Crnkovic busts drought, pushes Blades to 3-1 win

Kyle Crnkovic broke an 11-game goalless drought on Friday.

    Kyle Crnkovic felt like he slammed a monkey off of his back.

    The 17-year-old left-winger with the Saskatoon Blades was trying to end a goalless drought that spanned 11 games. The Chestermere, Alta., product was able to that by just going to the net on Friday night.

    With the Blades locked in a 1-1 tie early in the second period of a WHL regular season contest against the Red Deer Rebels and working on a power play, Crnkovic went to the front of the Red Deer goal and potted the rebound of a shot taken from Blades captain Chase Wouters to put the Saskatoon side up 2-1.

    Crnkovic’s goal turned out to be the winner as the Blades skated away with a 3-1 victory before 3,330 spectators at the SaskTel Centre.

    “It has been quite a few games that I haven’t been able to score, but it was finally nice to get one,” said Crnkovic. “It was a big goal in the hockey game, so it was awesome.”

The Blades celebrate a goal from Kyle Crnkovic on Friday.

    Playing on a line centred by Eric Florchuk with Tristen Robins manning the right wing, Crnkovic said he had been getting his chances but was having no luck around the opposing goal.

    “They haven’t been going in for me,” said Crnkovic, who has five goals and six assists appearing in all of the Blades 19 regular season games. “They’ve been scoring, which is good.

    “As long as we win games, that is all that really matters.”

    Blades head coach Mitch Love was pleased to see Crnkovic break through on the scoreboard. With Crnkovic being in the Blades top six forward group, Love said they are looking for offence from the young winger.

    The bench boss added his talented forward is still in his second year in the league and will still experience some growing pains.

Kyle Crnkovic has five goals and six assists in 19 games this season.

    “He is a guy we want to rely on offensively for our group,” said Love. “He is a young player.

    “He is still finding his way in this league. Last year, he was in a third and fourth line role and maybe he didn’t get a chance to play against some of those older players or older veteran D in the league. Now, he is getting that, and it is hard.”

    Love said Crnkovic is learning the importance of driving to the net, even when he doesn’t have the puck, and that tactic will result in dividends.

    “You have to get to the inside of the rink,” said Love. “You have to go to the net.

    “I think that was evident there on the power-play goal. Wouters just throws it there, and he (Crnkovic) beats their D to the net, and the next thing you know it goes in the back of the net. That is no coincidence.”

Rebels G Byron Fancy (#35) turns away Blades LW Riley McKay (#39).

    Friday’s clash was a competitive one with the Rebels. The Blades broke through on the scoreboard first, when import defenceman Radek Kucerik floated home his first career WHL goal with a shot from the point at the 8:03 mark of the opening frame.

    The Rebels evened things up at 1-1 with 5:21 remaining in the first period on a smart play by 17-year-old left-winger Dallon Mellin. Mellin followed linemate Jace Isley to the Saskatoon goal and potted the rebound from Isley’s shot for the equalizer.

    Inside of the final minute of the opening frame, Rebels right-winger Arshdeep Bains was denied on two big chances to put his side ahead. 

Eric Florchuk scored the Blades third goal on Friday.

    First, he entered the Saskatoon zone coming down the left wing, cut across the front of the Blades goal, but his shot was denied by the glove hand of Blades star netminder Nolan Maier.

    Just seconds after that chance, Bains drove a shot on goal from the front of the Saskatoon net, but Maier caught the puck in his mid section to deny the chance.

    “I like their game over there,” said Love. “They’re always competitive.

    “They are engaged in the hockey game. I felt like after we scored our first goal we sat back, and they elevated their game. We weren’t ready to match that.

    “We talked about that in intermission where we needed to get to be in this hockey game and stay in this hockey game all night.”

    The Blades came out with more jump in the second with Crnkovic netting his power-play goal at the 3:06 mark of the frame.

Nolan Maier made 28 saves in goal for the Blades on Friday.

    Just under four minutes later, Florchuk wired home a power-play goal from the left corner boards of the offensive zone to the top right corner of the Red Deer goal to give the host side a two-goal edge.

    Maier said the power-goals his club scored early in the second helped turn the game around.

