Canadian Bowl will be my last ride for football on this blog

The Hilltops and Thunder take part in a prayer circle on Sept. 27.

REGINA, Sask. - Earlier this season, CJFL provincial rivals the Saskatoon Hilltops and Regina Thunder could be found taking part in what those in some parts of the world and political spectrum would say is the most controversial moment of their rivalry – a prayer circle.

Back on September 27, the Thunder edged the Hilltops 24-21 at Saskatoon Minor Football Field. Following that contest at centre field, a sizable contingent from both the Hilltops and Thunder got together in a circle, took a knee and said a prayer.

If anybody on the far left wing saw this, they would say this is an injustice toward humanity. Religion and especially the Christian religion have no place in sports. Those extreme leftists would view both of those teams as evil.

For those on the right wing, those players would be viewed as athletes who are not afraid to show their faith in the Lord. They would be viewed as having extreme courage and being heroes.

Those on even the further right use this display as those players taking a step towards being part of the maple version of the Make America Great Again movement, which brought Donald Trump into power as the President of the United States of America.

Those on that right wing spectrum might even use it as an example of the influence late American right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk had on the youth of the world and helping move the world towards what they viewed as a better place.

The truth is the Hilltops and Thunder players formed a circle, took a knee and said a prayer to show their faith in a Higher Power. Football teams are multicultural, and some of those players might not believe in Christianity and were praying to the Higher Power they believed in. There was nothing more, nothing less about that prayer circle than what I just wrote.

Everything that I wrote about those on the extreme left and further right wings is all spin doctoring 101. These are traps teams in the United States are falling into by doing nothing else than being themselves. That also includes activities like walks to the rink for hockey teams, because players on both the men’s and women’s side of the sport are well dressed during those walks to the rinks when they are posted on social media or regular media channels.

At the moment, the Hilltops and Thunder haven’t fallen into any of these traps to my knowledge, but they very well could have.

For myself on the political spectrum, I find these days I don’t fit in either with the right or left wings. I am not a Trump fan, and the same goes for former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who has acted as part of the extreme left in his career in my view.

I actually think Kirk is a sympathetic figure. When I have seen videos of him interacting with others and interacting with his family, I just see him as a Christian good guy.

I don’t agree with everything he said, but he struck me as the type of guy you can agree to disagree with and then go off and have a pop or two together. I think it would be easy for a friendship to form with someone like him, even when you have differing views.

That unfortunately in this world has become a lost art. The fact Kirk was gunned down on September 10 is an example that agreeing to disagree and forming friendships with someone with a different view is a lost art.

All of this serious talk actually makes anything that has occurred in the football rivalry between Saskatoon and Regina seem small and insignificant. For the older veterans of that football rivalry, we are all just old men telling old tales, and if you are in the right mindset, humour can be found in the old tales.

That brings us today’s championship final of the CJFL’s Prairie Football Conference, where the Hilltops downed the Thunder 30-27 in overtime at Mosaic Stadium. When kickoff happened shortly after 1 p.m., I wasn’t there.

I was on a spot at the edge of the north shore of Wascana Lake visiting my dad’s resting place for the first time since the summer of 2020. God, family, and then football. My late friend in CFL icon Cal Murphy would say I had my priorities in the right place, if that is where a Higher Power says you are meant to be at that place in time.

For me, it felt like I was in the right place at the right time as I contemplate a bigger than football and sports moment for myself. That is resulting in a longer column here and a lot of contemplation over the last three days.

After visiting my dad’s resting place, I ventured over to the University of Regina to start typing this piece. If you needed to find me, I was in the spot where the old University of Regina Rams table existed in the main food court. Again, it felt like the right place at the right time to be as I feel a significant part of me when I am at my best was formed at my time at the U of Regina living here from 1995 to 2001.

The trigger of my challenge came when I messaged the Thunder about getting a media pass to work the PFC final at Mosaic Stadium, because the staff at Mosaic Stadium, while friendly, is tight with security there.

At 6:30 a.m. on Thursday morning, I received this message from Thunder president Murad Al-Katib, “I am sorry. We are unable to provide you with field and media floor access. This access is limited to accredited media as per PFC policies.

“As for stats access, I suggest you request from your Hilltops contacts. Greg (Peacock), team president, is on copy.”

I received a media pass to work Thunder hosted games at Taylor Field and later Mosaic Stadium with no problems or questions asked in the past. Because of responsibilities covering hockey with regards to the WHL and by extension the CHL, I didn’t make any CJFL road games in 2023 and 2024. The response from Al-Katib in my mind is spin doctoring.

I went through the CJFL code of conduct and social media policies online and didn’t find anything regarding media accreditation. I can’t find any PFC policies online. Maybe I looked in the wrong place.

I’ve had CHL accreditation for almost three decades working either for mainstream media outlets or as an independent. Any time I work Hockey Canada events, I get accreditation pretty much immediately.

So that brings us to what changed on the Thunder’s side.

I give the straight goods, and I don’t blow smoke up anyone’s asses to be old school. I know that is no longer the common practice in today’s world. Here is the thought process from my side.

On October 20, 2024, the Thunder downed the Hilltops 24-19 in that year’s PFC final. On the second last play of that contest, Thunder middle linebacker Stephen Smith nailed Hilltops quarterback Trey Reider with a blatant and illegal helmet-to-helmet head shot that was not flagged for penalty. Had a penalty been called, the Hilltops would have had maybe one or two plays to score the winning touchdown from about the Thunder 12 yard line or closer depending on the call.

The Hilltops ran a trick play on that play, which likely resulted in the foul being missed. The play happened right in front of me along with Shane Clausing of then 650 CKOM in Saskatoon, who also got the smoking gun video of that play.

The smoking gun video had been viewed about 999 times on Platform X. I thought it was more that that.

I actually found that video today on Platform X and double checked it. It is right here for anyone that is interested.

I along with Clausing wrote about the missed call in our game pieces. In old school style game reporting, that is what you do when there is an obvious call of a dangerous play late in a contest that is missed by the officials that could have changed the result of that game. You do that because that goes down as something that sticks in the memory of those who watched the game in the stadium that day.

When I posted the link on my Facebook page to the story on my blog, John Tokar, who was the athlete development coordinator of the Thunder at the time and now their leadership development coordinator, wrote a comment that I spread disinformation about Smith and that the play never happened.

When I first saw the comment, my mind quickly switched to my experiences in the WHL.

My first thought was, “Wow. If this happened in the WHL, their communications department would see it in quick order, hand the screenshots over to their department of discipline and a fine or fines would likely be given out within a period of two days for violating that circuit’s social media policy.”

When I talked with Clausing, he said he hadn’t heard anything on his side from the Thunder. He couldn’t believe I took all the heat, because he took the smoking gun video of the play from the sidelines.

I also realized the WHL has a sizeable league office staff of paid full-time employees. The CJFL is a volunteer run league. I believe the only person in the CJFL who is compensated with a full-time wage for the months the season goes on is Ryan Watters, who is in charge of communications and digital media.

Being a volunteer run league with limited resources compared to the WHL and the overall CHL, I was under the impression the CJFL didn’t have a code of conduct or a social media policy. That would be due to the fact they wouldn’t have the resources to enforce those policies like in the WHL and CHL.

I contacted CJFL commissioner Jim Pankovich asking if the CJFL had a code of conduct or a social media policy.

He said the CJFL did have code of conduct and social media policies. He asked what I came across and to send all the information I had his way. I sent him some screenshots that included Tokar’s comments and stills from Clausing’s video and the link to Clausing’s video on Platform X.

Pankovich thanked me for the information and said the league would review and investigate further if necessary.

A couple of days later, I was contacted by Tokar. He apologized, and we had a really great back and forth.

He was brave enough to ask if all the comments under my Facebook post could be deleted. As a show of good faith and to show it was all water on the bridge, I said that wouldn’t be a problem, and I deleted all the comments under my Facebook post.

During my almost three decades covering the WHL and CHL, I have had times where I have dealt with very passionate coaches and general managers that would say to my face they didn’t agree with something I wrote or said.

Red Deer Rebels general manager and owner Brent Sutter, who often served as his team’s head coach, is notorious for his fire-type passion, and I consider him a best friend in the game even after the times we had disagreements. It has actually only been one or two times we have really disagreed with each other as I believe Sutter and I view a lot of things in a similar way.

If a situation came up where we agreed to disagree, we agreed to disagree, and I believe in every one of those cases each side had a better understanding of where the other was coming from.

The next time I would meet with anyone in the WHL and CHL after a disagreement, it was all water under the bridge and you forged ahead in a positive manner. That is the way in that level of hockey.

While my contact with Tokar was outstanding, I had contacts and talks with various folks in the football community connected to the Thunder and Hilltops. When that all wrapped up, I came away with a feeling that this whole situation wasn’t over, and I got a gut feeling that ill will was going to be held against me.

I have been doing media work since 1996, so I believe I have some type of ability to read humans. Plus, we live in the age of Trump, where society is more filled with division and hatred than ever before casting a shadow over all parts of life.

