Blades complete epic and historical series comeback

Saskatoon posts 5-2 Game 7 win, eliminates Rebels

The Blades celebrate their Game 7 win over the Rebels on Tuesday.

The Saskatoon Blades were indeed still standing.

On Tuesday night before 9,489 spectators at the SaskTel Centre, the Blades downed the Red Deer Rebels 5-2 in Game 7 of a WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series. The win allows the Blades to take the best-of-seven set 4-3 and advance to the Eastern Conference Championship Series for the first time since 1994, when they made the WHL Championship Series and fell in seven games to the eventual Memorial Cup champion Kamloops Blazers.

The Blades will face the Winnipeg Ice in this year’s Eastern Conference Championships series. The Ice topped the WHL regular season standings with a 57-10-1 mark and were rated third in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. Game 1 of that series is set for Friday at the Wayne Fleming Arena in Winnipeg at 6 p.m. local time.

Egor Sidorov (#19) hugs Blades mascot Poke Check.

In the series against the Rebels, the Blades lost the first three games before rallying back to win four straight contests. The Blades became just the third team in the history of the WHL dating back to the circuit’s start in 1966-67 to rally back to win a best-of-seven series having trailed the set 3-0.

“I’m just incredibly proud of the guys,” said Blades head coach Brennan Sonne. “You have to have a tight-knit group and a tonne of belief.

“You have to put your arms around each other instead of pointing fingers when you go down 3-0, and that is what we did. They put their arms around each other as opposed to pointing fingers. They were full of belief, and my God am I proud of them.”

The Spokane Chiefs, who were guided by Mike Babcock as head coach, trailed the Portland Winterhawks 3-0 before rallying to take a first round series 4-3 in 1996. The Kelowna Rockets fell behind the Seattle Thunderbirds 3-0 in 2013 before rallying back to claim that first round series 4-3.

The Rebels react to their Game 7 loss.

Both of those series deciding Game 7s ended in overtime. In the 1996 Game 7 between the Chiefs and Winterhawks, forward Darren Sinclair scored 58 seconds in overtime to deliver the Chiefs to a 4-3 victory. In the 2013 Game 7 between the Rockets and Thunderbirds, forward Tyson Baillie scored at the 5:10 mark of overtime to give the Rockets a 3-2 victory.

Current Rebels head coach Steve Konowalchuk was the head coach of the Thunderbirds in 2013 when they lost their 3-0 series lead to the Rockets. Konowalchuk would guide the Thunderbirds to a WHL championship in 2016-17 before departing to the NHL to become an assistant coach for the Anaheim Ducks.

The Blades and Rebels work their way through the handshake line.

The Blades actually rallied back from being down 3-0 in a best-of-seven series to tie it up at 3-3 for the second time in team history.

Back in 1990, Saskatoon trailed the Lethbridge Hurricanes 3-0 in a second round series in that year’s WHL Playoffs before rallying back to tie the set at 3-3. In a series deciding Game 7 in Lethbridge, the Blades fell 4-3 in overtime with defenceman Neil Hawryluk netting the winning goal for the Hurricanes. Of course, the current Blades were able to one up what the club did in 1990.

Part of the 9,489 fans in attendance cheer on the Blades. 

Going back to their first round seven game series win over Connor Bedard and the Regina Pats, the Blades have won five straight contests in this WHL post-season where they have faced elimination. Konowalchuk said the Game 7 loss to the Blades was a tough one for his Rebels to take.

“It is a hard one,” said Konowalchuk. “I thought our guys played a pretty hard game.

“I thought we played with a lot of time in their end. I thought we had some chances. They’re opportunistic, and they have some skill that doesn’t need a lot of chances.

Spencer Shugrue had a pair of goals for the Blades.

“I think that was the difference in the hockey game tonight.”

In Tuesday’s Game 7 clash, both teams had early scoring chances. Blades captain Aidan De La Gorgendiere wired a shot off the post for the hosts, and Rebels import left-winger Frantisek Formanek hit iron for the visitors.

With 7:50 remaining in the first, the Rebels broke through on the scoreboard. Star left-winger Kalan Lind got the puck to 18-year-old defenceman Hunter Mayo at the right point. Mayo skated the puck into the right faceoff circle and blew home a shot to the top left corner of the Saskatoon goal to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.

Lind was playing his first contest since being carried off on a stretcher with a head injury early in the Blades 4-2 victory in Game 4 last Wednesday in Red Deer. Blades gritty right-winger Justin Lies was given a three-game WHL imposed suspension for throwing the head hit hat injured Lind. Tuesday’s Game 7 was the final game of that suspension for Lies.

Conner Roulette had two goals and an assist for the Blades.

Shortly after Mayo’s goal, the Blades pulled even at 1-1 with 5:15 remaining in the first. Blades star left-winger Conner Roulette got the puck to the left of Red Deer’s net, cut across the front of the Red Deer goal and put home a backhand shot for the equalizer.