    “I think it was huge,” said Maier. “I think just getting that first goal really kind of helps us and kind of strives our confidence towards the whole game.

    “I think those are really big for us obviously.”

    The Rebels pushed back in the third, but Maier slammed the door in the Blades goal making a number of key saves down the stretch. One of the biggest came inside the final three minutes of the frame, when Maier robbed Rebels overage centre Brett Davis on a chance from the front of the Saskatoon net.
    Maier finished the contest making 28 saves to help the Blades improve to 10-7-1-1.

The Blades celebrate their win on Friday night.

    “He (Maier) is obviously the backbone for us,” said Crnkovic. “Every game he gives us a chance to win.

    “We don’t have to worry with him in net.”

    Byron Fancy turned away 20 shots taking the setback in goal for the Rebels (5-11-0-2).

    The Blades don’t have much time to enjoy Friday’s win.

    They return to action on Saturday, when they host the Brandon Wheat Kings at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre. The Rebels travel to Prince Albert on Saturday to face the defending WHL champion Raiders at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre.

    “They (the Wheat Kings) are always competitive,” said Maier. “They always give us a little bit of problems.

    “I think if we just kind of play our game and kind of work and compete for the full game then it will be a positive outcome.”

Bisons’ gamble classic coach Dobie showing guts

Bisons HC Brian Dobie always plays for the win.

    You have to love the courage of head coach Brian Dobie, even though his University of Manitoba Bisons football team failed to make the Canada West Conference title game due to an unsuccessful gamble.

    Last Saturday, Dobie’s Bisons were in Calgary, Alta., taking on the University of Calgary Dinos in a Canada West semifinal contest. The Dinos led 47-40, and the Bisons were down to throwing a Hail Mary attempt from the host side’s 50 yard line as the clock hit zero in the fourth quarter.

    Bisons quarterback Des Catellier threw the hail mary downfield looking for a miracle finish. About five players jumped up for the ball, and they ended up knocking it into the hands of Bisons receiver Trysten Dyce.

    Dyce caught the ball at the Dinos seven yard line and dashed into the end zone for a Bisons touchdown to cut the host side’s lead to 47-46.

    Instead of kicking a one-point convert to force overtime, Dobie elected to have his team go for a two-point convert and the win. The Bisons had already scored 30 points in the fourth quarter.

    On the two-point conversion attempt, Catellier threw a quick slant to Dyce. Dyce had his hands on the ball right at the goal line, but he couldn’t secure the catch.

    The ball squirted out of his hands and landed in the arms of Dinos defensive back Nick Statz. Statz ran the ball out of the end zone and went down to end the game.  

Trysten Dyce caught a 50-yard Hail Mary pass.

    With the 47-46 victory, the Dinos, who improved to 7-2 overall, advanced to host the Canada West Conference championship game – the Hardy Cup – this coming Saturday against the University of Saskatchewan Huskies (6-3 overall).

    After the gamble that came up short, the Bisons concluded their season with a 4-5 overall record. Still, they would have had an upset win, if Dyce had been able to squeeze that two-point convert pass.

    The Bisons could have extended the game kicking a one-point convert and going to overtime. With that noted, it is more Dobie’s style to go for a two-point conversion and try to win the game in that situation.

    Dobie should be applauded for the aggressiveness and trying to get the win on one play instead of dragging the festivities out.

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

-------                                     

    If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

Gerlach ignites Blades offence, series with Raiders evened 2-2

Max Gerlach had a goal and two assists for the Blades in Game 4.

    You couldn’t keep Max Gerlach off the scoresheet forever.

    The Saskatoon Blades overage right-winger was held pointless during the first three games of a WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Prince Albert Raiders. The product of Flower Mount, Texas caught fire at the right time for the Blades in Game 4 on Wednesday night.

    With the Blades trailing the Raiders 1-0 before 7,761 spectators at the SaskTel Centre, Gerlach sniped home a power-play goal into a tight space from the slot just over the left shoulder of Raiders star netminder Ian Scott to even things up at 1-1. 
    Gerlach’s tally came with 7:58 remaining in the second period.

    Just 71 seconds later, Gerlach got the puck to 17-year-old rookie centre Tristen Robins in the right slot by the Prince Albert goal. Robins fired home a shot to give the Blades a 2-1 lead.