With social media and all the communication tools at our disposal, we are more connected and disconnected with each other at the same time. This is due to the lack of face-to-face interactions especially interactions in a social setting.

Also in my personal life then at the time of the 2024 PFC final and now, I deal with pressures from my 80-year-old mom and my family to be in the sports world less and to be more present at home. Everyone on the family front was full support with my pursuits covering the sports world and my activities in, but once the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit, the dynamics and expectations on the family front changed.

I am not stating this as a complaint. I am stating this as a part of life.

As a result, I went into this CJFL season really with one foot out the door. I actively wouldn’t be covering it on this blog, if the Hilltops hadn’t requested more help from me to put pieces together for their game program. I have been doing that since 2017.

In relation to the CJFL, I have been what you would old school call a Hilltops beat writer since I moved back to Saskatoon after a 10-year stay in Medicine Hat, Alta. During my years in the Hat, I had only here and there interactions with high-level football above the high school level. Believe it or not, most of those interactions were with the NFL due to Medicine Hat product and Medicine Hat High School grad Dan Federkeil playing four years on the offensive line with the Indianapolis Colts and having to block for “the” Peyton Manning.

With that said, I had gone 10 years without being heavily involved with high level football above high school until I returned to Saskatoon in 2014.

During summer, I went to a couple of Saskatchewan Roughriders games at Mosaic Stadium in Regina. I ran into a handful of Thunder staffers, and our interactions, while cordial, were awkward.

I would say since October of 2024 the only Thunder staffer I have encountered face-to-face that was jovial and legitimate extremely happy to see me was receivers coach and long time old Rams bud Chris Ashman. That was at the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame induction night when my old Regina Rams from 1997 and 1998 along with long time friend and Rams alum Jon Ryan went into the Hall.

On one Roughriders game in August, I ran into one Thunder staff, who have I have known for about a decade and has the purest heart you could know. We had a great chat about baseball, but it felt like that staffer was torn to be talking to me and was holding back wanting to tell me something.

To add to everything, since 2024 I felt like from the CJFL office it would be kind of better if I silently went away. There seemed to be a fear of what to do if anything else happened that needed to be checked into.

That thinking doesn’t come from a malicious place. It comes from a place of worry about all the time that gets spend dealing with these types of issues. They really are time sucks.

I wrote all of that to be able to add background for where I am coming from, when I saw Al-Katib’s response early Thursday morning.

I will admit my first reaction came from my influence of the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders side of my life. Starting a game by putting your five toughest players on the ice to instigate a five-versus-five line brawl to send a message is the obvious road that wouldn’t lead anywhere and make things worse. In today’s age, that would get you a lifetime suspension from the sport.

Same would go with my old late friend Donn Clark who as the Raiders head coach in the 1993-94 season challenged Medicine Hat Tigers head coach Bob Loucks to fight behind the Zamboni at The Arena in Medicine Hat, Alta., late in a WHL game on January 15, 1994, when Clark felt the Tigers were taking advantage of his younger team. Just to be clear, that is how that night is remembered on the Prince Albert side of things where the Raiders players loved the fact their coach had their collective backs.

The Hilltops did give me a team personnel field pass to be used for today’s game. I decided against using it and going just to avoid a bitter Thunder staffer from finding a code of conduct issue to be used against the Hilltops and myself. I didn’t feel like putting any more time into bitter issues.

During my thoughts, I reflected on the last time I went into a season covering a team where one foot was out the door. In this case, it was a pair of teams.

I went into the 2016-17 U Sports campaign covering the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Men’s and Women’s Hockey Teams with one foot out the door due to some issues that arose late in the previous campaign that were also unresolved that were far different from the one I have been writing about regarding the CJFL.

There came a point early in that Huskies campaign, where I just decided the best course of action was for me to divorce the two Huskies hockey teams. The divorce turned into a marriage separation, and I will give the Coles notes version of why that was.

Kaitlin Willoughby - the ultimate professional and leader.

Kaitlin Willoughby, who was an assistant captain of the Huskies women’s team and would later become their full-fledged captain, rose up like a phoenix and became the ultimate professional and leader. She handled it. When I reflect on that, it comes as no surprise she is still playing these days in the PWHL with the Montreal Victoire.

I was back covering the Huskies hockey teams full time, and was doing regular stories on the Huskies football team until I got knocked off course by the COVID-19 pandemic. After the COVID-19 pandemic, I never really got any momentum again on that front outside of working like one to three overall Huskies events a season.

With all that said, the overall point here was Willoughby showed the type of leadership that is extremely lacking in today’s world.

Now with all of that background established, I have made a decision.

Leading up to and working the upcoming CJFL championship game – the Canadian Bowl, it will be my last ride in covering football for this blog. I will go into a marriage separation status with the game of football after the Canadian Bowl when it comes to writing about it on this blog and that goes for all levels of the game in Canada. I will leave myself leeway for writing about the NFL and NCAA Division I for fun whenever rare times come that I feel like doing that.

I have decided that the whole is greater than the one, which means myself. I have also decided the whole is greater than the one team, being the Hilltops. To be honest, the Hilltops are like the children in caught in the marriage separation thing in my eyes out of this whole thing.

I have come to the conclusion there are maturity issues with some inside the Thunder team, but I admit I can’t pinpoint who those folks are. I am judging from the body language of their staffers I have encountered in more fun settings that those issues are there.

I am kind of old school, and I will not apologize for covering the head shot hit late in the 2024 PFC final in an old school way. I know my type is a breed that is near extinction, but for better or worse, I stick to my guns in the old school way on that front.

Actually to be truthful, I’ve had folks tell me in the WHL, while I cover things in the old school way I am still a homer and I am pulling for the best for the main teams I am covering at the time. Even with that, those folks say I can still take a step backwards and be objective with regards to the main teams I cover, and I can write stories on any team on the circuit and those stories are as good as the one on the main teams I cover.

Jeff Chynoweth, who is the former owner and general manager of the franchise that was one the Kootenay Ice, said pretty much those exact words to me many years ago, and I have never forgotten them. Those types of words rank as the greatest compliments I have ever received on my work.

I might not be like my long ago University of Regina School of Journalism classmate Merelda Fiddler-Potter who has a long list of well-earned awards and a whole host of degrees, but I cherish the compliments like the ones Chynoweth gave me. Side note, I decided to mention Fiddler-Potter, because I saw a poster at the U of R listing her accomplishments and I did have a crush on her when we first met. We formed a pretty decent friendship in our school years.

Now remember, we are in the age of Trump, and that is also considered in the decision making. With all the division and hatred that is prevalent in way too many parts of the world, I am not into getting into fights over what I consider petty issues in the big picture of things.

On the football front, I know how intertwined the game is in Canada, and Thunder personnel are involved in the game at the provincial level in various facets. In the grand scheme of things, I don’t have to be in that world. If my departure will help everyone in the game being more comfortable in the future, again, I believe in this case the needs of the many are greater than the needs of the one, and the time has arrived for the many to go forward without this one.

Being in the sports world, we all have expiry dates when comes to teams and leagues, and my gut feeling is my expiry date with the CJFL came after the 2024 campaign.

I will still allow myself freedom to do fun football posts on the Canadian game on my own social media channels. If there are paid requests through entities like The Canadian Press and the Prince Albert Daily Herald to cover the game in Canada, I will fulfill those requests, unless my busy life has me committed to other things.

Now that the Hilltops have advanced, I have had previous talks with the staffers at the Daily Herald about doing a story on brothers Ryan Adamko and Scott Adamko, who are graduates of the Prince Albert Carlton Comprehensive High School Crusaders program. I will do a double check on the need there, but I expect I will be doing a story on that front for the Daily Herald.

I will still do stories on football in Canada for the platforms overseen by the Gordie Howe Sports Complex. I work there as a communication coordinator, and that is part of my job there.

For the first time in my dealings with the CJFL, the upcoming Canadian Bowl that the Hilltops will be hosting at Saskatoon Minor Football Field on November 9 will be a suit game for me. Like when I work covering games in the WHL and CHL, I will be bringing out the suit and tie to cover the upcoming CJFL title game, which means I will be in a more heightened business state.

Again, this is my last ride like Ray Lewis with the Baltimore Ravens in the 2012 NFL season. Of course in life, I have learned to “never say never,” so it will never be written in stone how long the marriage separation from the sport of football in Canada will last on this blog.

I have already thought about paying more attention to things I haven’t with the extra time I will have. That includes being more present in the home and being around for my 80-year-old mom, being more focused on my work on the WHL circuit, hopefully getting out to a Winnipeg Blue Bombers home game wearing Bombers gear in memory of Murphy, and hopefully seeing Prince Albert product Abby Soyko play with the University of Alberta Pandas Women’s Hockey Team in their storied and historic home barn of the Clare Drake Arena in Edmonton, Alta. She has been a super special person and supremely good influence that I have dealt with in the sports world.

Oh, as far as possible controversies go from today’s PFC final, I don’t know what happened as far as the blow by blows of the contest went. If there was a controversy, I am perfectly fine if this one played out.