At the 5:41 mark of the second, the Blades jumped ahead 2-1 when utility player Spencer Shugrue potted home the rebound of a shot taken by Roulette. Roulette’s midrange blast came off the boards being the Red Deer net to Shugrue at the right side of the goal, and he put in the go-ahead tally into an empty cage.

Just 1:54 later, the Rebels evened things up at 2-2 on a goal from left-winger Ryker Singer. Rebels star centre Kai Uchacz dumped the puck it to the left corner of the Saskatoon zone to give Singer a chance to get the equalizer. Singer beat the Blades defence to the puck and wire a shot close in to the left side of the Saskatoon net to the top corner right corner of the goal.

Kalan Lind had an assist returning to the Rebels’ lineup.

With 8:53 remaining in the second, Rebels captain Jayden Grubbe appeared to score on a power-play to put the visitors up 3-2, but the officials waved the goal off ruling Rebels 20-year-old right-winger Jace Isley made incidental contact with Blades netminder Austin Elliott. The ruling was upheld after a video review.

In the third, Shugrue continued to build his case for being the Blades’ “Mr. Game 7.”

At the 4:29 mark of the third, Shugrue won a puck battle against Rebels right-winger Ollie Josephson just inside the Red Deer blue-line. Shugrue pass the puck to centre Jayden Wiens. Wiens rushed down the left wing, and Shugrue skated to the Red Deer goal close to the right goalpost.

Hunter Mayo scored the Rebels first goal on Tuesday.

Wiens passed the puck across the face of the Red Deer net to Shugrue. Shugrue knocked home the puck with a backhanded tap for his second tally of the contest to put the Blades up 3-2.

In the post-season, Shugrue has scored three goals, and all those markers have come in Game 7s. The Vancouver product’s first goal came in the Blades 4-1 victory in Game 7 of a first round series against the Pats back on April 10, and he had an assist on the winning tally in that contest.

“It is obviously a great feeling,” said Shugrue about being reward with some goals for his hard work. “In Game 7, we knew we just had to stick to our systems there, and that is what we had drawn up.

“I’m happy it turned out that way.”

Ryker Singer had the Rebels second goal on Tuesday.

Just 40 seconds later, Roulette worked a give and go with Blades star import right-winger Egor Sidorov on a three-on-two rush. Roulette received a return pass from Sidorov at the lower part of the right faceoff circle in the Red Deer zone and blew home his second tally of the contest to push the Blades lead out to 4-2.

Roulette’s three-point night on Tuesday matched his production from the Blades first 13 post-season games. The Winnipeg product was pleased to contribute some offence again.

“I think just throughout the playoffs I just wanted to find my rhythm,” said Roulette. “I think I started off a little slow.

The Blades apply pressure around the Rebels net.

“Such a great team and such a great coaching staff were there to help me and push me to play my best. They are telling me every night, ‘This is your game. This is your game.’ Obviously for a night like tonight for me to finally find that rhythm and help the team out, it is a great feeling.

“I’m really honoured to be able to have a night like that. To have slow start to the playoffs as an individual, I’m looking forward to hopefully keeping this up to help the team more. I couldn’t have done it without the support from the teammates.”

Blades hard working right-winger Vaughn Watterodt rounded out the game’s scoring with an empty-net goal with 27.2 seconds remaining in the third.

The Blades celebrate a winning goal from Spencer Shugrue (#26).

Elliott stopped 23 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Blades. Kyle Kelsey turned away 23-of-27 shots to take the setback in net for the Rebels.

The Blades closed the series killing off Red Deer’s last 11 consecutive power-play chances.

The Rebels were without right-winger Jhett Larson, who turned 19-years-old in early February, due to one game league imposed suspension for receiving a fight instigator penalty in the final five minutes of a 5-3 loss to the Blades in Game 6 this past Sunday in Red Deer.

The Blades didn’t have the services of 20-year-old defenceman Blake Gustafson and 17-year-old left-winger Mikhail Volotovskii due to upper body injuries.

The series between the Blades and Rebels was expected to be a tight one, and it ultimately was. 

Jayden Wiens had an assist on the Blades winning goal.

The Blades finished fourth in the overall WHL regular season standings with a 48-15-4-1 record and were rated 10^th in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. The Rebels finished fifth in the overall WHL standings and topped the Central Division with a 43-19-3-3 mark.

Still, the Blades prevailed in a way that they will always be remembered. Any time a team falls behind 3-0 in a best-of-seven series in the WHL Playoffs, the current Blades will be brought up with the 1996 Chiefs and the 2013 Rockets as the clubs that rallied back to win the series 4-3.

“It is pretty cool,” said De La Gorgendiere. “I don’t think it has honestly set in yet.

The Blades salute the crowd at the SaskTel Centre.

