Saturday 29 May 2021

Badgers sudden victory NCAA title will always be special for Shirley sisters

Sophie, centre, and Grace Shirley, right, after a 2015 league title win.
Sisters Sophie and Grace Shirley will always be fond of the day they experienced sudden victory in championship style.

On March 20, 2021, the Shirley sisters were playing for the University of Wisconsin Badgers women’s hockey team in the NCAA title game against the Northeastern University Huskies in the NCAA Division I title game at the Erie Insurance Arena in Erie, Pennsylvania.

The two sides went to overtime locked in a 1-1 draw and the deciding goal was seemingly scored out of nowhere.

At the 3:16 mark of the extra session, Badgers superstar left-winger Daryl Watts took the puck down behind the Northeastern goal. From behind the net, Watts, who is a Toronto, Ont., product, proceeded to bank the puck off a Huskies defender and netminder Aerin Frankel into the Northeastern goal.

The Huskies roster included defender and captain Brooke Hobson, who is an alumna of the Prince Albert Northern Bears female under-18 AAA hockey team.

The Shirley sisters, who are both forwards with the Badgers, felt instant euphoria. They later pieced together what happened on the winning goal.

“When the puck went in, I had just come off of my shift,” said Sophie, who was in her third season with the Badgers. “Daryl’s line was on next.

Sophie Shirley in action with the Stars in 2014-15.
“I remember that I basically sat down. I was just trying to catch my breath, because I had just been out on a shift. Basically, I sat down.

“I couldn’t really see, because when you sit down on the bench, all my teammates in front of me were standing up watching the play. Just like that, everyone just started celebrating, and we won the game. We had won the national championship.”

“Right when it happened I remember not even really looking,” said Grace, who was in her second season with the Badgers. “I think she (Watts) was trying to get it to the slot, so I didn’t even see it go in.

“Everybody on the bench just jumped. There was definitely a lot of screaming. I think me and one of my teammates Dara (Greig), as soon as it happened we just like looked at each other and just froze for like a second.

“Everybody just started jumping over, and we got over. That is all I can really remember. It was pretty exciting.”

The two Saskatoon products and alums of the Saskatoon Stars female under-18 AAA hockey team got to share in a national championship in a season like no other.

The Badgers won the NCAA crown in Sophie’s rookie year with the team in 2018-19. They were looking to repeat as NCAA champions the next season and were set to host an NCAA championship tournament quarter-final contest before the remainder of the tournament was called off on March 12, 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that had gripped the world.

Grace Shirley in action for the Stars in 2015-16.
The Shirley sisters returned home to Saskatoon to finish their academic courses online. They returned to Madison, Wisconsin, in August of 2020 to rejoin the Badgers for a campaign there wasn’t any certainty it would be played to a conclusion.

The Badgers regular season opened on Nov. 27, 2020 with a 3-2 overtime loss in Columbus, Ohio, to the Ohio State University Buckeyes. After blanking the Buckeyes 5-0 the next night, the Badgers had their season put on hold as a COVID-19 outbreak saw six players from the team test positive for the virus.

All of the Badgers six games in December of 2020 were postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Badgers resumed their season in early January and hit high gear and never looked back finishing the campaign with a 17-3-1 overall record. They played 20 games fewer than when they won their last non-COVID NCAA title in 2018-19.

Sophie posted 12 goals, 13 assists and a plus-18 rating in the plus-minus department in the Badgers 21 overall games. In 98 overall career games with the Badgers, Sophie has 61 goals and 63 assists for a total of 124 points to go with a plus-90 rating.

As a third-year player, Sophie, who is 21-years-old, focused a little more on trying to set a good example for the younger members of the team.

“For me, it was making sure that I am doing everything right on the ice just being able to help the team in any way,” said Sophie, who stands 5-foot-9. “It was also just kind of maturing a little bit and kind of fitting into that leadership role a little bit off the ice as well as on the ice too.

Sophie Shirley (#8) cuts up ice on a rush for the Stars in 2014-15.
“I think it was a different year for me, and I think it was one that I really enjoyed. I really enjoyed being that older player and being able to kind of lead the way by example, but also within the locker room. I enjoyed the year.

“Personally, I thought it was a pretty good year for me. I think that I learned a lot as well too, so yeah, it was a good year.”

Grace had two goals, one assist and a plus-two rating skating in all of the Badgers 21 contests. In 57 overall career games with the Badgers, the 19-year-old has three goals and five assists for eight points to go with plus-12 rating.

She was happy with her season personally and how she was able to develop playing on a Badgers team that has a huge amount of depth. A number of the Badgers players are in line to have future opportunities to play in either Canada’s or the United State’s national team system.

“You have to really earn your ice,” said Grace, who stands 5-foot-7. “I’m trying to work my way up.

“I definitely feel like maybe like I’m not getting as much ice time as I’m used to. I’m still definitely developing as a player and even just getting to practice with and battle with some of these future Olympians, it helps just kind of knowing that I am getting better and developing. I’m amongst the best.

“It is nice knowing that they are kind of pushing me to get better too.”

Both players have fond memories of their time with the Stars.

Grace Shirley jets into the offensive zone for the Stars in 2017-18.
Sophie suited up in three seasons for the Stars from 2012 to 2015 appearing in 58 regular season games collecting 41 goals and 27 assists for 68 points. She helped the Stars win their first SFU18AAAHL title and win a bronze medal at the Esso Cup female under-18 AAA national championship tournament in the 2014-15 campaign.