That controversy would be that the players on the Hilltops and Thunder, if they felt moved to do so, would have once again gathered at centre-field after the game to take part in a prayer circle to show their faith in the Lord or the Higher Power that they believe in.

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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Clark enjoys returns to his late older brother’s “Hockey Town North” stomping grounds

Wendel Clark waves to crowd at the SaskTel Centre on Feb. 4, 2017.

Wendel Clark will always see Prince Albert as a place his late older brother Donn viewed as a home.

While Wendel is best known as being a legendary power forward for the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and playing defence for the Saskatoon Blades in the WHL from 1983 to 1985, Donn developed big ties with the Prince Albert Raiders. Donn was a defenceman for the Raiders during their inaugural season in the WHL in 1982-83.

He was the club’s head coach for two seasons from 1993 to 1995. After leaving the Raiders, Donn returned to the team before the start of the 2000-01 campaign as head coach and transitioned over to the executive side part way into the 2001-02 campaign as the director of hockey operations and then later as general manager before being ousted on January 14, 2008.

During his years with the Raiders, Donn got to experience two magical post-season runs in 1995 and 2005 when the club advanced to the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship Series falling in both of those jaunts in a series-deciding Game 7 to the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Wendel will be back in Prince Albert on Saturday as the guest speaker for the Kinsmen-Raiders Sportsman Dinner to be held at the Ches Leach Lounge at the Art Hauser Centre. The doors open at 5 p.m., supper follows at 6 p.m. and the program starts at 7:15 p.m.

This story of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click right here.

Raiders passings cause memories to be more cherished

Plaques for Donn Clark and Bruce Vance on the Raiders Wall of Honour.

You never know how someone’s passing is going to affect you until they actually pass away.

When I moved to Prince Albert way back in May of 2001 to work for the Daily Herald as a full-time sports reporter, the first two people I basically met after Daily Herald staffers were Donn Clark and Bruce Vance. The introduction came at a Raiders annual general meeting shortly after I arrived in town.

Clark at the time was holding the roles of Raiders head coach and general manager. Vance had recently at that time arrived in town as the team’s new director of marketing. In recent days, I have been struggling with the fact that both are now gone from this life.

Clark passed away on March 2, 2019 just two days shy of his 57^th birthday. We share a March 4 birthday. Vance passed away this past October 18 at age 63.

Cancer got both of them. Looking back to that first meeting in May of 2001, I thought we would all seemingly live forever and be in hockey forever being fairly young like I was back then.

I never thought Clark or Vance would not live to see their respective 65^th birthdays. For both, I knew the end was coming in their cancer battles, but it still doesn’t prepare you for when it will happen.

This column of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click right here.

Raiders deliver spectacular night for Vance, beat Pats 6-4

Long time business head inducted to Wall of Honour

Bruce Vance, second from right, was honoured on Friday night.

PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – Bruce Vance might have known all the 2,383 spectators in attendance at the 2,580 seat Art Hauser Centre on Friday night.

Before the Prince Albert Raiders 6-4 WHL regular season victory over the Regina Pats on Friday night, the long time business head of the Raiders was inducted to the Raiders Wall of Honour in the builders’ category. His plaque on the Wall of Honour sits next to that good friend and long time co-worker in the late Donn Clark, who held the positions of head coach, director of hockey operations and general manager during his time with the team.

The Raiders were paying tribute to Vance, who is putting up a valiant fight against Stage IV colon cancer, for all he did with the team from 2001 to 2015. From director of marketing to business manager and director of marketing, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say Vance might have at some point in time done every business function in the Raiders office during his time with the team. Often, he was the guy that made the Raiders go.

Plaques for Donn Clark and Bruce Vance on the Raiders Wall of Honour.

Even when Vance moved on to become the Marketing and Sponsorship Coordinator for the City of Prince Albert, he still did some volunteer work with the team. That work often required his help for a special event like the jersey retirement night of the #4 for legendary Raiders defenceman Dave Manson on February 12, 2016.

“Being involved in the community was very important,” said Vance in a video address to the crowd. “The Raiders are such a passionate part of Prince Albert.

Bruce and Liane Vance, centre, watch video tributes for Bruce.

“This community is so welcoming. It was easy to become immersed in the community as a team and as a family. To work for 14 years here in junior hockey in Prince Albert was very special with a number of great moments including games where we had the Teddy Bear Toss all the way to haunted houses.

“We gave away a truck and many other fun things. We got involved in the community events like ‘Bring Back the Magic’ (campaign), the Special Olympics Power Breakfast and the Father Daughter Gala. Over the 14 years, it was incredible to work with some great staff, players, board of directors and fans many of whom are still good family friends.”

Vance more then walked the walk when it came to community involvement. If you try to name every community thing he was involved with, you would inevitably forget a sizable amount of things.

Bruce Vance, centre, walks out to centre ice.

Vance involved himself in numerous ways in the community coaching, managing and volunteering due to the sports and activities his son, Jon, and daughters, Briane and Jessica, were involved with. A lot of the involvements continued after all three of his children moved into adulthood. That included being involved with the Esso Cup female under-18 AAA national championship hockey tournament held in Prince Albert this past April.

Vance served as co-manager alongside his wife, Liane, with the Prince Albert A & W Bears, now known as the Prince Albert Northern Bears, from 2011 to 2015. He served as president of the Crescent Acres Community Club for seven years and was named Softball Saskatchewan’s volunteer of the year in 2009.

The scene after Bruce Vance drops the ceremonial faceoff puck.

Family is very important to Vance too. Missing special events like graduations or presiding over Briane’s wedding is unthinkable. One of the reasons he started working for the City of Prince Albert was it allowed more time him to see Jessica play goal in the U Sports ranks. Jessica had a spectacular career playing for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Team that included Canada West Conference MVP honours in 2017-18.

Vance also got to travel to Krasnoyarsk, Russia, in March of 2019 to see Jessica play for Canada’s women’s hockey team that won silver at the FISU Winter Universiade.

Bruce Vance shakes hands with Raiders captain Eric Johnston.

Along with his family at home, Vance had a family in the Raiders. The team collected numerous video tributes from former players, coaches, staffers and family friends that were shown through the course of Friday’s contest. Josh Morrissey, who plays defence for the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets, was one of the Raiders alums that sent in a video tribute.

Another one of the video tributes that came in was from NHL referee Chris Schlenker, who played defence for the Raiders in the second half of the 2003-04 season and the entire 2004-05 campaign, where the Raiders made it to Game 7 of the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship Series.

“When I think about my time in Prince Albert, it is still the best time of my entire hockey life,” said Schlenker. “It was because of the people of Prince Albert, the team and the overwhelming support for the Raiders around there.

Bruce Vance shakes hands with Pats captain Tanner Howe.

“The first guy I think about when all of that comes to mind is you. There is nobody who lives the green and gold more than you. You really felt you were a part of the team with us even though you weren’t going on the ice.

“I’m so, so proud of you. I’m happy you are being recognized tonight. Take care my good friend.”

During the pre-game ceremony for Vance, a number of video tributes were played for Vance coming from the likes of former Raiders play-by-play voice Brian Munz, Manson, former coach and player Peter Anholt, former coach Wade Klippenstein, former captain Jeremy Colliton, former NHL Toronto Maple Leafs star Wendel Clark, who is Donn Clark’s younger brother, and Betty Clark, who is Donn Clark’s wife. Vance is a huge Maple Leafs fan.

Aiden Oiring breaks into the offensive zone for the Raiders.

Munz also traveled into Prince Albert for the festivities for Vance from Winnipeg, where he is the director of communications for Golf Manitoba.

Vance applauded all the tributes. He came out to centre ice to a standing ovation from all in attendance.

After accepting the plaque he gets to keep for his Wall of Honour induction, Vance is his customary fun style got the job quickly making an immediate puck drop for the ceremonial faceoff between Raiders captain Eric Johnston and Pats captain and Prince Albert product Tanner Howe. Both players had a chuckle while pictures were taken before Johnston scooped up the puck.

The Raiders did their part to ensure the night would have a perfect ending. They scored first, fell behind 2-1 at the first intermission and proceeded to storm ahead 5-2 early in the third period. From there, they cruised to victory by the 6-4 final score.

The Raiders celebrate a goal from Easton Kovacs (#8).

Sloan Stanick, Easton Kovacs, Tyrone Sobry, Hayden Pakkala, Niall Crocker and Brayden Dube all netted singles for the Raiders, who improved to 7-3-0-1. Matteo Michels, Borya Valis, Sam Oremba and Cole Temple replied with singles for the Pats, who fell to 7-4-1.

Chase Coward stopped 22 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Raiders. Kelton Pyne turned away 32-of-37 shots to take the setback in goal for the Pats.

Following the end of the game, the Raiders skated to the east end of the rink to the box Vance and his family were seated in and gave him and his family a salute the then proceeded to salute the rest of their faithful in attendance at their storied home rink.

The Raiders return to action on Saturday when they host the Moose Jaw Warriors (6-5) at 7 p.m., Art Hauser Centre. The Pats return to action on Sunday when they travel to Swift Current to face the Broncos (4-6-1) at 4 p.m. at the InnovationPlex.