“It is obviously going to be really special. Like Sonne said to us in the room there, we’re going to remember this for the rest of our lives until we can’t remember anything anymore. It is just awesome.”

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Blades power play and penalty kill heat up

Rebels need to reset and get back on task

The Blades celebrate a power-play goal from Egor Sidorov (#19).

The Saskatoon Blades power play and penalty kill is catching fire, and it could aid them in their quest to try and achieve the greatest playoff series comeback in team history.

The Red Deer Rebels are looking to reset and get back on task playing with a sound structure that has them to within one win of the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championships Series.

The two clubs go at it on Sunday at 2 p.m. local time at the Peavey Mart Centrium in Red Deer for Game 6 of their WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series. The Rebels hold a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven set.

Red Deer opened by winning the first three games against the Blades to get one win away from advancing to the Eastern Conference Championship Series. Saskatoon won the last two contests to get two wins away from being just the third team in WHL history to come back and win a best-of-seven series 4-3 after losing the first three games of the set.

Dating back to the WHL’s start in 1966-67, only two teams have rallied back to win a best-of-seven series having trailed the set 3-0. The Spokane Chiefs, who were guided by Mike Babcock as head coach, trailed the Portland Winterhawks 3-0 before rallying to take a first round series 4-3 in 1996. The Kelowna Rockets fell behind the Seattle Thunderbirds 3-0 in 2013 before rallying back to claim that first round series 4-3.

The Blades have been able to change the complexion of the series thanks to the play of their power play and penalty killing units over the past two games. Saskatoon has scored on 4-of-8 power play chances and allowed the Rebels to score on 1-of-6 chances on the man advantage. The Blades have successfully killed off the Rebels last five consecutive power-play opportunities.

The Rebels celebrate a goal from Kai Uchacz (#19).

In Game 4 on Wednesday in Red Deer, the Blades only allowed one power-play goal coming off the stick of Rebels star centre Kai Uchacz at the 6:27 mark of the first period. Red Deer was working on at five-minute power play after Blades gritty right-winger Justin Lies was given a major penalty and a game misconduct for delivering a head shot to Rebels star left-winger Kalan Lind, who turned 18-years-old in January.

While Uchacz was able to score, the Blades were still pretty strong on that kill.

The Rebels were able to exit the first period with a 2-0 advantage after Uchacz scored at even strength. Red Deer had a huge opportunity to put Saskatoon away when Blades star left-winger Brandon Lisowsky was given a double minor for high-sticking at the 6:14 mark of the second.

The Blades gained some traction successfully killing off that double minor. A short time after that kill, the Blades got more traction going on the power play themselves, and captain Aidan De La Gorgendiere, who is a star offensive-defenceman, scored his first goal off the post-season on the man advantage to cut the Rebels lead to 2-1.

That set the stage for the Blades to roll off three straight goals in a span of four minutes and three second in the third to pull out a 4-2 victory.

Egor Sidorov is finding success on the power play for the Blades.

In Game 5 of the series on Friday in Saskatoon, the Blades took advantage of the Rebels taking some undisciplined penalties going 3-for-6 on the power play and killing off all three Red Deer power-play chances to pull out a 6-3 victory. Star import right-winger Egor Sidorov scored twice on the power play and De La Gorgendiere scored the winner on a chance with the man advantage.

During the regular season, the Blades power play and penalty killing units were among the best in the WHL. The Blades had the fourth best power play in the league converting on 73-of-265 chances for a 27.5 per cent success rate, and they had the third best penalty killing unit on the circuit killing off 202-of-245 opposition power-play opportunities for an 82.4 per cent success rate.

If the Blades special teams units stay hot, it will greatly help their chances of winning Game 6 and forcing a series deciding Game 7, which is set for Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre if needed.

The Rebels, on the other hand, need to get back to what they were doing well when they took a 3-0 lead in the series. During those first three games, the Rebels were sound in their structural play along with being poised, businesslike and hard working.

Kai Uchacz is piling up goals for the Rebels.

Red Deer clogged up the centre ice zone taking away the Blades tendency to go for stretch passes. In the defensive zone, the Rebels played with poise and had good spacing. The Blades players were often kept to the outside and seemed to second guess what they wanted to do when it came time to pass the puck.

In the offensive zone, the Rebels set up a strong forecheck that kept the Blades pinned for numerous stretches in their own zone. When the Rebels had the puck in the offensive zone, they moved it around with confidence and shot it with purpose once it was in a prime scoring area.

Red Deer was sound with systems play taking a 2-0 lead in the first period in Game 4. While the Blades had some push back in second period to cut the Rebels lead to 2-1, the Red Deer side was just 20 minutes from closing out the series going into the second intermission.

The Rebels seemed to unravel after the Blades surged ahead to take the contest 4-2 in the third and visibly showed frustration at times after going down by two goals. In Game 5, the Rebels were too occupied with trying to be physical, and that resulted in undisciplined penalties that allowed the Blades to take the game.