“When I think back to my high school days here back at home being at home, those were some of the best times of my life,” said Sophie. “Some of my friends that I still have today are from playing on the Stars and being able to play for that program.

“Ultimately, I think that I grew a lot. I got better while playing with the Stars. I think it kind of developed me into the player and the person that I am today.

“I’m always thankful for what that program has done for me. There were a lot of fun times that I had playing for the Saskatoon Stars. I miss it.”

Grace suited up in five seasons for the Stars from 2014 to 2019 appearing in 107 regular season games collecting 97 goals and 69 assists for 166 points. She was an associate player call up on the 2014-15 SFMU18AAAHL championship winning team.

Grace helped the Stars win three more SFMU18AAAHL title in 2016, 2018 and 2019 and appear at the Esso Cup tournament in each of those years. The Stars made it to the Esso Cup title game in 2018 falling to the Alberta based St. Albert Slash 2-1.

Sophie Shirley has fond memories playing for the Stars.
“It was big part of my life,” said Grace. “That is where I developed to be at this level, so I definitely reflect on it a lot.

“It was definitely a huge part of my life before coming here. There are lots of differences I’d say, but just in terms of some of the lessons that I’ve learned along the way, it is definitely still applicable today.”

The Shirley sisters are back in Saskatoon visiting family and friends. They are hoping to rejoin the Badgers for skating and training sessions in the middle of June.

Due to the fact the NCAA ruled that players who took part in the 2020-21 campaign would not lose any eligibility due to the uncertainties regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, Sophie can play two more seasons with the Badgers and Grace can play three more campaigns.

While they have a good chance of piling up a number of more highlights in their respective playing careers, the Shirley sisters will never forget the sudden victory NCAA title win with the Badgers.

“It was a pretty crazy feeling,” said Sophie. “It was a pretty crazy bounce, a positive bounce behind the net there with Daryl kind of bouncing into the net.

“It happens just like that, and all of a sudden, we were national champions, so it was pretty cool.”

Grace Shirley was the Stars captain in 2018-19.
“There was so much adversity, and I know every team experiences it,” said Grace. “To kind of come out on the higher end of that and to say that we won in such a crazy year, I think it is pretty special.”

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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Thursday 27 May 2021

“Celebrate good times, come on” – Outdoor sports get go ahead in Saskatchewan

Ethan Campbell fires in a pitch for the Sask Five Giants in 2020.
Outdoor door sporting groups in Saskatchewan got to pop the champagne corks, because they found out they are going to play.

On Tuesday, the Government of Saskatchewan announced public health orders around outdoor sporting events will be eased as part of Step One of the province’s Re-Opening Roadmap, which is set to commence this coming Sunday.

Originally, outdoor sports were part of Step Two of the Re-Opening Roadmap. The easing of measures for indoor sports remains in Step Two of the Re-Opening Roadmap.

The current public health orders were brought in to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

A Government of Saskatchewan release that was issued on Tuesday stated the change was made with regards to outdoor sports due to the lower risk of transmission of COVID-19 in outdoor settings along with how well the vaccination effort for COVID-19 has progressed in the province.

Starting on Sunday, the Government of Saskatchewan said competition and game play for outdoor sports can proceed as long as competition meets a number of requirements. The requirements are similar to when outdoor sporting events were conducted in Saskatchewan from July through to November of 2020.

Participants may not compete if they are feeling unwell.

Players and coaches are encouraged to screen for COVID-19 symptoms prior to arriving to practice or play. The Government of Saskatchewan encourages the use of its self-assessment tool for COVID-19, which can be found by clicking right here.

Jordan Kulbida fires a pitch for the Saskatoon G Force in 2020.
League play is allowed, but tournaments are not permitted.

There is no interprovincial travel. Teams that compete in interprovincial leagues need to contact the Government of Saskatchewan’s Business Response Team before beginning play.

Capacity must comply with public health orders for public outdoor gatherings for each playing surface or game area. Public outdoor gatherings are set to expand to a limit of 150 people on May 30.

Common areas, such as those where there are multiple playing surfaces, must be in compliance with gathering limits in public health orders.

Individual and protective equipment should not be shared. When equipment is shared like helmets or bats, cleaning and disinfecting must occur between each use.

Commonly touched equipment used for game play like game balls in football must be routinely replaced or disinfected during the course of practice or play.

Coaches, officials and players who are not on the field are not required to wear masks outdoors under the public health orders.

There is to be no hand shaking or high-fives.

Spectators are not required to wear masks outdoors. Spectators must remain in designated areas, and spectators not from the same household should maintain two metres of physical distancing.

Hand sanitizer approved by Health Canada or soap and hand washing water stations should be available to participants and spectators.

Action from the Saskatchewan Premier Baseball League in 2020.
There is to be no sharing of water bottles.

Public washrooms, when available, are to be cleaned and disinfected regularly.

Contact information of coaches, officials, and player should be recorded by the home team and maintained in order to assist with contact tracing for 30 days in the case of a confirmed COVID-19 case.

As an overall observation over the last 15 months, outdoor sports were able to be held in Saskatchewan with a lot less disruptions compared to indoor sports.

Even when it came to contact sports like tackle football, outdoor sports for the most part played out according to schedule.

Indoor sports seemed to have a bigger problem when it came to dealing with COVID-19 outbreaks. That likely had a lot to do with the fact most minor hockey rinks in Saskatchewan have ventilation that is similar to the decommissioned ancient Rutherford Rink, which is on the University of Saskatchewan campus.