Niall Crocker had a goal for the Raiders on Friday.

As Friday’s game between the Raiders and Pats went along, Vance met a steady stream of well-wishers. While cancer sent an ultimate unfair hit to Vance, it didn’t matter on Friday night.

Vance was diagnosed with Stage III colon cancer in November of 2013, and went on to get a no evidence of disease diagnosis in July of 2014. Liane being diagnosed with rectal cancer in July of 2018, and their family dog, Bella, was diagnosed with lymphoma that same month. Liane won her cancer battle, while Bella passed away after a year of battling the disease.

In August of 2020 about six months after Liane finished her treatment, Bruce was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer with metastases to his bones, liver and lungs. Vance’s diagnosis was terminal, and he was given 24 to 28 months to live. He has outlived that initial diagnosis.

Vance and his family have always approached their cancer battles with a positive nature and focus on doing upbeat things. That has been a huge ally in their cancer battles.

The Raiders give a salute to Bruce Vance and his family.

It has made people in Prince Albert and all the communities they have lived in take their family that much closer to their hearts.

Vance and his family very much deserved their special night on Friday. In the history of the Raiders franchise, he will live on as one of storied team’s most enduring figures.

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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Habscheid era gave Raiders renewed energy boost

Transition to Truitt should be seamless

Marc Habscheid raises the Ed Chynoweth Cup on May 13, 2019.

For fans and anyone involved with the Prince Albert Raiders, they likely held on to a deep hope that Marc Habscheid would coach the team forever.

Anyone that has interacted with junior hockey knows that hoping someone would coach a team forever is an unrealistic notion. For the people of “Hockey Town North,” they saw Habscheid as a natural fit to be the head coach of that franchise, and during his time with the team, the Raiders classic positive traits shone like they hadn’t since the legendary storied era of Terry Simpson.

The Raiders were indeed the team of Dave Manson and Mike Modano – the franchise where honour still matters. The players had a great work ethic and were skilled, tough and classy.

The coaches and team staffers gave the club a family feeling that gave the club a renewed stronger link to the community.

Of course, one of the all-time great Raiders moments was made during Habscheid’s days. That was the team’s Game 7 win in the 2019 WHL Championship Series at the Art Hauser Centre where Dante Hannoun’s overtime winner gave the Raiders a 3-2 victory over the Vancouver Giants.

The sellout crowd of 3,289 spectators at the 2,580-seat building on that May 13^th day in 2019 erupted like never before as they watched their Raiders raise the Ed Chynoweth Cup as WHL champions. That was part of a magical Raiders season that saw the team finish first overall in the WHL regular season with a 54-10-2-2 record.

Those moments were so great that no one amongst the Raiders faithful wanted to speak about what it would be like when Habscheid moves on. In junior hockey especially in the major junior ranks in which the Raiders play, coaches and management move on just like players do.

Marc Habscheid mans the Raiders bench in September of 2019.

For Habscheid, that day came this past July 14, when he resigned his position as head coach of the Raiders. The 59-year-old wanted a new challenge and a professional opportunity in Europe becoming the first head coach of the Bemer Pioneers Vorarlberg located in Feldkirch, Austria, would do just that.

Jeff Truitt, who is one of Habscheid’s long time friends, was promoted from the role of Raiders assistant coach to head coach on July 22. Keaton Ellerby, who is a former NHL defenceman and alumnus of the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers and Moose Jaw Warriors, would be hired as a new Raiders assistant coach on August 2.

Truitt, who is 57-years-old, joined the Raiders staff as an assistant coach before the start of the 2018-19 WHL championship season. He played a big role as a players’ coach in the Raiders success taking on a spot that was held by Manson.

Following the 2017-18 campaign, Manson left the Raiders to become an assistant coach with the Bakersfield Condors, who are the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. Manson is now an assistant coach with the Oilers.

Ellerby, who is 33-years-old, will be taking on his first coaching position since retiring as a player having played last season with the Sheffield Steelers of the Elite Ice Hockey League in the United Kingdom. The Priddis, Alta., product will be focusing his attention on the Raiders defence, and his experience in the professional ranks will help him greatly in that role.

The transition with Truitt taking over as head coach and Ellerby coming on board as an assistant coach should be seamless for the Raiders.

Marc Habscheid sits fifth on the WHL’s career wins list.

Still, Raiders supporters must have felt a slight sense of panic when news broke that Habscheid was leaving. Habscheid became Raiders head coach on November 1, 2014 as a midseason replacement for Cory Clouston.

Before Habscheid arrived, Raiders supporters had a compromised confidence in their team. Until Habscheid came on board, the Raiders hadn’t made it past the first round of the WHL playoffs since reaching the Eastern Conference Championship Series in 2005, where they fell in a heartbreaking seven-game series to the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Peter Anholt was the head coach and Donn Clark was the general manager of a Raiders club in 2004-05 that was extremely popular in Prince Albert that went on a playoff foray that was known locally as “The Run.”

In the years leading up to Habscheid’s arrival, it felt like there was a plateau to any type of success the Raiders could potentially achieve. When Habscheid became the Raiders head coach, it came as a surprise to the Raiders faithful.

Habscheid was a star coach that experienced a fair amount of success in the WHL. While he grew up on a farm just outside of Swift Current, Raiders supporters never thought someone like Habscheid would become a head coach of their team, especially given the fact he didn’t have any ties to the Prince Albert area.

Once Habscheid arrived, it felt like he had always been a part of the community. He knew the Raiders history well and made it a focus his Raiders teams would emulate the positive characteristics the successful Raiders teams of the past did.

Jeff Truitt raises the Ed Chynoweth Cup on May 13, 2014.

When Curtis Hunt became the Raiders general manager before the start of the 2015-16 campaign, his arrival was a joyful surprise too for the Raiders faithful. 

As player, Hunt was a rookie defenceman with the Raiders when the team won the WHL championship and the Memorial Cup as CHL champions in 1984-85, and he later became the Raiders captain in his final season with the team as a player in 1986-87.

Habscheid and Hunt kind of became a hockey power couple. During the 2016-17 season, they assembled a core group of eight young players in forwards Sean Montgomery, Parker Kelly, Cole Fonstad and Spencer Moe, defencemen Brayden Pachal, Zack Hayes and Max Martin and netminder Ian Scott.

They took their lumps in the first half of the 2016-17 campaign and played tough hockey in the second half of that season finishing with a 21-44-5-2 record. 

The Raiders faithful were impressed by how much that group improved along with that group’s maturity and work ethic.

A guarded feeling started to take root in Prince Albert that something special might be coming with the Raiders again. Hunt kept adding pieces and Habscheid kept making things come together.

 The Raiders made the WHL playoffs in 2017-18 with a 32-27-9-4 record and fell in tough seven game first round series to the Moose Jaw Warriors.

Dante Hannoun (#17) reacts to his OT goal to win the 2019 WHL title.

When the Raiders won their first seven straight games to start the 2018-19 season, the Art Hauser Centre was packed from about October 13, 2018 onwards. 

It was in the minds of the Raiders faithful that the special season was happening, and no one wanted miss a thing.

It got to the point there were ticket buyers who would make 90-minute drives in from out of town to see the Raiders play at their storied home rink. 

Of course, the team finished first overall in the WHL regular season standings and proceeded to win the league title on Hannoun’s overtime winner in Game 7 of the league championship series in writing a spectacular tale for the 2018-19 campaign.

Along the way, Habscheid was able to play into the fact the fans enjoyed watching the Raiders down their archrivals in the Saskatoon Blades, which saw Habscheid have some verbal exchanges with former Blades head coach Mitch Love. You almost forgot that Habscheid was a star Blades centre from 1979 to 1982.

Many fun team building things happened along the way too. That was best seen on February 9, 2019, when Habscheid picked up his 500^th career WHL regular season win as a head coach with a 6-5 victory over the Hurricanes in Lethbridge. 

The Raiders did a fun team picture in the dressing room where Habscheid wore a top hat the team usually gave to the hardest working player.

Curtis Hunt, left, and Marc Habscheid were a great Raiders duo.

The team proceeded to head to a Lethbridge area Dairy Queen, where Habscheid paid for whatever the players wanted to order as part of the milestone celebration.

It also meant a tonne to Habscheid when the 2018-19 WHL champion Raiders rallied to support him after his father, Nicholas, passed in June of 2018.

When the Raiders faithful reflect on those memories and the fact Habscheid has the fifth most career regular season wins in the history of the WHL at 582, there is a little fear at first when you hear he is leaving.

Still, Hunt remains the Raiders general manager and Truitt has built a career as the good guy coach who wins wherever he goes. They will continue to build a Raiders team that is in a reload phase but still made the WHL playoffs last season with a 28-35-4-1 record.

The Raiders are still in good hands for the foreseeable future. The team’s faithful will be able to get behind a team they can be proud of.

With that said, Habscheid’s era with the club will be one that will always be celebrated, and he will always identify with the team.

Marc Habscheid and Jeff Truitt enjoy the 2019 WHL title win.

Habscheid showed it is still possible for the Raiders to reach the biggest heights and achieve the biggest dreams.