Aidan De La Gorgendiere has two post-season power-play goals.

It seemed like the Rebels got off track after Lind went down to injury. Lind is very popular amongst his teammates and is a fan favourite of the community of Red Deer.

The Rebels appeared to want to show their romantic “all heart” characteristic to try and pull out a win for their fallen teammate. Emotion can be a thing that speeds a team up and allows club to achieve new levels of greatness.

Emotion can also be a thing that causes a team to try too hard and lose composure. At that point, emotion can be a determent to a team, and that seems to be the case the Rebels find themselves in.

The Rebels also have to be concerned about their situation in goal too. 

In their first nine games in the WHL Playoffs, Kyle Kelsey posted stellar numbers with a 7-2 record, a 1.93 goals against average, a .928 save percentage and one shutout.

In the third period of Game 4, he allowed three goals on seven shots as the Blades surged to victory. Kelsey started Game 5 and was pulled with 1:57 remaining in the opening frame after allowing three goals on seven shots. Chase Coward played the rest of the way in relief and ultimate took the loss in net.

Ben King is one of the Rebels top offensive players.

The Blades were without Lies for Game 5, because he was suspended by the WHL for his head shot on Lind. On Saturday, the WHL finalized Lies’ suspension at three games. If the Blades are able to make the Eastern Conference Championship Series, Lies would be eligible to return for Game 1 of that set.

The Lies suspension marked only the second time in the 2022-23 campaign in the regular season and playoffs that the Blades have had a player get suspended.

Also on Saturday, the Rebels learned that they will be without import right-winger Frantisek Formanek due to a one-game suspension under supplemental discipline. In Game 5, Formanek was giving a boarding minor penalty at the 7:21 mark of the first period.

Formanek hit Blades 20-year-old defenceman Blake Gustafson from behind, and Gustafson was able to prevent himself from making a hard crash into the boards. The Blades sent in video to the WHL office asking for supplemental discipline as this was a dangerous play.

Originally, it was expected that this would be a tight series going in between the Blades and Rebels. The Blades finished fourth in the overall WHL regular season standings with a 48-15-4-1 record and were rated 10^th in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. The Rebels finished fifth in the overall WHL standings and topped the Central Division with a 43-19-3-3 mark.

The Blades and Rebels engage in activity after the whistle.

Taking an unconventional route, it has become a tight series. The next chapter and potentially closing chapter of this drama will play out on Sunday.

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Blades living shades of 1990 against Rebels

Saskatoon trims Red Deer’s series lead to 3-2

The Blades celebrate Tanner Molendyk’s first goal on Friday.

The Saskatoon Blades are reliving the spirit of 1990.

When the dust ultimately settles in their WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Red Deer Rebels, “The Bridge City Bunch” hopes to do one win better in the best-of-seven set.

On Friday night before an appreciative crowd of 5,908 spectators at the SaskTel Centre, the Blades downed the Rebels 6-3 holding a 31-17 edge in shots on goal in a spirited effort to take Game 5 of the series. Saskatoon’s victory cut the Rebels lead in the set to 3-2 with a second straight victory. Friday’s contest was by far the most physical out of the five games the two sides played to date.

Saskatoon’s win forces a Game 6 of the series set for Sunday back at the Peavey Mart Centrium in Red Deer for a 2 p.m. local start time. If the Blades win that contest in Red Deer, they will force a series deciding Game 7 on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

Aidan De La Gorgendiere had the winning goal for the Blades.

The Blades are one win away from erasing a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series for the second time in team history.

Back in 1990, Saskatoon trailed the Lethbridge Hurricanes 3-0 in a second round series in that year’s WHL Playoffs before rallying back to tie the set at 3-3. In a series deciding Game 7 in Lethbridge, the Blades fell 4-3 in overtime with defenceman Neil Hawryluk netting the winning goal for the Hurricanes.

This year, the Blades are trying to become the third team in the history of the WHL to overcome a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series to win it 4-3.

Egor Sidorov scored twice on the power play for the Blades.

Dating back to the WHL’s start in 1966-67, only two teams have rallied back to win a best-of-seven series having trailed the set 3-0. The Spokane Chiefs, who were guided by Mike Babcock as head coach, trailed the Portland Winterhawks 3-0 before rallying to take a first round series 4-3 in 1996. The Kelowna Rockets fell behind the Seattle Thunderbirds 3-0 in 2013 before rallying back to claim that first round series 4-3.

In Friday’s clash between Red Deer and Saskatoon, the Rebels visibly came out with a game plan to be more physical. The Blades matched the physicality of their Alberta foes. This contest had much more of a feisty edge to it compared to the first four games of the series.

The Rebels got a little too undisciplined with their physical effort and the Blades special teams were back playing to their stellar regular season form took advantage. Saskatoon converted 3-of-6 power-play chances and killed off all three power-play opportunities the Rebels had.