The glass system that rings on top of the board system in hockey rinks helps trap air molecules on the ice surface.

A number of gymnasiums and indoor sports facilities are old and have poor ventilation too.

Most indoor sports facilities that have been built in Saskatchewan in the past 15 years actually do have much better ventilation, which helps prevent the spread of COVID-19.

When indoor sports get going, they might provide the true test of how well the vaccination effort for COVID-19 has worked.

Action from the Kinsmen Football League in 2020.
Due to how well the outdoor sports seasons went in Saskatchewan in 2020, it makes sense to get them going first. In golf, Saskatchewan was able to crown provincial champions in 2020.

The Sask Five Giants were able to take the Under-18 AAA Saskatchewan Premier Baseball League championship last year too.

Pretty much everyone involved with outdoor sports in Saskatchewan has to be over the moon happy about Tuesday’s announcement.

Here is hoping the upcoming season that will hit outdoor surfaces across Saskatchewan goes well for all.

Racist comments directed to Bear just sad, other notes

The aftermath of the Edmonton Oilers elimination from the NHL playoffs shows how much work needs to be done to counter the idiots in society.

On Monday night or Tuesday morning depending on where you live in Canada, the Oilers dropped a 4-3 triple overtime heartbreaker to the Jets in Winnipeg in Game 4 of a first round NHL playoff series. Kyle Connor netted the winner in marathon match for the Jets.

With the loss, the Oilers were swept in the best-of-seven series 4-0 and eliminated from the NHL playoffs.

Following that loss, some moronic supposed supporters of the Oilers sent racist comments and messages over social media to Oilers defenceman Ethan Bear. Bear, who is of Cree decent, is from the Ochapowace First Nation in Saskatchewan.

Bear’s girlfriend, Lenasia Ned, brought the comments to light with a social media post of her own on Tuesday. The post erupted into an outpouring of support for Bear.

During a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Oilers general manager Ken Holland condemned the behaviour of those who sent the racist comments to Bear.

On Wednesday evening, Bear and Ned put out a message on Oilers social media lines speaking out against the racism they encountered, while also thanking the overflowing messages of support they’ve received.

Ethan Bear raises the Ed Chynoweth Cup as a WHL champ in 2017.
It is sad and unfortunate that this still happens in society. It shows there is still a long way to go in the journey to combat racism.

Bear has played two full seasons and one partial campaign with the Oilers. The 23-year-old has been a great ambassador for the game and role model.

Before joining the Oilers, Bear played one game as a 15-year-old call up and four full seasons with the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds. In his storied career with the Thunderbirds, Bear appeared in 264 regular season games posting 66 goals, 126 assists and plus-50 rating in the plus-minus department.

He played a key part in helping the Thunderbirds win the WHL championship in his final season in the major junior ranks in 2016-17, while also being named the WHL’s top defenceman.

During his time in the WHL, it was common for a huge contingent of people from the Ochapowace First Nation follow Bear around the WHL circuit. You could easily spot Bear’s supporters wearing Thunderbirds jerseys with Bear’s name and #25 adorned on the sweater.

While the racism Bear and Ned encountered over the past couple of days was disappointing, it was uplifting to see the support they’ve received. People from all walks of life have rallied around the rearguard and his girlfriend.

With that noted, racism is still a problem in society. Here is hoping we all strive to try and be more responsible on that front.

  • On Tuesday, the Kamloops Blazers announced general manager Matt Bardsley has resigned from the hockey club for personal reasons. Bardsley, who grew up in San Jose, Calif., said in the release that he and his wife and their children have been unable to see their family, who live in the United States, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision to leave the Blazers is a family move. Bardsley, who is 50-years-old, became the Blazers general manager on June 1, 2018. The Blazers have posted an 87-54-9-3 regular season record in three seasons with Bardsley as general manager. The Blazers finished in the B.C. Division in each of the past two seasons. Bardsley was the executive of the year for the Western Conference in 2019-20.
  • On Tuesday in his Taking Note blog, Gregg Drinnan reported Brandon Wheat Kings director of business operations and sales and sponsorship Rick Dillabough has retired. Dillabough has been with the Wheat Kings since 1989 and served in various capacities with the team over the years handling the bulk of the communications and media relations duties. He was one of the hardest working office staffers on the circuit and arguably the most respected and well-liked. Dillabough will be missed a tonne on the WHL circuit, and all those who know him hope he enjoys the next stage of his life.
  • On Wednesday, the Calgary Hitmen announced Dallas Thompson would not be returning as the team’s director of player personnel next season. Thompson had been with the Hitmen for six years.
  • Tickets are on sale for the May 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. The draw date will be May 31. Tickets can be purchased by clicking right here, and purchasers must be in Saskatchewan in order to buy tickets.
  • Recently, Donna Spencer of The Canadian Press typed out a story that officials from the National Women’s Hockey League and the Professional Women’s Hockey Players’ Association have kept the lines of communication open with each other. With that said, there didn’t seem to be any new enlightenments with regards to professional women’s hockey. The NWHL’s six teams attempted to play a season in a bubble environment in Lake Placid, New York, from Jan. 23 to Feb. 5, but the loose bubble failed as COVID-19 infiltrated teams. The NWHL completed a playoff round March 26 and 27 in Boston, Massachusetts, where the Boston Pride downed the Minnesota Whitecaps 4-3 in the Isobel Cup championship game. The PWHPA is holding a Secret Dream Gap Tour tournament at the moment in Calgary, which started Monday and runs through to this coming Sunday. Spencer’s story about the NWHL interacting with the PWHPA can be found by clicking right here.
  • On Wednesday, Hockey Canada announced its provincial and territorial BFL Female Coach of the Year award winner. In Saskatchewan, Brandy West-McMaster of Regina was the high performance award winner, and Stephanie Ferguson of Saskatoon was the community coach winner.