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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Top 10 cool things I saw in 2019

Dante Hannoun (#17) celebrates his OT winner in Game 7 of the WHL final.

    For me, 2019 will go down as the year of the Raiders.

    Thanks to their magical run to winning their first WHL title since 1985, the Prince Albert Raiders will obviously be making appearances on this list. Anytime I type out stories about teams or athletes from Prince Albert it seems to go over really well.

    The hockey front was extremely fun specifically when it came to covering the Raiders and the Saskatoon Blades. Both squads had strong seasons in the 2018-19 campaign.

    In order to help stir up the rivalry, posts on the Blades did actually receive more views than posts on the Raiders over the first two months of the year.

    Still over the life of this blog, posts on the Raiders usually attract more page views than posts about the Blades.

    Of course there was a lot of fun on the football front as well.

Adam Machart set a new Huskies record for regular season rushing.

    With that noted, I do have to start out with one big honourable mention. I wasn’t able to fit the University of Saskatchewan Huskies football team on to my top 10 list.

    I had a really fun time covering the Huskies football team, and I am pumped about the players that are slated to be back with the team next season. I really believe the Huskies can accomplish some big things in the upcoming years.

    The big highlight was seeing running back Adam Machart break the Huskies team record for most rushing yards in one regular season. Machart ran the ball 156 times for 1,334 yards and eight touchdowns.

    The old Huskies record for most rushing yards in one regular season was held by Doug Rozon. Back in the 1999 campaign, Rozon ran the ball 151 times for 1,267 yards and five touchdowns.

    Through the air, Machart caught 20 passes for 204 yards and three touchdowns. His 1,538 all-purpose yards was a new Huskies regular season team record and was the fifth most all-purpose yards put up in the history of the Canada West Conference for one regular season.

    For his efforts, Machart was named the most outstanding player in Canada West.

Nelson Lokombo (#25) was the U Sports defensive player of the year.

    Third-year defensive back Nelson Lokombo claimed the Presidents’ Trophy as the U Sports defensive player of the year. He earned that same honour at the Canada West Conference level.

    During the regular season, Lokombo topped the Huskies with four interceptions and returned two of those interceptions for touchdowns. The Abbotsford, B.C., product posted 23.5 total tackles, 2.5 sacks and four pass breakups during the regular campaign as well.

    Huskies defensive tackle Evan Machibroda took home honours as the most outstanding lineman for Canada West. Linebacker Ramsey Derbas was named the rookie of the year for Canada West, and Huskies head coach Scott Flory was named the coach of the year for Canada West.

    The Huskies posted a 5-3 regular season record and advanced to the Canada West championship game falling to the University of Calgary Dinos, who went on to win the Vanier Cup to become U Sports national champions.

Cody Fajardo (#7) and the Roughriders won the Labour Day Classic.

    I also bumped the annual CFL Labour Day Classic clash between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders off the top 10 list this year. The Roughriders won a thriller 19-17 on a Brett Lauther 26-yard walk off field goal.

    With the football items noted, my lists traditionally have been hockey heavy due to the fact I am in my 21^st season covering the WHL.

    During my travels, this blog has surpassed over 586,000 all-time page views. I thank you for stopping in.

    Your support helps drive me to keep me going. Financial support helps too, and if you wanted to click on the donate button in the upper right corner and make a contribution, I would be really grateful for that. It helps with the bills and expenses and allows me to keep returning to the sporting venues.

    Anyways without further ado, here are the memories.

10. Donn Clark’s celebration of life was a warm memorial

Donn Clark on the Raiders Wall of Honour.

    It is always different when you head off to pay your respects to an old friend.

    On March 2, long time WHL hockey executive Donn Clark, who is best remembered for his time with the Prince Albert Raiders, lost his long battle with cancer. While Clark had been fighting cancer for a number of years, it didn’t feel like you would be ready for his passing.

    He was inducted on to the Raiders Wall of Honour the day before he passed away. Clark helped create the Raiders Wall of Honour. He guided the Raiders to the WHL semifinal round as head coach in 1995 and saw the Raiders make the league’s final four again in 2005 as general manager.

    He was a real good supporter for me in my pursuits with this blog and sports reporting.

Due to the fact he can be stubborn, there was a belief Clark would beat cancer even though the doctors said his condition was terminal.

    With Clark’s family and friends being heavily involved in hockey, the family decided to have his celebration of life on July 20 in Kelvington, Sask. The people that turned out on a very bright and sunny day were shoehorned into the Kelvington Community Legion Hall for a great service.

Donn Clark, left, pictured from when he played in P.A.

    Numerous people turned out from the hockey world as well as family and friends from outside the game. While you would have like the gathering to occur under better circumstances, it was great to see Clark’s younger brother, Wendel, again and finally meet Barry Melrose in person.

    Wendel, of course, starred for the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades and NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. Melrose was the head coach of the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers 1988 Memorial Cup championship team and guided the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings to the 1993 Stanley Cup final.

    So many cool stories were shared about Donn Clark that included his various witty remarks from over the years. I was amazed to hear about his other pursuits and interests outside of hockey and farming.

    I didn’t know Clark could play the trumpet, had his pilot’s licence and motorcycle licence. He had his pilot’s licence even back when I worked for the Prince Albert Daily Herald from 2001 to 2004 and covered the Raiders.

    One of the speakers at the service talked about how Clark took one last short motorcycle ride during the last week he was alive, and that he had a huge grin on his face while riding his bike.

    Clark was given a sweet send off in Kelvington, which is fairly picturesque. It was special to be part of the group that came together for his celebration of life to share in many memories.

9. Star retire Emily Clark’s #13

Emily Clark waves to the crowd at Merlis Belsher Place.

    I got see a special first in 2019 thanks to the Saskatoon Stars.

    On December 20, 2019, female midget AAA hockey team retired the number of one of their all-time greats in Emily Clark.

    Clark played three seasons for the Stars from 2009 to 2012 appearing in 82 regular season games collecting 45 goals and 46 assists for 91 points.

    The skilled forward’s best season came in her final campaign in 2011-12. During that season with the Stars, Clark appeared in 26 regular season game collecting 26 goals and 34 assists for 60 points.

    Clark’s 34 helpers are still a Stars record for most assists in one regular season. Her 60 points is still a team record for most points in one regular season, and it was matched in the 2017-18 campaign by Mackenna Parker, who tallied a club record 33 goals and 27 assists in 23 regular season games.

Emily Clark’s number is raised up at Merlis Belsher Place.

    Clark is best known for playing with Canada’s senior national women’s hockey team, which included winning a silver medal at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, in February of 2018.

    She is also known for being a member of the University of Wisconsin Badgers women’s hockey team that won an NCAA championship last season.

    The Stars honoured the 24-year-old before a Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League regular season contest with the Regina Rebels at Merlis Belsher Place. A number of former Stars players came back to the new rink facility on the University of Saskatchewan campus to check out the festivities.

    A video was played on the rink’s big screen showing video highlights of Clark’s time with the Badgers.

    Standing at centre ice with her parents in father, Del, and mother, Tracy, Emily watched her number get raised up at the rink. She proceeded to drop the puck for a ceremonial faceoff.

Emily Clark, centre, is pictured with some of her old Stars teammates.

    As the game went on, Clark met a number of young fans on the concourse. Following the game that was won 4-3 by the Rebels in comeback fashion, Clark posed for pictures with both teams, the current Stars, the current Stars and the Stars alums in attendance and finally with the some of the Stars alums she played with.

    For me, this marked the first time I saw in person or over a televised broadcast a female athlete have her number retired by a sports team. That includes being active in the media starting with student media in 1996.

    I had seen a number of male athletes have their numbers retired, but I had never seen a female athlete have her number retired until the Stars did that for Clark.

    Clark fully deserved the honour, and I hope I will see more female athletes have their numbers retired by teams in the future.

8. Blades finally lock up first playoff berth since 2013

Captain Chase Wouters and the Blades made it to the WHL playoffs.

    There was some pretty good joy happening on the night the Saskatoon Blades finally locked up their first WHL playoff berth since 2013.

    Before the 2018-19 season began, I wrote a column that predicted the Blades would indeed return to the WHL playoffs, and they would have a post-season berth locked up before March came about in 2019.

    On February 23 at the SaskTel Centre, the Blades officially clinched a WHL playoff berth with a 4-3 victory after a tiebreaking shootout over the Kootenay Ice before 4,334 spectators. The post-season berth was officially clinched with the Blades win and due to the fact the Prince Albert Raiders thumped the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings 7-1 at the Art Hauser Centre that very same night.

    Against the Ice, the Blades built a 3-1 lead after two periods only to see the visitors score twice in the third to force a 3-3 tie and overtime.

Kyle Crnkovic has the shootout winner for the Blades.

    After a scoreless overtime frame, Blades rookie left-winger Kyle Crnkovic scored the only goal in the shootout to give Saskatoon a 1-0 victory in the tiebreaking session and a 4-3 victory in the game.