Kai Uchacz had a pair of goals for the Rebels on Friday.

During the regular season, the Blades had the fourth best power play in the WHL converting on 73-of-265 chances for a 27.5 per cent success rate, and they had the third best penalty killing unit on the circuit killing off 202-of-245 opposition power-play opportunities for an 82.4 per cent success rate.

The Blades scored the winning goal on a power play that came on an undisciplined Rebels penalty. Late in the second period with the teams locked in a 3-3 tie, Rebels defenceman Nicholas Andrusiak hit Blades star winger Jake Chiasson from behind on open ice by the boards at the Saskatoon blue-line.

Andrusiak was given a minor penalty for interference with 2:23 remaining in the second period. On the ensuing power play, Blades captain Aidan De La Gorgendiere scored with 24.8 seconds remaining in the second to give the host side a 4-3 lead. De La Gorgendiere was trying to make a pass from the right side of the Red Deer goal to a teammate on the other side of the net.

Ollie Josephson had the Rebels third goal on Friday.

The puck hit a stick and deflected back to De La Gorgendiere, who quickly buried a shot for his second goal of the post-season and second tally in his second straight contest.

In the third, Blades hard-working centre Jayden Wiens knocked home the rebound of his own backhand shot to give his squad a 5-3 advantage at the 5:41 mark of the frame.

With 7:26 remaining in the third, the Blades were working the puck down low in the Red Deer zone. Blades right-winger Vaughn Watterodt flipped a high pass across the face of the Red Deer net that offensive-defenceman Tanner Molendyk knocked home in mid air for his second goal of the contest to round out the 6-3 final.

Tanner Molendyk had a pair of goals for the Blades on Friday.

The play went to a video review to see of Molendyk knocked the puck home with a high stick, but the officials confirmed the goal was good.

While Molendyk closed the game’s scoring, he also opened the scoring in the contest at the 5:39 mark of the first period. On a rush into the offensive zone, Molendyk wheeled to the left faceoff dot and ripped home a shot to the top right corner of the Red Deer net to give the Blades a 1-0 edge.

The opening 20 minutes of Friday’s contest was straight out of the 1980s with lots of goals and banging in the physicality department.

Friday’s contest featured a few scrums between the Blades and Rebels.

Rebels star centre Kai Uchacz evened the score at 1-1 at the 11:08 mark of the first slipping a shot between the legs of Blades netminder Ethan Chadwick.

Just 61 seconds later, Blades star import right-winger Egor Sidorov slid a shot through screen from the right wing boards for the Blades first power-play goal to give the hosts a 2-1 advantage.

Just under five minutes later, Uchacz banged home a rebound at the right side of the Saskatoon net for his second tally of the contest to even the score at 2-2.

With 1:57 remaining in the first, Sidorov scored his second power-play goal to give the Blades a 3-2 lead. Sidorov faked a Rebels defenceman down the ground and wired home a shot to give the hosts their one-goal edge.

The SaskTel Centre faithful cheer on the Blades.

Following Sidorov’s second marker, the Rebels pulled starting netminder Kyle Kelsey. Kelsey stopped 4-of-7 shots sent his way.

Heading into Friday’s game, Kelsey was the only goalie the Rebels used in their previous nine contests in this year’s WHL Playoffs. In those nine games, Kelsey had posted a 7-2 record, a 1.93 goals against average, a .928 save percentage and one shutout.

Veteran Chase Coward, who turned 20-years-old in January, played the remainder of Friday’s game in relief in goal for the Rebels. He turned away 21-of-24 shots fired his way and was the netminder of record who took the loss in goal for the Rebels.

Just 88 seconds into the second, Rebels centre Ollie Josephson tapped home a loose puck in the crease of the Saskatoon goal to once again even the score at 3-3.

The Blades celebrate a goal from Jayden Wiens (#9).

That set the stage for De La Gorgendiere to score his winner and the Blades to seal the win in the third. De La Gorgendiere had a pair of assists to go with his goal.

Sidorov had an assist to go with his goal. Blades star centre Trevor Wong had three assists in the victory.

Chadwick stopped 14 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Blades.

Friday’s game ended with a big scrum occurring in the right corner of the Saskatoon zone as time expired. The officials dished out two minor penalties from that scrum including an unsportsmanlike conduct infraction to Rebels right-winger Craig Armstrong and a cross-checking infraction to Blades right-winger Lukas Hansen.

Originally, it was expected that this would be a tight series going in between the Blades and Rebels. 

The Blades celebrate their win on Friday.

The Blades finished fourth in the overall WHL regular season standings with a 48-15-4-1 record and were rated 10^th in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. The Rebels finished fifth in the overall WHL standings and topped the Central Division with a 43-19-3-3 mark.

The series has played out to be a tight one but not in a way that was expected with the Rebels winning the first three games and the Blades now claiming the last two contests. In the process, the players on the two teams have developed a dislike for each other creating a little snarl in the series.

