Rebuilding Broncos rally for huge OT win over Blades

Joona Kiviniemi celebrates scoring the OT winner for the Broncos.

    Tanner Nagel said a big comeback win was a great thing for the youngsters on the rebuilding Swift Current Broncos to experience.

    Nagel, who is the Broncos overage captain, is the only holdover that was a regular on Swift Current’s WHL championship winning team last season. During that run to the WHL title, Nagel got to experience many thrilling victories including a number of the comeback variety.

    Now, the Broncos are a team that has 10 players in their 17-year-old seasons and two in their 16-year-old seasons on their 23-person roster. On Saturday night at the SaskTel Centre, the youthful Swift Current side experienced a rare high in a campaign where the team has trudged along in last place in the entire WHL.

    Trailing the host Saskatoon Blades 4-2 with five minutes remaining in the third period, the Broncos roared back to pull out a 5-4 overtime victory before 3,637 spectators.

Tanner Nagel scored twice for the Broncos on Saturday night.

    In the extra session, Broncos Finnish import left-winger Joona Kiviniemi one-timed home a set up pass from rookie defenceman Alex Moar with 3.4 second remaining in the frame to deliver victory to Swift Current. The Broncos improved to 10-34-2-1 with the win.

    “We have a lot of young guys in the room, so it is great to see them push back in games where we are down,” said Nagel, who scored twice for the Broncos on Saturday. “That is what we are trying to focus on is just teaching them that you have to keep playing right until the bitter end.

    “You are never out of a game. We showed that here tonight.”

Alex Moar set up the Broncos overtime winner on Saturday night.

    Down 4-2, the Broncos comeback started when Nagel scored on the power play sniping home a shot to the low right side of the Saskatoon goal to cut the Blades edge to 4-3 with 4:39 remaining in the third period.

    Broncos head coach and director of hockey operation Dean Brockman pulled netminder Riley Lamb for an extra attacker with about three minutes remaining in the third. Swift Current kept the play bottled in the Saskatoon zone with the extra skater.

    With 1:35 remaining in the stanza, Broncos 18-year-old right-winger Owen Blocker snipped the equalizer past Blades netminder Dorrin Luding to force a 4-4 tie.

    In overtime, both sides had numerous scoring chances before Kiviniemi ended it.

The Broncos celebrate an equalizer from Owen Blocker, right.

    Lamb turned away 48 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Broncos. Luding made 19 stops to take the extra time setback in goal for the Blades, who sit third overall in the WHL with a 29-13-7 mark.

    One night earlier, the Blades dumped the Broncos 5-2 in Swift Current.

    “Any time you win it is a good day,” said Brockman, whose Broncos beat the Blades for the first time this season in six tries on Saturday. “Certainly, they out-chanced us and had a lot of shots.

    “I give our guys a lot of credit. We challenged them after (Friday) night’s game to be better and work hard and they did. That is what you do when you work hard you find ways to get success.”

Goalie Riley Lamb makes one of his 48 saves for the Broncos.

    The Blades got out to a quick start. Just 38 seconds into the contest, right-winger Max Gerlach sprung left-winger Gary Haden in on a breakaway and Haden buried his 21^st of the season to give the host side a 1-0 edge.

    The Broncos evened things up a 1-1 just under three minutes later, when Nagel banged home a rebound for his first goal of the game off a shot taken by defenceman Christian Riemer.

    With 58.7 seconds remaining in the first period and Saskatoon working on the power play, Blades overage offensive defenceman Dawson Davidson scored on a point shot that just snuck under Lamb to give the host side a 2-1 edge going into the first intermission.

Dawson Davidson scored for the Blades on Saturday night.

    At the 6:04 mark of the second, the Broncos tied things up at 2-2 scoring their first short-handed goal of the campaign. The shorty came when Swift Current centre Ethan O’Rourke blocked a point shot taken by Blades 16-year-old rookie left-winger Kyle Crnkovic.

    The puck shot out to the centre ice zone, and O’Rourke tracked it down and skated into the Saskatoon zone on a breakaway. He tucked home his eighth goal of the season to get the Broncos on even terms for a short time.