    Gerlach picked up his second assist of the contest on a goal from rookie left-winger Kyle Crnkovic with 3:48 remaining in the third period to give Saskatoon a 3-1 advantage.

The Blades celebrate a goal from Max Gerlach (#9).

    Veteran centre Eric Florchuk scored into an empty net with 2:07 remaining in the third to seal a 4-1 Blades victory over their archrivals. Florchuk’s goal set off a big celebration among the Blades faithful, who made up about 75 per cent of that night’s crowd.
    Offensive defenceman Dawson Davidson also picked up three assists for the Blades in the offensive outburst.

    With the win, the Blades even the best-of-seven series with the Raiders 2-2. Game 5 is set for Friday at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert.

    Gerlach was pleased he was able to deliver on the scoreboard on Wednesday night.

    “Obviously, I am counted on to produce offence,” said Gerlach. “In a series like this with arguably the two top teams battling right now, goal scoring and chances are coming at a premium.

Dante Hannoun gave the Raiders a 1-0 lead on Wednesday.

    “I wasn’t able to contribute the first (three) of games, but helping the boys out tonight really feels good, and hopefully, we can keep going.”

    The series between the Raiders and Blades is very much a heavyweight tilt.

    The Raiders topped the WHL’s regular season standings with a 54-10-2-2 record and were rated second in the final CHL Top 10 rankings. The Blades finish fourth overall in the WHL’s regular season standings with a 45-15-8 record and earned honourable mention status in the final CHL Top 10 rankings.

    In the opening 20 minutes, the Raiders had ever opportunity to run away with the game. Overage centre Dante Hannoun put the visitors up 1-0 with a short-handed goal coming off a Blades turnover at the 11:15 mark of the first.

Ian Scott turned away 34 of 37 shots in goal for the Raiders.

    The Raiders weren’t able to build off Hannoun’s goal despite holding a 22-12 edge in shots on goal in the opening frame. Prince Albert had numerous chances to score working on four power-play chances.

    The Raiders were on a four-minute power play starting at the 16:38 mark of the second when overage Blades defenceman Brandon Schuldhaus was dinged with a tripping minor and an unsportsmanlike conduct minor.

    “I thought our first period like we took too many penalties,” said Blades head coach Mitch Love. “That was just uncharacteristic of our group.

    “You can’t put that team on the power play for almost (eight) minutes in the opening frame here, especially in a playoff game. Then we settled ourselves, got our composure and played the game five-on-five.

Nolan Maier turned away 43 shots in goal for the Blades.

    “That first period could have been over in a heartbeat. It could have been 3-0, 4-0 for them, and we are not even having this conversation about the result for our end tonight.”

    The Raiders weren’t able to expand their advantage on the scoreboard thanks to the play of star Blades netminder Nolan Maier, who made 43 saves to pick up the win in goal. Maier also had some key help from his teammates.

    Early in the second period, Blades import right-winger Kristian Roykas-Marthinsen cleared away a loose puck that sitting just before the goal-line of the Saskatoon net.

Tristen Robins scored for the Blades on Wednesday.

    “I thought we probably deserved a better fate like the first half of the game,” said Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid. “We hit some posts.

    “We hit the shaft of a stick. We missed some chances again, had lots of chances, and they just wouldn’t go in. We just have to find a way to score a few more goals.

    “We have enough skill eventually they will go in. Their goaltender played good again. Give him credit.”

    Maier said he felt engaged with the game due to the Raiders onslaught of shots in the first period.

Kyle Crnkovic had the Blades third goal on Wednesday.

    “No matter when those times come in a game, I have to be ready,” said Maier. “Luckily at the start of the game, I was able to just like jump right in.

    “I was able to get going right away, so I felt really good.”

    After the Blades weathered the Raiders opening outburst, Gerlach hit high gear for the home side, which Love was pleased to see.

    “Once he got that power-play goal like most offensive players it gives them life,” said Love. “He started to make things buzz.

    “He did a real good job there on Crnkovic’s goal of going to the net and kind of drawing some attention. It opened up Crnkovic going in there and jamming it home, so that was obviously a big goal in the hockey game.”