Now all attention turns to Game 6 on Sunday in Red Deer. Will the Blades take another step in their pursuit of history or will the Rebels finally slam the door on the series for good?

This series has become a must-watch spectacle.

WHL suspends Blades’ Lies for hit on Lind

Justin Lies in action for the Blades on Wednesday.

The WHL’s department of discipline has Saskatoon Blades hard-working and rugged right-winger Justin Lies watching games from the stands for the foreseeable future.

On Friday, the WHL announced Lies has been suspended for the head check major and game misconduct he received for his hit on Red Deer Rebels star left-winger Kalan Lind, who turned 18-years-old in January. The length of the suspension is still to be determined.

Lies’ head check major and game misconduct penalties were assessed at the 3:24 mark of the first period in Game 4 of the WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series between the two clubs on Wednesday. The game was scoreless at the time. The Rebels led 2-0 after the first, 2-1 after the second and fell by a 4-2 final at game’s end.

Lind was taken to Red Deer Regional Hospital on Wednesday and released later that same night. He did not make the trip to Saskatoon, but the Rebels posted a message on Twitter from Lind on Thursday wishing his teammates well from his billet home.

The Blades acquired Lies in a trade with the Vancouver Giants before the current season began back on August 31, 2022. With the Blades, Lies has been the model teammate and a gritty hard working player that plays tough but within the rules.

In 56 regular season games with the Blades, Lies posted career highs in goals (nine), assists (14), points (23) and the plus-minus department (plus-six). Lies had appeared in the Blades first 11 games of their current post-season run posting one goal, one assist and a minus-one rating.

In his previous three seasons with the Giants, Lies was suspended twice for a total of six games, and that could play a part in the WHL’s final decision on his suspension length.

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

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Blades become bad guys in Red Deer to stay alive

Rebels’ Lind released from hospital after taking cheap head hit

Brandon Lisowsky celebrates his winning goal for the Blades.

RED DEER, Alta. - The Saskatoon Blades had to dawn the black cowboy hats in the eyes of the Red Deer Rebels fans in order to stay alive in the WHL Playoffs.

On Wednesday, the Blades went into Game 4 facing elimination in their WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series against the host Red Deer Rebels. The visitors fell behind 2-0 before rallying for a 4-2 victory.

With the win, the Blades cut the Rebels lead in the best-of-seven series to 3-1. They will get to host a Game 5 on Friday at 7 p.m. back at the SaskTel Centre.

Normally, this would be a contest that would be remembered for a heroic comeback script. Instead the contest will be remembered for an early incident that cast a pall over the night’s proceedings for the 4,702 spectators in attendance at the Peavey Mart Centrium.

Justin Lies is public enemy #1 in Red Deer.

With the game still scoreless at the 3:24 mark of the opening frame, Rebels left-winger Kalan Lind, who is pegged as big prospect for the coming NHL Entry Draft, was skating through centre ice and knocked a puck that came off the glass down to his stick.

As Lind started to continue up ice, he was felled by a vicious blindside elbow to the head from Blades 19-year-old right-winger Justin Lies. The impact of the hit set Lind’s helmet flying though the air. Immediately, Rebels star centre Kai Uchacz came out to challenge Lies, but the officials jumped in quickly to ensure nothing else escalated.

Lind was laid out on the ice for seven minutes being attended to by the medical staffs of both clubs. He was stretchered off to an ambulance and taken to Red Deer Regional Hospital. At night’s end after Wednesday’s game was complete, the Rebels announced that Lind had been released from hospital.

Rebels C Kai Uchacz (#19) challenges Blades RW Justin Lies.

Lies received a major penalty for checking to the head and a game misconduct. His hit will be automatically be reviewed by the WHL office for a possible suspension.

At first, it appeared the Rebels were going to rally around their fallen teammate. Uchacz, who hadn’t record any points for the first three games of the series, looked like he was going to play the role of hero for the host side.

On the ensuring five-minute power play after Lind went down, Uchacz, who was the Rebels leading scorer in the regular season, gave the Rebels a 1-0 lead scoring with the man advantage at the 6:27 mark of the frame. The De Winton, Alta., product popped home a loose puck during a net scramble around the Saskatoon goal.

Kai Uchacz scored twice in the first to put the Rebels up 2-0.

At the 13:05 mark of the opening frame, Uchacz got his second of the night to put the Rebels up 2-0. Uchacz won a race for a loose puck in the left faceoff circle in the Saskatoon zone and snapped a shot past Blades netminder Ethan Chadwick to give the hosts a two-goal edge.

When the first period came to a close, the Rebels looked like they were going to live up to their romantic image of honour that has been a part of the team since Brent Sutter bought the franchise before the start of the 1999-2000 campaign. The romantic image sees the Rebels as gritty, skilled hardworking, well mannered and well dressed team that never quits, and if one of their players goes down to a cheap hit, they never lose that game.