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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Monday 24 May 2021

Kyle’s competitive spirit could be seen early on

Soccer star named to Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame

Kaylyn Kyle, left, at an autograph session in June of 2017.
Even as she neared her 16th birthday, Kaylyn Kyle was the player to watch.

Way before she suited up for Canada’s senior national women’s soccer team as a midfielder helping them win a bronze medal at the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London, England, Kyle was in Prince Albert, Sask., in the summer of 2004.

Prince Albert was hosting Soccer Canada’s all-star nationals in the girls’ under-14 and under-16 age categories. Each of Canada’s 10 provinces fielded an all-star team in each of those age categories at that tournament, and a national title was up for grabs in each age category.

Kyle was playing midfield for Saskatchewan’s under-16 team, and a large number of officials from Canada Soccer were at this event to scout players. To be accurate, pretty much all of them were in Prince Albert to see Kyle play.

I covered that competition for the Prince Albert Daily Herald and for a weekly segment I did for Prince Albert’s CTV station.

I went into this event thinking that Prince Albert product Elizabeth Hudon was going to get to turn heads on a national stage in her hometown. She was an elite goal scorer and was the ace striker at age 15 for Saskatchewan’s under-16 team.

Kaylyn Kyle demonstrates a drill at her soccer camp in 2015.
When I started talking to Canada Soccer officials, they all said the player to watch was Kyle.

The Saskatoon product didn’t disappoint, when games hit the pitch. Kyle was by far the best player at that event.

Watching her play in that competition had to be what it was like to watch Sidney Crosby play midget AAA hockey or Connor Bedard play and star for the Regina Pats at age 15 this past season in the WHL.

In the final preliminary round game for Saskatchewan’s under-16 team, they needed to beat Alberta to finish first in their pool and advance to a semifinal contest. Saskatchewan hadn’t experienced a whole lot of success at this event, so this contest against Alberta was a big thing.

While soccer is a team game, confidence was high that the Saskatchewan side could win that contest and advance due to the fact Kyle was playing on the squad.

Just five minutes into that clash with Alberta, Kyle was given a red card for a slide tackle against an Alberta player. A couple of Canada Soccer officials did a visible freak out, because they came to see Kyle and now she was getting kicked out of this contest.

That marked the only time Kyle ever got red carded out of a soccer game. From what I remember of that play, Kyle got the ball first on the tackle and shouldn’t have been carded. It was a bad referee’s call.

Kaylyn Kyle smiles during a break at her soccer camp in 2015.
All these years later, I am going to stick with that story about how I remember that game.

Saskatchewan played the final 85 minutes of that contest a player short and lost by a slim 1-0 margin. Had Kyle not been given a red card, the thought of what might have been had to have been on the minds of anyone associated with the Saskatchewan side.

Saskatchewan’s under-16 concluded the tournament playing a consolation game.

I interviewed Kyle for a tournament wrap up story on the Saskatchewan teams. I asked a question that got jumbled in its presentation.

I asked about the loss to Alberta in the final preliminary round contest, but the question came out in a way that placed blame on Kyle for getting red carded early in that contest. I didn’t want the question to come out that way, but I really did sound like the mean sports reporter in how the question was asked.

Kyle, who was still 15-years-old at that time, didn’t look impressed. It looked like she was getting ready to make a fist to punch me.

She did answer the question. I don’t even remember what the answer to that question was, because that whole exchange was awkward.

In that moment, you saw Kyle’s competitive spirit and her passion even at the young age she was.

Kaylyn Kyle encourages a player at her soccer camp in 2015.
I didn’t have any interactions again with Kyle until six years later in 2010. New interactions came when I first got on Twitter, when that social media platform was still in its relative infancy.

Kyle, who stands 5-foot-8, had become a member of Canada’s senior national women’s soccer team by that time. She was one of the first I ever saw to make real connections with fans via Twitter.

I ended up emailing her through Facebook recalling the story from that time in Prince Albert. She got back to me, and that whole situation became a something we both took with humour now.

I would keep in touch with her via various electronic lines and cross paths with her on three or four occasions.

Thanks to those interactions, my TV at home would be tuned into games involving Canada’s senior national women’s soccer team, because Kyle was on the team. She became a celebrity in the truest sense, and I marveled at how well she carried herself in the spotlight.

I got to spend an afternoon shooting pictures of her hosting a skills camp in Saskatoon at the SaskTel Sports Centre in October of 2015, and that was a pretty fun afternoon.

I enjoyed watching her interact with the youngsters, and she truly wanted to see the players get a little bit better during the short time they were at that camp. Some of the participants had even traveled into town from Winnipeg and Vancouver to be at that camp.

Kaylyn Kyle goes through a drill at her soccer camp in 2015.
Over the years, I’ve enjoyed interacting with Kyle’s parents in father, Doug, and mother, Pat. It was really enjoyable meeting Kaylyn’s older sister, Courtnee, too. At different times over the years, Courtnee helped Kaylyn manage life and the opportunities that came her way away from the game.