    Overshadowed in the Blades victory was the fact Scott had a solid game in goal for Prince Albert. He turned away 34-of-37 shots to take the setback in net for the Raiders.

The Blades and Raiders scrum it up

    Hannoun said his squad has to give Scott more offensive support than just the one goal the Raiders did score over the past two games.

    “I thought we created a lot of chances, but we just have to bear down on our next ones,” said Hannoun. “I think we just have to be stronger on our second and third opportunities.”

    Hannoun wasn’t surprised that his team is in a battle with the Blades.

    “It is playoff hockey,” said Hannoun. “Every team is going to bring their A-game, so we just have to battle hard.”

    So far in the series between the Raiders and Blades, the home team has prevailed each time out in the first four games.

The Blades faithful at the SaskTel Centre cheer on their team.

    The Raiders took the first two game at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert, while the Blades won Games 3 and 4 at the SaskTel Centre.

    Gerlach believes his Blades are playing well enough they could potentially break that trend as the visitor in Game 5.

    “That is probably one thing that everyone is looking at right now,” said Gerlach. “We’ve played a lot of good hockey up there, a lot of strong hockey.

    “Game 2 definitely everyone saw that. It was just a couple minute breakdown. I think that they got some fortunate bounces, and they were able to pot a couple.

The Blades celebrate their win on Wednesday night.

    “I think if we can kind of play the way we have obviously here these two games and go in and play how we did the first 30 minutes kind of in Game 2 in their barn we will be fine.”

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

-------
    If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

Raiders rally brings down Blades in Game 2 in Prince Albert

Raiders D Zack Hayes hugs goalie Ian Scott after the team’s win.

    PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – For the Saskatoon Blades, it was the classic tale of the one that got away.

    For the Prince Albert Raiders it was a classic comeback.

    In Game 2 of their WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series on Sunday, the Blades came out with an inspired effort jumping out to a 2-0 lead at the 4:35 mark of the second period.

    Things changed with 28.2 seconds remaining in the second frame when Raiders 19-year-old defenceman Zack Hayes scored just after a Prince Albert power-play expired to cut the Saskatoon lead to 2-1.

    By the 2:11 mark of the third, the Raiders surged ahead 3-2 sending the sellout crowd of 3,289 spectators at the 2,580 seat Art Hauser Centre into delirium.

Raiders C Sean Montgomery (#25) battles for the puck.

    The Blades pressed in the closing moments of the third and failed to find the equalizer on two power-play chances.

    Raiders star netminder Ian Scott slammed the door the rest of the way ultimately making 24 saves in the 3-2 victory for the Prince Albert side.

    The win gives the Raiders a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Blades. It also gave the Raiders a lift heading into Game 3 on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon.

    Sunday’s clash was more the type of encounter you expected to see from the two sides and unlike the 6-1 romp posted by the Raiders in Game 1 on Friday. Some of the series storylines came to life too.

Kirby Dach scored a sick goal for the Blades in the first period.

    While the games are usually hotly contested, the Raiders ultimately find ways to get things done claiming eight of the 10 encounters between the regular season and playoffs.

    It also shows why the Raiders were just that much better than the Blades in the regular season standings.

    Prince Albert finished first overall in the WHL with a 54-10-2-2 mark and was rated second in the final CHL Top 10 rankings. Saskatoon was fourth overall with a 45-15-8 record and earned an honourable mention in the final CHL Top 10 rankings.

    One of the biggest target of Raiders fan heckles in the first two games of the series was Blades star centre Kirby Dach, who is expected to be a first round selection in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft.

Blades fans cheer a goal from Kirby Dach.

    Dach played a spirited first period and put the Blades up 1-0 with a shock and awe highlight reel goal at the 8:56 mark of the opening frame. On an individual rush into the offensive zone, Dach at one point toe dragged the puck around a defenceman, cut across the front of the Raiders net and put a shot past Scott.

    Following his goal, Dach turned to a section of the crowd, where one spectator had a “Dach’s overrated” sign, and let them know about what happened with his celebration.

    At the 4:35 mark of the second with Saskatoon working on the power play, Blades centre Eric Florchuk found a loose puck in the crease of the Prince Albert goal during some frantic moments and popped the puck into the net to give the visitors a 2-0 edge.