In the second, it appeared they were going to have ample opportunity to bury the Blades.

Kai Uchacz celebrates his second goal for the Rebels.

At the 6:14 mark of the frame, Blades star left-winger Brandon Lisowsky clipped Uchacz with a high stick that drew blood. Lisowsky received a double minor for high-sticking which will be automatically reviewed by the WHL office for a possible suspension.

Despite having the four minute power play, the Rebels weren’t able to add to their lead. After that kill, it seemed the momentum of the contest was starting to turn.

At the 12:09 of the second, the Blades got further traction when captain Aidan De La Gorgendiere fired home a power-play goal from the point through a screen to cut the Red Deer lead to 2-1. While the Rebels had a 15-9 edge in shots on goal in the second, it felt like the Blades had the better period.

Jace Isley brings the puck up ice for the Rebels.

The Blades proceeded to stun the Rebels faithful scoring on their first two shots of the third to take a 3-2 lead. At the 4:12 mark of the third, Blades hard-working centre Jayden Wiens fired a shot through a screen from the point on his squad’s first shot of the frame to even the score at 2-2.

Just 43 seconds later, the Blades were able to get the jump on the Rebels by finally getting a stretch pass to work. From deep in his own zone, Blades 18-year-old defenceman Ben Saunderson sprung Lisowsky on a breakaway connecting with him on a stretch pass at the Red Deer blue-line.

Lisowsky snapped a shot to the top left corner of the Red Deer goal to give the Blades a 3-2 lead.

Ethan Chadwick made 34 saves to allow the Blades to rally.

The Blades surge wasn’t done there. At the 8:15 mark of the third, offensive defenceman Tanner Molendyk took a pass from De La Gorgendiere, skated into the left shot and snapped a shot passed Rebels netminder Kyle Kelsey to give the visitors a 4-2 advantage.

At that point, Chadwick slammed the door on the Rebels. With 5:16 remaining in the third, Chadwick made a key stop on a close in backhand shot on Rebels 19-year-old left-winger Jace Isley.

That was the Rebels second shot on goal in the frame. They would pepper the Saskatoon net with 10 more shots before the third came to an end, which included the Rebels having pulled Kelsey for an extra attacker for most of the final 2:39 of the stanza.

The Blades celebrate an Aidan De La Gorgendiere traction goal.

Despite the shot volume, the Rebels weren’t able to beat Chadwick. One of his best saves was a glove stop on Rebels right-winger Jhett Larson.

Chadwich ultimately made 34 stops to pick up the win in goal for the Blades in his first start of the series. Kelsey turned away 20 shots to take the setback in net for the Rebels.

It was expected that this would be a tight series going in. The Blades finished fourth in the overall WHL regular season standings with a 48-15-4-1 record and were rated 10^th in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. The Rebels finished fifth in the overall WHL standings and topped the Central Division with a 43-19-3-3 mark.

Jayden Wiens (#9) scored the equalizer for the Blades.

Frustration did show from the Rebels at times with some scrum action once the Blades had taken a two-goal lead. At one point before the Rebels pulled Kelsey, it looked like Red Deer captain Jayden Grubbe was going to nail Wiens with a hard hit, but it seemed the Rebels skilled centre thought better of it creating a near miss situation at the last moment.

When the contest ended, the Rebels fans excited the Peavey Mart Centrium with the sober tonne of seeing the bad guy wrestler win a title belt in a WWE live event.

Still both teams showed great composure for the rest of the game. Had something like the Lies hit on Lind happened 20 years ago in WHL, the contest would have likely been a fight filled one the rest of the way. Instead, both teams moved on and got focused on the task at hand.

Tanner Molendyk scored a key insurance goal for the Blades.

The Blades acquired Lies in a trade with the Vancouver Giants before the current season began back on August 31, 2022. With the Blades, Lies has been the model teammate and a gritty hard working player that plays tough but within the rules.

In 56 regular season games with the Blades, Lies posted career highs in goals (nine), assists (14), points (23) and the plus-minus department (plus-six). In his previous three seasons with the Giants, Lies was suspended twice for a total of six games, and that could play a part in the WHL’s disciplinary ruling for his hit on Lind.

There could potentially ill will between the two clubs as the series carries on. Still, both teams moved on to focusing on the game at hand on Wednesday when play resumed after Lind’s hit.

Blades D Blake Gustafson (#3) skates the puck out of trouble.

In the current era of the game of hockey, usually nothing lingers on and things blow over pretty quick. Plus, the likelihood is high one of the WHL top executives will be on hand in Saskatoon for Game 5 on Friday to make sure everything goes smoothly. That often means WHL vice-president of hockey Richard Doerksen will be on hand to make sure everyone plays nice.

Coming under the ownership of the Priestner family before the start of the 2013-14 campaign, the Blades have pretty much always carried the image of being the good guys like Bret “the Hitman” Hart.