    Saskatoon last made the WHL playoffs in 2013, when they hosted the CHL championship tournament – the Memorial Cup. I moved to Saskatoon in the summer of 2014, and the Blades were still well into a major rebuild from hosting the Memorial Cup.

    The Blades were also still recovering from making a major trade in the 2010-11 campaign for Brayden Schenn. The Blades finished first overall in the WHL that season but were swept in the second round of the playoffs by the eventual WHL champion Ice.

    While I have been covering the WHL as a whole with emphasis on the Saskatchewan scene, I still live in Saskatoon, and the Blades are the team I see play the most.

    In 2014-15 and 2015-16, they needed some prayers to be answered in order to make the playoffs. In 2016-17 and 2017-18, the Blades had the roster to qualify for the post-season, but encountered near misses in each campaign due to late season slumps.

The Blades celebrate a long awaited post-season berth.

    After the disappointment of those near misses, there was great joy among the Blades and their fans after officially locking down a playoff berth with their win on Feb. 23.

    The Blades ultimately finished fourth overall in the WHL regular season standings with a 45-15-8 record. They swept the Moose Jaw Warriors 4-0 in a best-of-seven first round series.

    Saskatoon’s playoff run ended falling 4-2 in a best-of-seven second round series to the eventual WHL champion Raiders.

    The epilogue doesn’t diminish how special it was for the Blades to lock away their playoff spot on Feb. 23. Everyone involved with that club had been working hard for that moment for some time, and the reward finally came.

7. Blades first game back in WHL playoffs equals OT win

Captain Chase Wouters (#44) is mobbed after scoring his OT winner.

    I admit I was pretty giddy to start covering the 2019 WHL playoffs in my home centre.

    After finishing fourth overall in the WHL regular season standings with a 45-15-8 record, the Saskatoon Blades opened their first appearance in the post-season since 2013 on home ice. They faced the Moose Jaw Warriors in a best-of-seven first round series on March 22^nd at the SaskTel Centre.

    The Blades had assembled a good bunch for the 2018-19 campaign, and it was great to see them in the post-season.

    The Game 1 clash with the Warriors didn’t start off well for the Blades as the visitors took a 2-0 lead early in the second period with singles coming from Kaeden Taphorn and Eric Alarie.

Riley McKay scored the equalizer to force overtime.

    The Blades proceeded to battle back. Overage right-winger Max Gerlach scored at the 7:21 mark of the second period to cut the Warriors lead to 2-1.

    With 8:12 remaining in the third period, feisty left-winger Riley McKay tallied for the Blades and evened the score at 2-2 to force overtime.

    At the 3:23 mark of overtime, Blades captain Chase Wouters blew down the left wing of the Moose Jaw zone and lifted a backhand shot past Warriors netminder Brodan Salmond to give the Blades a 3-2 victory.

    The 5,193 spectators at the SaskTel Centre went bananas after Wouters’ goal.

    Star netminder Nolan Maier made 21 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Blades. Salmond turned away 35 shots to take the setback in goal for the Warriors.

    As a career member with the Blades who was playing through his third full campaign at the time, Wouters was pretty pumped at game’s end.

    “It is a pretty crazy feeling,” said Wouters. “It is something I will never forget that is for sure.

The SaskTel Centre crowd celebrates the Blades playoff win.

    “It was kind of a lot of hard work all game and got some reward. It is a pretty special moment. It is not only like for me.

    “It is for our group. We’ve worked all hard to this point, and this is kind of something we’ve wanted since we started the year. We got it, so it was good.”

    The Blades swept the series 4-0. They fell 4-2 in a best-of-seven second round series to the eventual WHL champion Prince Albert Raiders.

6. “Sarge” gets his 200^th win

Hilltops HC Tom Sargeant, right, gets an ice bath shower after win 200.

    A big thanks goes to veteran Saskatoon StarPhoenix sports scribe Kevin Mitchell for allowing this memory to be possible.

    Before the Saskatoon Hilltops hit their field for their second regular season game of the 2019 campaign, Mitchell figured out legendary Hilltops head coach Tom Sargeant was one win away from hitting 200 head coaching victories in his career including action in the CJFL regular season and post-season.

    I double checked Mitchell’s numbers, and they were bang on.

    I figured out Sargeant was attempting to become just the second person to hit 200 head coaching wins in Canadian amateur post-secondary football.

    Retired Regina Rams head coach Frank McCrystal is the other sideline boss who has 200 head coaching wins in Canadian amateur post-secondary football. McCrystal posted a 208-104-2 record as Rams head coach from 1984 to 2014 including action in the regular season and playoffs with the Rams in the CJFL and U Sports.
    The Hilltops went into the 2019 campaign facing a huge turnover in starters from their 2018 CJFL championship team. 

Hilltops HC Tom Sargeant checks out a play on the big screen.

    They were vulnerable at the beginning of the season and going to Regina to face the Thunder in Week 2 at Mosaic Stadium was going to be a big challenge.

    Saskatoon was playing its first three regular season games on the road as well.

    With the news being out there that “Sarge” needed one win to hit 200, it seemed to help the Hilltops players take their minds of any early season struggles and sharpen their focus for when they hit the field at Mosaic Stadium on August 25.

    Still, the game was far from a work of art, but one that the Hilltops were able to grind out. Saskatoon held a 14-9 advantage with one play remaining in the third quarter. The Thunder had the ball at the Hilltops four yard line.

    The complexion of the contest changed at that point. Third year Hilltops safety Brant Morrow intercepted Thunder quarterback Blake Scherle just inside the Saskatoon end zone.

    Morrow raced 113 yards the other way for a touchdown to put the Hilltops up 21-9. Saskatoon powered out a 34-16 victory.

    Following the game, the Hilltops players gave Sargeant the ice bucket shower. That tradition is usually reserved for CJFL championship victories, but it came out for this special occasion.

Hilltops president Terry Postey made sure to collect the game ball.

Hilltops president Terry Postey collects the game ball for HC Tom Sargeant.

    The Hilltops don’t normally celebrate regular season wins that much, but everyone involved with the venerable CJFL club took time to congratulation Sargeant and enjoy his milestone accomplishment.

    It made for a very memorable early game in the season.

    As the campaign played out, the Hilltops finished with a perfect 12-0 record to win the CJFL title for a sixth straight year.

    Sargeant, who became the Hilltops head coach before the start of the 1998 campaign, boosted his career record to 210-30-2 including action in the CJFL regular season and playoffs following the Hilltops 11-6 victory over the Langley Rams in Langley, B.C., in the CJFL championship game – the Canadian Bowl.

    Sargeant is currently the all-time leader for head coaching victories in Canadian amateur post-secondary football.

5. Last run for the Slobodzian era coached Stars

The Stars piled up banner and trophy wins over five seasons.

    Even to this day, it is still crazy for me to believe the long time veterans of the Saskatoon Stars female midget AAA team have moved on.

    The 2018-19 season would be the last campaign the Stars would hit the ice with star players Grace Shirley, Anna Leschyshyn and Joelle Fiala. All three exhausted their midget AAA eligibility and moved on the to the NCAA women’s hockey ranks.

    In total, all three were with the Stars for four complete seasons. Shirley and Leschyshyn also saw time as associate player call ups in the 2014-15 campaign, when they were still first year aged bantam players.
    The Stars were also set to lose Kaitlin Jockims, Jayda Sachs, Grace Tam and Abby DeCorby due to graduation after the 2014-15 campaign.
    You could feel the impending finality that an era was coming to an end. The changes would still be bigger than the seven departures due to graduation.

Grace Shirley played in all four of the Stars appearances at Esso Cup.

    The 2018-19 was head coach Greg Slobodzian’s final season coaching the team. He guided the Stars thought their most successful time from 2014-15 to 2018-19. The Stars won their four SFMAAAHL titles in 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019.

    They advanced to the Esso Cup female midget AAA national championship tournament in each of those years winning a bronze medal in 2015 and a silver medal in 2018 falling in a heartbreaking final 2-1 to the Alberta based St. Albert Slash.
    Assistant coach Curtis Leschyshyn was leaving too having been on the Stars staff for four seasons from 2015 to 2019.

    Both wanted to spend more time watching their children play university hockey or the professional ranks.

    Adam Slobodzian, who is Greg’s son, was departing after one season as an assistant coach.
    The Stars also lost Ashley Messier, Chase Sperling and Calli Arnold after the 2018-19 campaign as they chose to pursue opportunities with academy teams.

Anna Leschyshyn came through in clutch moments for the Stars.

    On the ice, the Stars took care of business in 2018-19. They posted a 47-3-2-1 overall record that included winning the prestigious Mandi Schwartz Memorial Tournament, the SFMAAAHL title and the Western Regional playdown series.

    Saskatoon posted its best ever record in regular season play at 27-1.

    The SFMAAAHL title and Western Regional wins were celebrated on the ice surface at Merlis Belsher Place.

    I miss interacting with the team around the rink after practices and games. Since I had known the veterans for so long having covered the Stars since the 2014-15 campaign, the jokes and wisecracks would fly.

    I remember when Greg Slobodzian didn’t realize the Stars had locked up first place and said he told the girls first place hadn’t been locked up yet.