    Saskatoon jumped back out in front 3-2 just under four minutes later thanks to a power-play goal coming off the stick of centre Eric Florchuk.

    Before the second period expired, left-winger Cyle McNabb potted his fifth goal of the season to give the Blades a 4-2 advantage.

    The Blades outshot the Broncos 16-4 in the third period but couldn’t prevent the Broncos comeback dramatics late in the frame and in overtime.

Ethan O’Rourke pots a short-handed goal for the Broncos.

    When Nagel scored late in the third to cut the Blades lead to one goal, Brockman hoped the comeback would indeed be on from that point.

    “This is a team where they’ve always had their backs up against the wall all year,” said Brockman. “Nobody expects us to win a game.

    “I want to give our kids a lot of credit. They were pretty resilient and stayed with it and found a way.”

    Nagel was excited about the final result.

    “Winning is awesome,” said Nagel. “It is the best feeling in the world.

    “It doesn’t matter if it is a game tonight or it is the WHL championship. A win is a win, and I love to win. Anytime you can win a game it is awesome.

Eric Florchuk (#17) had a power-play goal for the Blades.

    “Any time you can come from behind and win a game that is an even better feeling. The young guys showed resilience and the team showed resilience top to bottom. We’re feeling pretty good.”

    The Blades are off until Friday, when they travel to Regina to face the Pats at 7 p.m. at the Brandt Centre.

    The Broncos return to action on Wednesday, when they host the Calgary Hitmen at 7 p.m. at the Innovation Credit Union i-Plex. Nagel said Saturday’s comeback victory will be a big time help to his team going forward.

    “Any time we get the young guys going and playing hard like this, it is great to see them keep chugging along,” said Nagel. “They are learning as we go.

The Broncos celebrate their win on Saturday night.

    “I think every time we put up a good game it just helps them learn a little more.”

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

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McNabb’s highlight reel goals delivers victory to Blades

Cyle McNabb, left, celebrates scoring a goal with linemate Zach Huber.

    REGINA, Sask. – For one night, Cyle McNabb looked like the second coming of Bernie Federko.

    The recently acquired 18-year-old left winger scored two highlight reel goals on Saturday to help deliver the visiting Saskatoon Blades to a 4-2 victory over the Pats in Regina before 5,444 spectators at the Brandt Centre. The outburst marked the first two-goal game McNabb has experienced in his WHL career.

    For a short moment, he mirror what Federko once did for this Blades suiting up at forward for the major junior squad from 1973 to 1976 in his legendary hockey career.

    McNabb, who is a sophomore from Winnipeg, Man., has appeared in 102 career regular season games with the Vancouver Giants, Kootenay Ice and Blades to date recording four goals and three assists.

Cyle McNabb had his first two-goal night in the WHL on Saturday.

    He now has three goals in his first four appearances with the Blades. The Blades acquired McNabb in a trade with the Ice on Jan. 7 in exchange for 18-year-old forward Brandon Machado and a fifth round selection in the 2021 WHL Bantam Draft.

    “Obviously, it was a good night,” said McNabb about the outburst. “Our line was going the whole night, and it paid off in the end.

    “In the end, we are happy to get two points, and we’re just going to try and keep it rolling.”

    The Pats, who are going through a major rebuild, gave the Blades everything they could handle with an extreme hardworking effort.

    Despite being outshot 16-13 in the first period, the Blades exited the frame holding a 1-0 lead, when veteran centre Eric Florchuk tucked home at power-play goal between the legs of Pats netminder Dean McNabb.

    Early in the second, McNabb, who was playing on a line centred by Tristen Robins and Zach Huber playing right wing, went to work. 

The Blades recently acquired Cyle McNabb from the Kootenay Ice.

    McNabb collected the puck at a bad angle at the right side of the Regina net and proceeded to snipe home a shot to the far side of the Pats goal.

    “Robby (Robins) got stepped up on, and he got a big hit,” said McNabb, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 191 pounds. “The puck was lying there.

    “Me and Hubs (Huber) had a two-on-one to the net, and I just saw the far side and I took it. It went in.”

    The Blades extended their lead to 3-0 with 70 seconds to play in the second, when Florchuk tucked home a backhand shot on a breakaway.