On Thursday, the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame announced its class for 2021. Kaylyn Kyle was named to the class in the athlete category along with Moose Jaw’s Justin Abdou in wrestling, Fillmore’s Rod Boll in trapshooting, Porcupine Plain’s Colette Bourgonje in track and cross-country skiing and Humboldt’s Lyndon Rush in bobsleigh.

Former Canadian senior national women’s hockey team head coach Shannon Miller, who was born in Tisdale and raised in Melfort, enters the Hall in the builders’ category. Miller played hockey for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team in the early 1980s.

The team inductees included the 2000-01 University of Regina Cougars Women’s Basketball team, who won a U Sports national title, and 2013 Saskatchewan Roughriders, who won the Grey Cup at their iconic home park of Taylor Field.

This class was selected in 2020, but the class announcement and induction was postponed due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world. 

Kaylyn Kyle gives feedback to a player at her soccer camp in 2015.
While the 2021 class was named, there won’t be an official induction this year.

The Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame will do the official enshrinement at an appropriate time that allows for safe communal gatherings while following all provincial health guidelines.

Kyle played one season in 2006 in the U Sports ranks for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Soccer team before opportunities in Canada Soccer’s women’s national team system and the professional ranks came calling.

She retired from playing in 2017.

These days, Kyle is a television soccer host and analyst based out of Miami, Florida, and she is one of the best in those roles.

She is married to English professional soccer player Harrison Heath, who is also a midfielder. The couple has two sons aged three and six-months.

Throughout her career, Kyle has represented her teams and herself with passion, grace and class. She seemed comfortable being in the spotlight.

Due to the fact how often she had to play in the United Kingdom and Europe, that spotlight included being photographed by tabloid publications in those places. 

Kaylyn Kyle, left, takes questions at her soccer camp in Oct. 2015.
The tabloids in the United Kingdom and Europe love to play up attractive female athletes in a tabloid style way, and it is safe to say those publications will never change.

Kyle handled that attention with an amazing amount of grace and class.

It was spectacular for me to see her become an outstanding ambassador representing soccer in Canada, and she still represents the game well as a broadcaster.

I’m happy that old awkward 2004 interview in Prince Albert is just a humourous story to tell now.

P.A. gets third crack as Esso Cup hosts, other notes

The Bears celebrate an OT home win in November of 2020.
Fingers crossed the third time will be a charm for the Prince Albert Northern Bears when it comes to hosting the Esso Cup.

The Bears were supposed to host the national female under-18 AAA hockey championship tournament in 2020 and this past April. Both times, the Esso Cup was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has gripped the world.

This past Tuesday, Hockey Canada announced the Bears will host the 2022 Esso Cup, which is slated to run April 17-23 that year at the 2,580 seat Art Hauser Centre, which can hold 3,289 spectators.

Hockey Canada also announced that same day the Estevan Bruins will host the junior A hockey national championship tournament – the Centennial Cup – in 2022. The 2022 Centennial Cup is slated to run May 20 to 29 of that year at Affinity Place.

On the Esso Cup front, the Bears deserve to host nationals as they have been one of the strongest female under-18 programs in Saskatchewan dating back to the inaugural season of the Saskatchewan Female Under-18 AAA Hockey League in 2006-07.

The Bears won league titles in 2009 and 2017 and appeared in the 2017 Esso Cup. They have a loyal following in “Hockey Town North.”

After Hockey Canada cancelled all its nationals for a second straight year, there had to be some uneasiness about Prince Albert getting awarded the Esso Cup for a third straight year.

Lloydminster, which sits on the border of Alberta and Saskatchewan, was originally slated to host the Esso Cup in 2022.

Brooklin Fry in action for the Bears in November of 2020.
Hockey Canada could have decided to go with host centres that were already decided for 2022 before coming back to centres like Prince Albert, which had lost out on hosting nationals twice due to factors beyond anyone’s control.

Hockey Canada gets kudos for ensuring Prince Albert would still get its turn to host the Esso Cup.

With the COVID-19 vaccine rollouts that are happening across Canada, it is reasonable to believe the 2022 Esso Cup will run when it is scheduled to run. When Hockey Canada made its announcement for host centres for its 2021 nationals, actually dates for those events were never announced.

When time for Hockey Canada’s 2022 national championship tournaments roll around, public health orders and travel restrictions have a good chance of being a thing of the past.

In 2020-21, the Bears themselves only got to play four regular season games posting a 3-1 record before new public health orders to combat COVID-19 put that campaign on ice permanently.

The Bears will get to celebrate a return to hockey. The Esso Cup will likely be one of the things Prince Albert as a community gets to rally around in a return to more normal times.