    Anna Leschyshyn and Shirley emerge from the dressing room, and Slobodzian lets out a, “Hey, we clinched first place!”

    Then fist bumps were given all around to celebrate.

Joelle Fiala delivered points and spunk to the Stars.

    I loved interviewing Fiala and having her from out of nowhere pop up and say something spunky that made a couple of pieces way more entertaining.
    I remember walking out of Merlis one time after practice with a group of six players as everyone was scattering to go home.

    During that walk, I recall looking around and thinking to myself, “When did all these girls grow up?”

    They really did grow up before my eyes.

    At Esso Cup in Sudbury, Ont., in April, the Stars finished first in the round robin with a 4-1 record. 

    They fell 2-1 in overtime in a semifinal contest to the Slash, who went on to win the Esso Cup for a third straight year.

    The Stars fell 3-2 after a tiebreaking shootout to the Ontario-based Stoney Creek Sabres.

    A tonne of great memories were made covering this special generation of the Stars. At the moment, I still miss the players and coaches who have moved on a tonne.

4. Hilltops sixth straight title, unexpected perfection repeat

Ben Abrook (#32) dives into the end zone for a Hilltops winning TD.

    A lot of people on the outside might not truly grasp how hard it was for the Saskatoon Hilltops to win a sixth Canadian Junior Football League championship and repeat perfection to boot in the process.

    The Hilltops did just that in 2019, but the road to get there wasn’t easy.

    In 2018, the Hilltops did have one of the most dominant 11-0 championship seasons any team in any league had ever seen. It was arguably the most dominant campaign the Hilltops ever had.

    Saskatoon lost eight key graduates from that 2018 CJFL championship team and a number of other key players elected to join the U Sports ranks.

    The Hilltops went into the 2019 campaign with a huge turnover among the team’s starters. The offence was placed in the hands of fifth-year quarterback Tyler Hermann, who would be in his first year as the club’s starting signal caller.

    Legendary head coach Tom Sargeant and his elite coaching staff had a big challenge on their hands in trying to mould the squad into a championship team.

LB Jadyn Pingue was named the CJFL’s top defensive player.

    The Hilltops won their first two regular season games on the road by solid scores, but they looked vulnerable in each of those outings.

    In their third regular season contest that was also played on the road, the Hilltops needed a fourth quarter comeback to get past the Huskies in Edmonton. Star power running back Ben Abrook ran home the winning touchdown with 1:47 to play in the fourth quarter to give the Hilltops a 24-22 victory.

    The Hilltops fourth regular season game was their home opener, and they needed another fourth quarterback comeback to beat the Regina Thunder. Down 21-20, Abrook dived home for the winning touchdown with 33.4 seconds to play and added a two-point convert for a 28-21 win.

    One play before Abrook’s score, Hilltops backup quarterback Doug Fleming, who handles short-yardage situations, fumbled the ball away, and the Thunder recovered the loose ball.

    The fumble recovery was nullified due to an offside penalty against the Regina side. The Thunder likely would have been able to run out the clock had their fumble recovery stood up.

Tyler Hermann went 12-0 in his lone season as Hilltops starting QB.

    Still, the Hilltops found a way to post a 4-0 record, and the wins came due to veteran players stepping up to make plays at critical times.

    At the point, the comfort level rose on the field as various players got used to new roles. The Hilltops posted dominant wins in their final four regular season games and first post-season contest.

    In the PFC final at Saskatoon Minor Football Field, the Hilltops held a 20-14 edge over the Huskies heading into the fourth quarter before pulling away for a 30-14 victory.

    In a CJFL semifinal game in London, Ont., the Hilltops hammered the host Beefeaters 51-1. That set up a CJFL championship game rematch from the previous season between the Hilltops and Langley Rams, but this year’s clash would be held in Langley, B.C.

    The Rams entered that clash with a 12-0 record, so the Canadian Bowl would be a rare battle between two undefeated clubs.

    The Hilltops had to rely on a stellar performance by their defence and kicker/receiver Rylan Kleiter hitting 3-of-4 field goals to squeak out an 11-6 victory.

Right guard Taylon Elderkin gets to carry the ball for the Hilltops.

    With the win over the Rams, the Hilltops had their second straight perfect season, sixth straight CJFL title win, their fifth perfect season in club history and 22^nd CJFL championship in team history. They have won the Canadian Bowl in nine of the last 10 seasons.

    This title win in the nature that it happened was unexpected.

    In his one season as the starting quarterback, Hermann had a perfect 12-0 record, and he had strong season too. He completed 123-of-192 passes for 1,908 yards, 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions appearing in all of his club’s eight regular season games.

    Abrook was a workhorse carrying the ball 199 times for 1,215 yards and eight touchdowns during the regular season.

    Middle linebacker Jadyn Pingue was voted the CJFL’s most outstanding defensive player of the year. He collected 33.5 total tackles, one pass knockdown, one fumble recovery and one interception during the regular season.

Rylan Kleiter’s leg delivered the Hilltops a CJFL championship game win.

    At the end of the campaign, Sargeant had a 210-30-2 career record as Hilltops head coach including action in the CJFL’s regular season and post-season. He has the record for most wins in Canadian amateur post-secondary football.

    The Hilltops also played the campaign with heavy hearts remembering late alum linebacker Justin Filteau, who passed away in a plane crash in early June. Filteau played for the Hilltops from 2010-14 before joining the University of Saskatchewan Huskies football team from 2015-17. He was serving as a defensive position coach with the WWCFL’s Saskatoon Valkyries at the time of his death.

    After winning the Canadian Bowl in Langley, the Hilltops lifted Sargeant on their shoulders, and he symbolically lifted the trophy up to the heavens for Filteau.

3. The special WHL title season for the Raiders and their fans

The Art Hauser Centre was “the Mad Hauser” in the WHL playoffs.

    When an opponent goes to Prince Albert for a WHL game, that team is playing against the Raiders and their fans.

    The 2018-19 season was simply magical for the Prince Albert Raiders. They lived up to their romanticized past in a way that hadn’t been seen for some time.

    They are a team of speed and skill mixed with incredible toughness. They are backed by a passionate fanbase that is educated on all the intricacies of hockey.
    The fans are ready to back their team at every moment and pounce on anything underhanded they see the opposition pull.

    The Raiders are the team of Mike Modano and Dave Manson – the franchise where honour still matters.

Brett Leason and the Raiders delivered thrills to “Hockey Town North.”

    The hard work of general manager Curtis Hunt, head coach Marc Habscheid and a likeable group of core players who were determined, skilled and hard working paid off in a big way in 2018-19.

    The fans saw what was happening early, and the Art Hauser Centre became “the Mad Hauser” and a must stop place for any CHL fan to watch a hockey game.

    The Raiders finished first in the WHL regular season standings with a 54-10-2-2 record. They marched through the WHL playoffs and captured the WHL title in dramatic fashion.

    In Game 7 of the WHL Championship series at the Art Hauser Centre, overage centre Dante Hannoun scored the overtime winner to deliver the Raiders to a 3-2 victory over the Vancouver Giants. 

The Raiders and their faithful celebrate a road win in Edmonton.

    The win delivered the WHL title to the Raiders for the second time in team history.

    While they posted an 0-3 record at the Memorial Cup tournament that determines the CHL champion, that finish was an epilogue to a stellar campaign no one in Prince Albert saw coming.

    The Raiders had their best season since winning the WHL title and Memorial Cup title as CHL champions back in 1985.

    Going into the 2018-19 campaign, the Raiders hadn’t won a playoff series since 2005, when they fell in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Championship series to the Brandon Wheat Kings.
    Following that run in 2005, the Raiders went through a 13-year stretch where they missed the playoffs seven times and were eliminated in the first round six times.

Raiders netminder Ian Scott was named the CHL goaltender of the year.

    Still, no one could doubt the love in “Hockey Town North” for the team was there.

    When you stepped into Prince Albert in the 2018-19 campaign, you knew it was game day. You couldn’t venture very far without encountering a sign outside of a business that showed support for the Raiders.

    You stepped into Tim Horton’s and Russ Gurr’s version of “The Song in Prince Albert is Go Raiders Go” played on the intercom system.

    Gurr, who was a country singer, wrote the tune as a theme song for the team in the early 1970s.

    When the Raiders won big post-season games on the road, a huge contingent of fans greeted the team upon returning to the Art Hauser Centre. The players and staff would get off the bus and walk through the crowd giving high-fives on the way to the rink to drop off gear.

The Raiders faithful waited a long time for another WHL championship win.

    Throughout the season, the fans followed the team on the road. There were times when the Raiders scored in opposing rinks you wondered if you were back in Prince Albert.
    I enjoyed visiting the team during some down times on the road.

    During the playoffs, the fans that had standing room tickets started bringing milk crates or stools to stand on to see the action on the ice.

    Players like Hannoun, captain Brayden Pachal, Brett Leason, netminder Ian Scott, Parker Kelly, Sean Montgomery, Noah Gregor, Cole Fonstad, Spencer Moe, Zach Hayes, Max Martin, Aliaksei Protas, Sergei Sapego, Jeremy Masella, Ozzy Wiesblatt and Kaiden Guhle delivered the thrills.
    Scott was named the CHL goaltender of the year.