Centre Dante Hannoun scored the equalizer for the Raiders.

    For much of the second period, the crowd at the Art Hauser Centre was silent.

    Blades star netminder Nolan Maier was shutting the door, and he made 29 stops on the night to take the setback in the Saskatoon net.

    In Game 1 on Friday, Maier was given a mercy pull with 12:56 remaining in the third period, when the Raiders held a 5-1 advantage. He stopped 31-of-36 shots sent his way but really couldn’t be faulted in the 6-1 win Prince Albert finished off.

    That set the stage for the big turning point, when Hayes scored with 28.2 seconds to play in the second. Hayes is normally a defensive defenceman, but he did manage to record three goals and 24 assists to go with his plus-71 rating appearing in all of the Raiders 68 regular season games.

Raiders fans cheer on one of their team’s goals.

    The Calgary, Alta., product’s tally at that point in the second was likely the biggest goal of his WHL career.

    Just 94 seconds into the third, Raiders star overage centre Dante Hannoun netted the equalizer and proceeded try and imitate Dach’s goal celebration.

    Just 37 seconds after that tally, Raiders overage centre Sean Montgomery fired home a rebound in front of Maier for a power-play goal that held up as the winning marker in the Raiders 3-2 triumph.

    It was also an all overagers goal for the Raiders as star centre Noah Gregor and Hannoun collected assists on the play.

    From that point, the game had some firewagon hockey with action up and down the ice mixed with times when the Raiders held ground locking things down defensively.

The Raiders celebrate their victory on Sunday.

    It all kept the fans on the edge of their seats until the final seconds in the third ticked away.

    While the Raiders have command of the series, the Blades aren’t dead either. The Blades are facing what is basically a must-win situation in Game 3, or this series might not return to “Hockey Town North.”

Saskatoon is facing a tough task needing to win four of the next five games of the series in order to pull it out.

    For the moment, they need to just focus on the moment and what they need to do to win Game 3 at home. That would be a first step to possibly making this series a longer one.

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

--------

    If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

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.

-------

    If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

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.

-------

    If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

Rookie Crnkovic pushes Blades past Thunderbirds

Kyle Crnkovic had a big night for the Blades.

    It appears 16-year-old rookie left-winger Kyle Crnkovic is going to have an extended stay with the Saskatoon Blades top six forward unit.

    If the young Chestermere, Alta., product is dropped off the team’s top two lines, the Blades coaches will likely have a lot of doubts regarding if they are doing the right thing.

    Playing on a line with 17-year-old Tristen Robins at centre and 18-year-old Eric Florchuk at right wing, Crnkovic had a goal and two assists to push the Blades past the Seattle Thunderbirds 4-3 in a WHL regular season contest on Tuesday night before 3,037 spectators at the SaskTel Centre.

    The outburst was Crnkovic’s first multiple point night of his WHL career, and he now has three goals and six assists in his last nine games.

    “It felt really good,” said Crnkovic, who has four goals and nine assists in 27 games this season. 

    “Obviously, it is awesome to get the two points, and to contribute, it feels awesome.”

Kyle Crnkovic has three goals and six assists in his last nine games.

    Over the last stretch of games for the Blades, Crnkovic, who stands just under 5-foot-7 and weighs 153 pounds, has been very noticeable with the energy he brings on every shift. While he may be the smallest player on the ice in most of Saskatoon’s games, he doesn’t shy away from battles or going into the corners or in front of the net.

    During his last nine games with the Saskatoon squad, Crnkovic’s offensive talents are showing through, which saw the Blades select him in the first round and 10^th overall in the 2017 WHL Bantam Draft. He has seen extra playing time during the Blades last four games due to the fact star 17-year-old centre Kirby Dach has been out with a lower body injury.

The Blades celebrate a power-play goal from Josh Paterson (#61).

    Blades head coach Mitch Love has enjoyed seeing Crnkovic take off.

    “You could see the confidence growing,” said Love. “I think obviously that comes with added ice time.

    “As a hockey coach, you want to find that trust in those young kids. He is doing a good job away from the puck, which is earning him more ice time. Nobody has ever questioned his offensive capabilities here and his skill set, and I think that was very evident tonight.”