    The Pats proceeded to fight back early in the third. With the Blades working on the power play, Pats right-winger Duncan Pierce was hacked down while skating into the Saskatoon zone on a breakaway by a Blades player resulting in a penalty shot.

    Pierce scored on a shuffle move on the penalty shot to cut Saskatoon’s lead to 3-1 at the 2:30 mark of the third.

Eric Florchuk (#17) scored twice for the Blades on Saturday night.

    That set the stage for McNabb to step up again a little over three-and-a-half minutes later. With the Blades applying pressure in the Regina zone, McNabb got a hold of the puck, danced around Pats goalie in Davidson, Sask., product Dean McNabb and dumped the puck into an empty cage.

    Cyle McNabb gave credit again to his line for helping him out on his goal that gave the Blades a 4-1 edge.

    “That was nice too,” said McNabb. “Again, Robby (Tristen Robins) made a great play and banked it off the back wall.

    “I just put it in the net.”

    Pats 18-year-old rookie right-winger Riley Krane scored his 10^th goal of the season on a determined short-handed effort with 8:33 remaining in the third period to cut the Blades lead to 4-2. 

Duncan Pierce (#22) celebrates scoring on a penalty shot for the Pats.

    Krane was stopped initially on a breakaway, picked up the puck behind the Saskatoon net and came out in front to score.

    That tally wasn’t enough to spark a comeback for the host side.

    Nolan Maier turned away 32 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Blades (28-13-6). Dean McNabb stopped 28 shots to take the setback in goal for the Pats (12-33-1-1).

    Maier was pleased with how his teammates played in front of him on Saturday. He noted that helped him have a good night.

    “A lot of the shots our forwards and the D (defence) kept them to the perimeter,” said Maier. “I think it kind of helped me out getting settled into the game nicely.

Nolan Maier makes one of his 32 saves for the Blades.

    “We came out with two points, and that is all we could ask for.”

    Maier was happy to see Cyle McNabb have a great game for “The Bridge City Bunch.”

    “I think it is really good to see him producing here, and we are lucky to have him,” said Maier.

    Now having played four games with the Blades, McNabb believes he has settled in.

    “Ever since I got here, everyone has been very welcoming of me,” said McNabb. “All the guys are great. The coaches are great.

    “Everyone in Saskatoon is great. They made the transition really easy. I’m happy to be here.”

    He is looking forward to playing the rest of the campaign with the blue and gold.

    “It is exciting,” said McNabb. “They have a great group of guys here, a really good hockey team.

The Blades celebrate their victory over the Pats on Saturday night.

    “I’m just excited to be here, and I am going to do whatever I can to help the team get wins until the end of the year.”

    The Blades return to action when they travel to Swift Current this coming Friday to face the Broncos at 7 p.m. at the Innovation Credit Union i-Plex.

    The Pats return to action this coming Friday when they host the Brandon Wheat Kings at 7 p.m. at the Brandt Centre.

    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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Blades’ Davidson still enjoys wins over Pats

Rearguard also holds much respect for former team

Dawson Davidson had three assists for the Blades on Friday night.

    Dawson Davidson doesn’t hold any grudges, but he still enjoys beating his former team.
   On Friday before 3,699 spectators at the SaskTel Centre, the overage defenceman picked up assists on the Saskatoon Blades first three goals as they dumped the Regina Pats 6-2. Davidson was a member of the Pats, when they advanced to the WHL championship series in 2017 falling to the Seattle Thunderbirds.

    He was traded by the Pats to the Blades on January 8, 2018 in a blockbuster deal to help the Regina side to load as hosts for last May’s Memorial Cup.

    Davidson said he still has some motivation to show the Pats what they might be missing, but he still respects Regina’s historic major junior franchise.

The Blades celebrate a goal from Kirby Dach (#77)

    “Whenever you play a team that traded you, you have a little bit of extra jump,” said Davidson, who was a plus-one in the plus-minus department in Friday’s win. “I know a couple of guys on that team still.

    “Both their coaches coached me. I had a great time in that organization. There is no love loss, but at the same time, I’m trying to prove my worth.”