Raiders fans greeted the team returning home from the Memorial Cup.

    To be fair, all the players that suited up for the Raiders were crucial to contributing to the special campaign.

    Every night it seemed someone new was ready to step up in a big moment.

    A highlight for myself personally was being able to contribute to the Prince Albert Daily Herald’s special Raiders section when the team went off to the Memorial Cup. I hadn’t appeared in the pages of the Daily Herald since I last worked there in September of 2004.

    I was happy to hopefully add to the Raiders lore in typing out the “More than just a hockey team” column that appeared on this blog and in the Daily Herald.
    Another highlight for myself was how this special season helped me get back in contact with a number of Raiders alums I covered when I was at the Daily Herald from 2001 to 2004.

    In 2018-19, the Raiders were the team they were always meant to be. Everyone in Prince Albert went on a ride that will always be remembered and engrained in the psyche of that town.

2. Valkyries win CJFL title, go 9-0 for Filteau

Justin Filteau, left, on the Valkyries sideline in May.

    It was amazing to see love and emotion allowed the Saskatoon Valkyries to lift themselves to greater heights.

    The Valkyries stormed out of the gates of the 2019 Western Women’s Canadian Football League season with a 3-0 regular season record and a 4-0 overall mark. Quarterback Alex Eyolfson was throwing rockets all over the place to receivers Rachelle Smith, Ricki Obed, Kelsey Murphy and sisters Danielle and Haley Girolami.

    Running backs Sam Matheson and Sarah Wright were tearing things up on the ground. The offensive line anchored by Alyssa Funk gave ample freedom for the Valkyries offence to execute.

    The defence featuring Beth Lalonde, Denise Kolosky, Jaime Lammerding, Emmarae Dale, Danaye Holynski, Kori Herner and Ehjae Chan was dominant.

    Head coach Pat Barry and the coaches on his staff were making all the right moves.

Emmarae Dale (#45) makes a big hit for the Valkyries.

    At that point things could have come off the rails.

    On June 1, Valkyries beloved defensive position coach Justin Filteau was in Medicine Hat, Alta., for a social function and boarded a small plane bound for Moose Jaw, Sask.

    Filteau planned to arrive in Moose Jaw and drive out to Regina to meet up with the Valkyries for their final regular season game against the host Riot on June 2.

    The 26-year-old never made it to Moose Jaw. The plane he was in crashed shortly after takeoff just east of Medicine Hat and all three persons on board died.

    The Valkyries found out about Filteau’s passing before they hit the field to play the Riot in Regina.

    The Saskatoon side walked to the field holding hands and pulled out a 22-7 victory. 
    The Valkyries dedicated the rest of their season to Filteau’s memory.

Sam Matheson was in top form running the ball for the Valkyries.

    That June 2 win allowed the Valkyries to finish the WWCFL regular season with a 4-0 record and improve their overall mark to 5-0.

    They embarked on their post-season march still grieving and coming to grips with Filteau’s sudden passing.

    Filteau played linebacker with CJFL’s Saskatoon Hilltops from 2010 to 2014 and with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies football team from 2015 to 2017 in the U Sports ranks.

    He helped coach the Bishop James Mahoney High School Saints in Saskatoon as well as other minor football programs in the city.

    Out all the teams Filteau had an impact on, the Valkyries were the one squad that had to immediately find their way in the healing process.

Valkyries coaches and staffers remembered Justin Filteau with old humour.

    Filteau’s celebration of life was held in Saskatoon between the Valkyries WWCFL quarter-final and semifinal playoff wins.

    Playing to honour Filteau’s memory sped the Valkyries up. During the playoffs, the Valkyries coaches and staffers often wore “Filteau’s the worst” T-shirts.

    That came from the memory from the Valkyries awards night in 2017, when the players presented Filteau with a T-shirt that said “Filteau’s the worst” as a joke gift.

    On June 29, the Valkyries returned to Mosaic Stadium to face the Riot in the WWCFL championship game and posted a 25-3 victory. On July 6, the Valkyries capped a perfect 9-0 season downing the Montreal Blitz 39-12 in a post-season exhibition game at Saskatoon Minor Football Field.
    The bulk of the Valkyries emotions came out after the WWCFL championship win.

Ron Filteau, with trophy, was part of the Valkyries WWCFL title celebrations.

    Following that contest, the Valkyries brought Justin’s father, Ron Filteau, down to the field.

    The players gave Ron a big group hug. He took part in the traditional team pictures with the championship trophy.

    Chan, who was in her sixth year as a defensive back, made two interceptions in the WWCFL championship game win and summed things up eloquently post-game.

    “This feels unreal, especially with everything that has happened this year, the adversity our team has experience and overcome on this field,” said Chan. “It means so much like more than words can even express.

    “For us to be here to have played in this game and pulled through, we really felt coach (Justin) Filteau here today. This game was 100 per cent for him. I think for us it just felt fitting.”

1. Raiders win Game 7 of WHL final in OT

The Raiders mob Dante Hannoun after he scored the WHL title OT winner.

    This was one of those “it will stick with you for the rest of your life moments.”
    Of course, my greatest memory from 2019 was being in the Art Hauser Centre to cover the host Prince Albert Raiders downing the Vancouver Giants 3-2 in overtime in Game 7 of the WHL Championship series in front of a sellout crowd of 3,289 spectators at the 2,580 seat rink.

    I can still see star overage centre Noah Gregor turning around in the left side of the offensive zone in the east end of the rink and sending a backdoor feed to linemate and fellow overage centre Dante Hannoun.
    Hannoun tapped in the backdoor feed from Gregor for the winning goal with 1:35 remaining in the extra frame.

Raiders captain Brayden Pachal raises the Ed Chynoweth Cup.

    Hannoun proceeded to skate across the ice in jubilation after tallying the winner, and the Raiders piled on top of him along the left corner boards on the west end of the building.

    I took what I consider an iconic shot of Hannoun’s reaction to his overtime winner, which was the first picture that led off this top 10 post. It will go down as one of my all-time favourite moments I have ever captured on photo.

    During that game day of Monday, May 13, I had this surreal calm feeling that Game 7 night at the Art Hauser Centre was going to be special. There have been two Game 7s in the WHL final that were decided in overtime, and I was in the building to cover both of them.

Dante Hannoun will always be a hero in Prince Albert.

    The other came in 2007, when Brennan Bosch scored in double overtime to give the Medicine Hat Tigers a 3-2 victory over the Giants before a sellout crowd of 4,006 spectators at The Arena in Medicine Hat. That went down as the signature moment in the Tigers long time iconic home rink.

    When Hannoun scored his OT winner for the Raiders, I had the privilege of witnessing the signature moment in the Raiders long time iconic home rink. “The Mad Hauser” might have never been as loud as when Hannoun scored his magnificent marker.

    I covered the Raiders as a beat writer for the Prince Albert Daily Herald from 2001 to 2004, and I knew how special the relationship was with that team and its fans. It a lot of ways, the identity of Prince Albert is locked in with the skilled and tough identity of the Raiders.

    If the Raiders went on a championship run to relive their past history, I knew just how special that run would be for the small northern Saskatchewan centre.

    When the Raiders did win the WHL title in the fashion that they did, the reality of what they accomplished was far better than the dream.

Noah Gregor set up the WHL title winning OT goal.

    I had known and been friends with general manager Curtis Hunt and head coach Marc Habscheid for almost two decades by that point, and I was really happy for both.

    It was particularly sweet to see Hunt enjoy the win, because he was a Raiders player on their WHL title and Memorial Cup winning team in 1985 and this was his first WHL title win in a management role.

    I enjoyed seeing the Raiders core of eight in captain Brayden Pachal, Parker Kelly, Zach Hayes, Max Martin, Spencer Moe, Cole Fonstad, Sean Montgomery and netminder Ian Scott grow together over three seasons.

    Montgomery, who was an overage centre, was a career member of the Raiders playing as a regular with the club since his 16-year-old season. He played in a team record 345 career regular season games in Raiders colours.

    When he got to skate with the Ed Chynoweth Cup over his head, you kind of hoped that moment would last forever.

The Raiders faithful shows their appreciation for Dante Hannoun.

    It was special seeing Brett Leason enjoy the league title win. His father, Darryl, has been a good friend going back to my days at the University of Regina, and we have lots of good memories linked with the Rams football team.

    It was great to see skills coach Mark Odnokon and athletic therapist and equipment manager Duane “Puff” Bartley soak in the moment. I used to see them lots when I worked in Prince Albert.
    I was pumped the fans in Prince Albert could witness this moment in their own community, and I know they will carry it for the rest of their lives.

The Raiders pose for the team picture with the Ed Chynoweth Cup.

    It was the best feel good moment for the Raiders. There is a huge family feeling with everyone involved with that team, and it so shone through on that WHL title winning day.

    I thank God for lining everything up to allow me to be at the Art Hauser Centre for that night. It will stick out and be special 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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