They’ve done a great job keeping that group
focused.
“Hopefully now, they can finish this journey that they
started.”
Mooseheads improve to 2-0 at Memorial Cup
On Sunday
before 10,036 spectators at the Scotiabank Centre, the Mooseheads
outlasted the OHL champion Guelph Storm 4-2 in a hotly contested round robin
game.
With the win, the Mooseheads, who lost the QMJHL final to
the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, improved to 2-0 at the Memorial Cup. The Mooseheads
have locked up a berth to at least Friday’s semifinal contest of the event’s
playoff round.
The Storm fell to 1-1 at the event with the setback.
At the 5:10 mark of the first period, Mooseheads captain
Antoine Morand knocked home a setup pass from linemate Jocktan Chainey to give
the hosts a 1-0 lead.
With 49.8 seconds remaining in the opening frame, Storm
defenceman Sean Durzi drove a point shot home to the top right corner of the
Halifax goal to even things up at 1-1.
Halifax went ahead 2-1 at the 6:48 mark of the second on a
highlight reel short-handed goal from Raphael Lavoie. Lavoie jetted into the
Guelph zone, split two Storm defencemen and roofed home a shot to the top left
corner of the Guelph net to give his side the lead.
The Mooseheads extended their advantage to 3-1 at the 10:34
mark of the second, when left-winger Maxim Trepanier knocked home a loose puck
in the crease of the Guelph goal.
The Storm didn’t go away. Just 67 seconds into the third and
working on a power play, Durzi slipped home a point shot through a screen for
his second goal of contest to cut the Mooseheads edge to 3-2.
The Mooseheads rounded out the scoring at the 7:20 mark of
the third, when a shot by overage centre Samuel Asselin bounced up and over
Storm netminder Anthony Popovich into the Guelph goal.
Alexis Gravel made 33 saves to pick up the win in net for
the Mooseheads. Popovich turned away 38 shots to take the setback in net for
the Storm.
Halifax finished first in the QMJHL’s Eastern Conference in
the regular season with a 49-15-2-2 mark and was rated eighth in the final CHL
Top 10 rankings.
The Storm
finished eighth overall in the OHL’s regular season with a 40-18-6-4 mark.
The Memorial Cup continues on Monday when the WHL champion
Prince Albert Raiders face the QMJHL champion Huskies (5 p.m. Saskatchewan
time, Sportsnet).
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comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them
to stankssports@gmail.com.
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