    Davidson has appeared in all of the Blades 46 games this season recording eight goals, 38 assists and a plus-12 rating in the plus-minus department. The Moosomin, Sask., product said he had some breaks go his way offensively on Friday noting two of his helpers were secondary assists.

    “I don’t think I was really doing anything different,” said Davidson, who stands 5-foot-11 and weighs 179 pounds. “I just got a puck to the net one time.

Ryan Hughes scored the Blades second goal on Friday.

    “The other two, Kirby (Dach) and Emil (Malysjev) made some really nice passes. Some nights you get bounces. That is kind of what happened.”

    Blades head coach Mitch Love appreciates the points Davidson is able to put up, but the bench boss has really loved the effort the veteran rearguard has put towards being a better all-around player.

    “The points are there,” said Love. “The one thing he (Davidson) always wants to get better at is the defensive side of the game.

    “He has been very coachable in that regard. If he wants to give himself a good chance to play pro hockey next year as a 21-year-old, he is going to have to learn to play away from the puck. He realizes that, and he understands that and he is continuously getting better at that.”

Pats G Dean McNabb stops Blades LW Gary Haden.

    The Blades jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening 20 minutes scoring goals 20 seconds apart from each other as the midway point of the frame neared. Overage right-winger Max Gerlach netted his 27^th goal of the season, and speedy left-winger Ryan Hughes snipped home a low shot on a breakaway.

    Saskatoon extended its edge to 3-0 at the 4:29 mark of the second, when Dach, who is the team’s star centre, converted a backdoor feed from Malysjev, who is an import defenceman, into an open Regina cage.

Kirby Dach had a goal and an assist for the Blades.

    “Obviously, it was pretty nice,” said Dach, who hit the ice for the first time as a Blades assistant captain on Friday night and had a helper on his team’s second goal. “A guy on their team lost a stick and a glove there.

    “It was a little bit of an advantage for us in the offensive zone. Maly (Malysjev) made a great pass through the seam there to find me backdoor, and I was able to tap it in.”

    Regina battled back near the end of the second cutting the Blades lead to 3-2. Left-winger Cole Dubinsky netted Regina’s first goal, while right-winger Austin Pratt roofed a bad angled shot for the Pats second goal.

    The Blades ensured a Regina rally was not to be.

    Just 76 seconds into the third, energetic right-winger Riley McKay tipped home a point shot from defenceman Brandon Schuldhaus for a power-play goal to give the Blades a 4-2 edge.

    At the 7:41 mark of the third, the Blades struck again on the power play as captain Chase Wouters blasted home his ninth goal of the season to put the hosts up 5-2.

Chase Wouters celebrates scoring for the Blades.

    “When they scored their two goals to make it 3-2, sometimes team tighten up,” said Love. “Maybe the intermission came at the right time.

    “I really liked our shift after goals tonight whether it was them or us. We responded there, and we stayed the course. We did a good job in the third period to kind of stay the course and find more goals than them.”

    With 51.9 seconds to play in the third, 18-year-old left-winger Cyle McNabb scored his first goal as a member of the Blades since being acquired in a trade on Jan. 7 with the Kootenay Ice.

Blades RW Riley McKay fights Pats D Tyson Feist.

    While McNabb was scoring his goal, McKay was mixing things up with Pats defenceman Tyson Feist, and the two broke into a fight. The two sides threw punches for at least a good 30 seconds before the officials stepped in to break things up.

    Nolan Maier made 15 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Blades (27-13-6). Dean McNabb turned away 28 shots to take the setback in goal for the Pats (12-31-2-1)

    The Blades and Pats go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Brandt Centre in Regina.

    While the Pats are going through a major rebuild, Davidson expects Saturday’s encounter will be hotly contested between the two sides.

    “Their fans are always there,” said Davidson. “They support them.

The Blades salute the SaskTel Centre crowd after their win on Friday.

    “They will probably be behind them. They are just a well-coached team. When you have (Dave) Struch as your head coach, you’re going to be a hard-working team.

    “They pushed back. Tonight was a pretty gritty rough game at some points. That fight was pretty unbelievable at the end, and I think that is just a sign of how competitive tomorrow is going to be.”

    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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