    So far this season, Crnkovic believes he has given a solid effort every night, but he has received some breaks offensively as of late.

    “I think I have been playing the same way,” said Crnkovic. “I think just some luck is coming my way.

    “I am just trying to keep playing hard the second half.”

Blades G Dorrin Luding (#31) stops Seattle LW Andrej Kukuca.

    After the Thunderbirds took a 1-0 lead early in the first, Crnkovic went to work. At the 15:24 mark of the opening frame, he slipped a backhand shot past Thunderbirds netminder Cole Schwebius on a breakaway to tie things up at 1-1.

    Just 2:06 after that tally with the Blades working on the power play, Crnkovic had the puck at the left side boards in the Seattle zone. He centred a smart pass to centre Josh Paterson, who knocked home his 14^th goal of the season to give the Blades a 2-1 lead.

    Crnkovic was pleased he could make both plays

    “They were both good,” said Crnkovic. “They were both good to get.

    “It feels good to contribute and help the team win.”

Aiden De La Gorgendiere looks to make a pass for the Blades.

    The Thunderbirds scored late in the first and early in the second to go ahead 3-2.

    At the 13:49 mark of the second, the Blades tied things up at 3-3, when captain Chase Wouters tipped home a shot from linemate Max Gerlach.

    Before the second frame expired, Blades 16-year-old rookie defenceman Aidan De La Gorgendiere broke into the Seattle zone on a rush and slipped a pass to right-winger Eric Florchuk to spring him in alone on the Thunderbirds goal.

    Florchuk slipped a shot between the legs of Thunderbirds netminder Cole Schwebius to give the Blades a 4-3 lead with 2:40 remaining in the frame. Crnkovic picked up his second assist of the game on Florchuk’s tally.

    The rookie winger said he has enjoyed playing on a line with Florchuk and Robins and has enjoyed the fact he is starting to contribute offensively.

A young fan cheers on Blades LW Riley McKay.

    “At the start it was tough just getting used to the league,” said Crnkovic. “I think as it has gone on and getting comfortable with the players around me, it is getting a lot better.”

    Zach Ashton, captain Nolan Volcan and Matthew Wedman replied with singles for the Thunderbirds. Wedman had an assist and won a third period fight against Wouters to record the Gordie Howe hat trick for Seattle.

    Ashton’s tally was the first of his WHL career. The 17-year-old defenceman was acquire in a trade with the Blades last Wednesday, which saw veteran defenceman Reece Harsch, who is in his 19-year-old season, land in Saskatoon.

Eric Florchuk (#17) fires a shot on goal for the Blades.

    Harsch, who was playing his fourth game with the Blades, was happy to get the win against his former team.

    “It felt pretty good,” said Harsch. “I had a lot of memories with those guys and that team and that organization, so it definitely felt good to get the win tonight.”

    Dorrin Luding turned away 33 shots in goal for the Blades, who improved to 26-12-5 to sit third overall in the WHL. Schwebius stopped 28 shots in goal for the Thunderbirds, who fell to 12-21-4.

    Love was pleased his side controlled a scoreless third period, where the Blades held a 14-9 edge in shots on goal. 

Matthew Wedman had a Gordie Howe hat trick for the Thunderbirds.

    The Saskatoon bench boss thought his team spent too much time in its own zone in the second frame.

    “For our guys to regroup and outshoot them in the third period I thought we really did a good job of limiting their offensive opportunities,” said Love, whose club was playing their eighth game in 13 days. “There were a lot of shots from the outside.

    “I am real proud of the guys’ effort, especially in this stretch of hockey. This has been a grind for our guys. It was very noticeable tonight against a very heavy and competitive team in the Thunderbirds.

    “We stuck with it and found a way to win a hockey game.”

    The Thunderbirds return to action on Wednesday, when they travel to Prince Albert to take on the Raiders (7 p.m., Art Hauser Centre).

    The Blades return to action on Friday, when they host the Calgary Hitmen (7 p.m., SaskTel Centre).

Going forward into the rest of the season, Crnkovic said wants to keep playing as well as possible.

The Blades celebrate their victory over the Thunderbirds on Tuesday.

    “I am just going to try and play my game and work hard every day in practice and I think just try and contribute to the team any way I can,” he said.

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

-------

    If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.