  • On Tuesday, Major Series Lacrosse in Ontario and the Western Lacrosse Association in British Columbia in consultation with Lacrosse Canada cancelled their 2021 seasons and the Mann Cup national men’s senior box lacrosse championship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This was the second straight year those lacrosse campaigns were cancelled due to the pandemic.
  • Tickets are on sale for the May 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. The draw date will be May 31. Tickets can be purchased by clicking right here, and purchasers must be in Saskatchewan in order to buy tickets.
  • On Thursday, the WHL’s Everett Silvertips announced they won’t be extending the contract for the team’s standout general manager in Garry Davidson and said the 70-year-old is departing the organization effective immediately. Davidson became the Silvertips general manager in February of 2012. Since that time, the Silvertips have finished first in the U.S. Division on five occasions. They reached the WHL Championship series in 2018 falling in six games to the Swift Current Broncos. In the WHL’s 2020-21 developmental season, the Silvertips topped the U.S. Division with a 19-4 record. Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic has played havoc on the last two WHL campaigns preventing any post-season action from taking place. The Silvertips release stated, “The past two seasons have necessitated the restructuring of Silvertips hockey operations, and this process is ongoing. The Silvertips remain focused on the long-term on-ice and business success for our players, fans, partners, sponsors and our ownership.”
  • Back on May 13, the OHL announced it planned to open its upcoming 2021-22 regular season on October 7. The OHL is slated to host the 2022 CHL championship tournament – the Memorial Cup. In that May 13 release, the OHL said the 2022 Memorial Cup is slated to be held June 2 to 12 of that year. The OHL wasn’t able to play at all in 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • This past week, I learned I came in third for the Best Sports Story award given out by the Saskatchewan Weekly Newspapers Association. The awards were announced May 17. The story that I wrote that came in third appeared in the Davidson Leader, and it was entitled “Hockey Day in Hanley.” Two of my buds took the second and first place spots. Brad Brown came in second with his “Gray’s diamonds are forever” story published in his Quad Town Forum. Lucas Punkari came in first with his “The end of an era” story that appeared in Prince Albert Rural Roots, which was about the Beardy’s Blackhawks final game in the Saskatchewan Male under-18 AAA Hockey League.
  • On Friday, the WWE announced it will return to live event touring with a 25-city schedule. The tour begins on July 16 with a taping of Smackdown at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The second event is on July 18 and it will be the Money In the Bank pay per view to be hosted at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. On July 19, there will be a taping of RAW at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. The other tour stops are still to be announced. The WWE hasn’t toured since early March of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the fact the WWE’s weekly RAW, NXT and Smackdown television programs are the main thing that drives its business machine, it is interesting to see when that sports entertainment company hits the road. The RAW and Smackdown shows have been filmed before a virtual video screen audience since about the start of August 2020 in Tampa, Florida. NXT shows have been taped with a limited crowd of about 200 in Orlando, Florida.
  • There are times Twitter can suspend an account, where it falls into the department of being an overreaction. This past Tuesday, the Era_of_Bliss account, which is a fan account of WWE superstar Alexa Bliss, was suspended by Twitter for violating Twitter rules. The account was suspended regarding copyright of music usage for a tweet that was posted in June of 2018 regarding UFC 225 that wished luck to fighter CM Punk. The Era_of_Bliss account, which had over 24,000 followers, was very active, so it is crazy to thing someone mined for that tweet from about three years ago. The person who runs the Era_of_Bliss account is a 20-year-old university student, who opened the account while still in high school in February of 2018. The account owner has followed Bliss since her first appearances as a performer on NXT in a glitter fairy gimmick in 2014. Bliss herself even followed the Era_of_Bliss account. The Era_of_Bliss account was fun, and it was not malicious. No money was made operating the Era_of_Bliss account. I hope the owner is able to get that account back.

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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Saturday 22 May 2021

2000-01 Cougars get call to Sask. Sports Hall of Fame

Women’s basketball team still revered in Regina

Crystal (Heisler) McGregor leads a post-game cheer after a CIAU title win.
The 2000-01 University of Regina Cougars Women’s Basketball team holds mythic status in Saskatchewan’s capital city.

That season the Cougars posted a 30-5 overall record, captured a third straight Great Plains Athletic Conference title and won the first Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union national champion for women’s basketball in the history of the U of R athletics program. The CIAU is now known as U Sports these days.

The Cougars team picture after winning the 2001 CIAU title.
When the subject of basketball comes up among Regina residents, it is common for someone to say, “You should have seen the 2000-01 national champion Cougars Women’s Basketball team play. They were great.”

Sometimes the exploits of forward Corrin Wersta, who was the U Sports player of the year in 1998-99, or guard Cymone (Bouchard) Bernauer, who was the U Sports player of the year in 2003-04, can reach tall tale status.

On Thursday, it was announced the 2000-01 Cougars will be inducted into the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame. It is an honour the team very much deserves.

Corrin Wersta goes up for a score in 2001.
The Cougars will enter the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame with a pretty cool 2021 class. The 2013 Saskatchewan Roughriders, who won the Grey Cup that year at their iconic home park of Taylor Field, are being inducted in the team category as well.

Individual athletes who will be entering the Hall include Saskatoon soccer star Kaylyn Kyle, Moose Jaw’s Justin Abdou in wrestling, Fillmore’s Rod Boll in trapshooting, Porcupine Plain’s Colette Bourgonje in track and cross-country skiing and Humboldt’s Lyndon Rush in bobsleigh.

Former Canadian senior national women’s hockey team head coach Shannon Miller, who was born in Tisdale and raised in Melfort, enters the Hall in the builders’ category. Miller played hockey for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team in the early 1980s.

This class was selected in 2020, but the class announcement and induction was postponed due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world. While the 2021 class was named, there won’t be an official induction this year.

Cymone (Bouchard) Bernauer sets for a free throw in 2001.
The Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame will do the official enshrinement at an appropriate time that allows for safe communal gatherings while following all provincial health guidelines.

Going into the 2000-01 season, the Cougars were well established as having one of the top women’s basketball programs in Canada. They had a huge following in Regina, and fans were constantly crammed into the small main gym at the Physical Activity Centre on the U of R campus to watch their games.

Hoops went up on driveways outside of houses in Regina as little girls started to take up the sport to be like the Cougars. It was common after home games for the Cougars players to be swamped outside of their dressing room by little girls looking for autographs.

Phoebe (De Ciman) Haugen sets on defence in 2001.
The Cougars obtained celebrity status in “The Queen City.”

The only thing that eluded the Cougars was a gold medal finish at the CIAU elite-eight women’s basketball championship tournament. The Cougars finished fourth in 1998, fifth in 1999 and third in 2000 at that event.

The key element that allowed the Cougars to ultimately win the CIAU title game in the main gym at the Van Vliet Complex at the University of Alberta in Edmonton on March 11, 2001 was the fact they enjoyed and focused on the daily journey it took to get there. No matter where the team was during the course of the season, the Cougars always stayed present in that moment.

Crystal (Heisler) McGregor drives the ball in 2001.
Still, there was a sign early on that the 2000-01 campaign could be special. The Cougars opened their regular season schedule hosting the defending CIAU champion University of Victoria Vikes on Oct. 27 and 28, 2000.

U of R swept the series with an 83-75 victory on night one and an 82-69 win on night two. Following the second win, I found myself visiting with legendary Vikes head coach Kathy Shields.

I remember Shields telling me she thought this was the campaign where the Cougars were going to win it all. I took the comment as a complement for the U of R side, because the regular season was only two games old at that point.

Heather (Dedman) McMurray had epic moments in 2000-01.
It also stuck with me that someone like Shields that early in a season would say an opposing team was going to win the CIAU national title at campaign’s end.

With that noted, the Cougars played with great consistency and the wins piled up. In games that were tight, playmakers always seemed to step up on the Cougars side to make the difference in the final two minutes.

The biggest adversity for the team might have occurred away from the court.

While driving to a team practice in December of 2000, Wersta hit a patch of black ice on Ring Road causing her car to slide off the street and roll over. The fifth-year veteran captain had never missed a practice during her time with the team, so the fact Wersta missed her first practice due to a car accident kind of shook up the squad for a short time.

Bree Burgess could drop the threes for the Cougars.
Wersta came away from that accident having suffered a concussion, and it didn’t keep her out of the line up for long.

The injury did prevent her from playing in a tournament in Calgary that was held after Christmas Day and wrapped up before New Year’s Day. The Cougars weren’t at their best in the Calgary tournament winning one of their three games.

At that point in time, head coach Christine Stapleton and assistant coaches Dave Taylor and Diane Hilko did a terrific job of guiding the team through that rough patch. They allowed the players to work through the fact they got spooked emotionally.

Becky (Poley) Schutz was key player for the Cougars inside game.
The Cougars players ended up bonding more closely together, and from the start of January of 2001, they took off posting a 20-1 overall record including a 14-game winning streak to finish off the campaign.

Three of the team’s most memorable wins came in the post-season. In Game 2 of the best-of-three GPAC Championship series, fifth-year guard Heather (Dedman) McMurray hit a body twisting transition layup at the buzzer to give the Cougars a 61-60 victory over the University of Manitoba Bisons and a 2-0 sweep of the series.

Dedman’s score provided one of the most memorable moments ever for the Cougars at the Physical Activity Centre.

The Cougars celebrate Heather (Dedman) McMurray’s buzzer beater.
In a CIAU semifinal contest against the University of Calgary Dinos, the Cougars were holding on to a slim 69-67 lead in the game’s dying seconds. Dinos star forward Leighann Doan was driving to the hoop for a potential game-tying score only for Bernauer to come up with a clutch steal for the Cougars.

A pair of free-throws iced a 71-67 victory.

In the CIAU title game on March 11, 2001, the Cougars faced the host University of Alberta Pandas. The Pandas took a 4-0 edge moments into the contest.

The Cougars GPAC title winning team picture from 2001.
The Cougars responded with an 11-0 run to go ahead 11-4 and never looked back from that point. U of R’s advantage grew to 50-39 at halftime before settling out to a 94-85 final.

The 94 points the Cougars scored to capture the Bronze Baby trophy is still a record for most points scored in a CIAU/U Sports women’s basketball final.

In the 2001 national championship game win, seven members of the Cougars hit double digits in scoring.

Fifth-year guard McMurray led the way with 24 points being named the game’s MVP and earning a tournament all-star nod. 

Cougars HC Christine Stapleton calls out directions from the bench.
She kept making free throws inside the final two minutes of the game, when the Pandas were forced to foul to stop the clock.

Fifth-year forward Becky (Poley) Schutz finished her final game with the Cougars with 14 points. Forwards Phoebe (De Ciman) Haugen and Wersta had 13 and 12 points respectively.

Shooting guard Bree Burgess had 11 points. Bernauer and guard Crystal (Heisler) McGregor each netted 10 points.

Bernauer was named the most valuable player of the tournament and a tournament all-star.

Cymone (Bouchard) Bernauer drives the ball up court for the Cougars.
McGregor, who was one of the Cougars most popular players, would later pass away on May 15, 2014 after an inspiring battle against cervical cancer lasting over two years in length.

She was only 35-years-old – a proud wife (of Paul McGregor) and mother (of Aija and Zayden).

During the campaign, the Cougars received key contributions at different times from Rumali Werapitiya, Jana (Schweitzer) Linner, Leah (Anderson) Levy, Tara-Lee Crosson, Kaela McKaig and Sheena Aitken.

The celebration is on as the Cougars win the 2001 CIAU title.
Trainers Erin Walton and Kate Stefan ensure any time missed due to minor injuries was minimal.

Now 20 years after that campaign was completed, the players from that Cougars team have become successful mothers, lawyers, businesswomen, coaches, trainers and community leaders.

Stapleton coached the Cougars for one more season and is now the director of sports and recreation at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ont. Taylor became the head coach of the Cougars women’s team in 2006.

After Crystal (Heisler) McGregor passed in May of 2014, that generation of the Cougars had a reunion for her celebration of life. They have had a few other reunions since that time.

The Cougars raise the CIAU championship banner in 2001.
When the 2000-01 Cougars come together again for their Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremonies, they will again remember McGregor and celebrate all that happened in 2000-01.

They provide the ultimate example of what it is like when a sports team truly does become a family. Their family bonds are ones that last 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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Saturday 15 May 2021

Inconsistency only consistency in COVID-19 pandemic

Yours truly with a standard COVID-19 vaccination picture.
“How the (explanative) did you get your shot already?”

That is a familiar refrain you might find in the comments sections on social media post when someone from Saskatchewan posts a picture of having received their COVID-19 vaccination. In Saskatchewan, it is common for people to post pictures on social media after they receive their first COVID-19 vaccination shot along with a circular green sticker.

Saskatchewan residents can receive those stickers at the place they got their vaccine poke from.

As people in younger age groups received their first COVID-19 vaccine shot in Saskatchewan, comments shows up from time to time from a person in another Canadian province saying they still have to wait a bit before getting their first shot.

That right there shows the many inconsistencies that have shown up during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic which has gripped the world.

The first cancellations and restrictions in North America regarding the COVID-19 pandemic started to take hold way back on March 11, 2020.

Since the point, it has been the norm to see inconsistencies when it comes to dealing with the pandemic. Going hand in hand with the inconsistencies is people losing their minds with them.

Why can people, who are traveling within Canada, arrive at one province like Saskatchewan and be able to freely visit and then go to another province like Manitoba and have to quarantine for 14 days?

With North America having dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic for over 14 months now, you would think people would get used to the fact there are inconsistencies. Still, people seem to not disappoint in showing how emotional they can be and get worked up over the inconsistencies.

Mosaic Stadium pictured during the 2019 Labour Day Classic.
One of the most glaring recent ones occurred on Friday.

In Ontario, the City of Toronto cancelled all major in person events for a second straight summer due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That cancellation period runs through to and includes the Sept. 4-6 Labour Day weekend.

The population of the metro area of Toronto is over 6.1-million.

On that same day during a sitting at the Government of Saskatchewan legislature, Premier Scott Moe encouraged the province’s residents to get vaccinated, because if the province accomplishes its vaccination targets, the hint was dropped that the 33,356 seat Mosaic Stadium could be used for events.

“That’s how later this summer we are going to fill that stadium in this town,” said Moe.

Saskatchewan has a population of over 1.1-million.

Moe has talked to the media this week about seeing football fans flock to Mosaic Stadium this summer. Of course, Mosaic Stadium is home to the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders, and those hints had some in Rider Nation jumping up and down believing that there is no doubt their team is going to play.

At the moment, the CFL season is scheduled to begin on August 5. The circuit wasn’t able to navigate a way to get on the field in 2020 due to the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic presented with public health orders and travel restrictions.

In reality, the start of the CFL is far from a guaranteed thing. It is conceivable that Saskatchewan as a province could be in position to host something like a CFL game at the end of August, but the rest of Canada won’t be in that position.

Jess Moskaluke performs in 2016.
Judging by mainstream media reports, Saskatchewan’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout appears to be very efficient, which is allowing “The Wheat Province” to do a lot better in that department than most of the rest of Canada.

If Saskatchewan gets to that place where it is possible to host events at Mosaic Stadium at full capacity at the end of August, you might likely see a Jess Moskaluke concert but not a Roughriders football game.

Of course, there will likely be a handful of Roughriders diehards that will be planning how the entire nine-team CFL can play out of Saskatchewan using Mosaic Stadium and Saskatoon’s the Griffiths Stadium and Saskatoon Minor Football Field in that scenario.

Griffiths Stadium has been able to hold over 8,000 spectators in its current configuration, while SMF Field can seat a crowd of 5,000.

Actually, Saskatchewan might hit the position where hockey at all levels including the WHL, the junior A SJHL, and the under-18 AAA male and female ranks returns to game action before any other area in Canada does.

That might go for all sorts of sports and entertainment activities.

The Atlantic provinces might get to those things earlier as they have been able to have an “Atlantic Travel Bubble” at times during the pandemic.

Still, a lot of Saskatchewan residents don’t seem to comprehend is that the rest of the world doesn’t unfold like it does in “The Land of the Living Skies.”

There are some that believe Saskatchewan’s vaccine rollout and COVID-19 restrictions are mirrored in the rest of Canada, and that is far from the case.

It seems people can’t grasp the continuing inconsistencies when it comes to dealing with the pandemic.

Unfortunately, you likely have better odds of winning the main jackpot for the Lotto Max lottery than seeing those inconsistencies go away.

The Regina Pats salute a Brandt Centre crowd in 2017.
Like it or not, the inconsistencies are here to stay.

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.