The Blades celebrate their win on Wednesday night.

In a weird twist, they were the bad guys like Roman Reigns for a one-night aberration, and it resulted in them getting a win to keep their season alive.

When the dust settled, it felt like everything that happened on Wednesday night was hollow until news came out that Lind was released from hospital. That was the true victory on the night.

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Rebels rally, have brooms on ready in series with Blades

Dwayne Jean Jr. (#22) celebrates a win with his Rebels teammates.

RED DEER, Alta. – The Saskatoon Blades scored first only to find another side to Red Deer Rebels’ grit.

On Tuesday at the Peavey Mart Centrium, Blades star centre Trevor Wong scored at the 5:04 mark of the second period to give the visitors a 1-0 edge over the host Rebels in Game 3 of a WHL Eastern Conference semifinal series. At the time of Wong’s goal, the Blades were in control of play in the contest.

The momentum didn’t last.

The gritty Rebels lived up to a team tradition of electing to not know the meaning of the work “quit.”

Dwayne Jean Jr. scored the winning goal Tuesday for the Rebels.

Before the second period ended, depth players in import right-winger Frantisek Formanek and centre Dwayne Jean Jr. netted singles for the Rebels to give them a 2-1 lead. Star left-winger Kalan Lind, who turned 18-years-old in January, scored into an empty net with 45.8 seconds remaining in the third to seal a 3-1 victory that came to the delight of almost all the 4,654 spectators in attendance.

The win allowed the Rebels to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven set. They will try to close out the series in Game 4 set for Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Peavey Mart Centrium.

Trevor Wong scored to give the Blades a 1-0 lead in the second.

If the Blades are able to survive elimination from the WHL Playoffs on Wednesday, the two clubs will go at it in Game 5 on Friday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon.

Jean Jr. said his Rebels are pleased to be up 3-0 in the series but expect getting the fourth win against the Blades will be the toughest test they’ve faced in the series.

“I wouldn’t say we are comfortable right now,” said Jean Jr., whose tally was his first career WHL post-season goal. “We still have another game.

“It is all about tomorrow. I know all the guys in there want to do it in four, but we just have to come in with the same mindset we have been the last three.”

Kyle Kelsey made 22 saves for the Rebels on Tuesday.

Tuesday’s game started with a bang with Blades right-winger Vaughn Watterodt hammering Rebels defenceman Matteo Fabrizi hard into the boards but getting a hitting from behind minor penalty in the process.

Red Deer had a huge chance to go ahead on the ensuing power play, when Lind had the puck in close at the left side of the Saskatoon net. Lind had two point blank chances to score, but he was stoned by Blades netminder Austin Elliott.

The Rebels thought they netted the game’s first goal at the 3:48 mark of the first. Jean Jr. drove a shot that banged quickly off the post creating the illusion the puck had gone into the net.

The goal judge turned on the red light, and the host side appeared to be up 1-0. The play went to a video review where it was determined the puck did not go into the Saskatoon net.

Austin Elliott makes one of his 23 saves for the Blades.

The opening 20 minutes was fairly evenly played with the Rebels holding a slim 8-7 edge in shots on goal.

Rebels head coach Steve Konowalchuk wasn’t surprised with how tightly contested things were. He said all three games in the series have been tough and his squad has had to earn the 3-0 series lead.

“They are hard fought games,” said Konowalchuk. “They’re battles.

“You have to fight for your scoring chances. You have to just keep playing hard every shift. They play hard every shift.”

At the start of the second, it appeared the Blades were set to go on a roll. At the 5:04 mark of the frame, Wong, who was positioned in front of the Red Deer net, collected a rebound of a shot taken by linemate Brandon Lisowsky and put a backhander past Rebels netminder Kyle Kelsey. The 1-0 lead marked the first time the Blades were ahead in the scoreboard all series.

Blades HC Brennan Sonne passes on directions to his players.

Saskatoon continued to apply pressure. By the 7:25 mark of the frame, they were outshooting the Rebels 5-0 in the period.

The first Rebels shot of the stanza came at the 8:30 mark. Just like that, the momentum switched. The Rebels in their traditional fashion battled back.

At the 9:46 mark of the second, Rebels star import offensive-defenceman Christoffer Sedoff blew into the offensive zone on a rush creating a two-on-one situation in tight on the Saskatoon net. Sedoff passed the puck across the face of the Saskatoon net to Formanek, who tapped home the equalizer at the right side of the Blades goal to create the 1-1 tie.

Frantisek Formanek scored the Rebels first goal on Tuesday.

With 3:35 remaining in the second, the Rebels jumped ahead 2-1, when Jean Jr. chipped home a puck from a bad angle at the right side of the Saskatoon net. Jean Jr. was pumped about netting his first career post-season goal and the winning tally.

Away from the rink, fate has been handing challenges to the forward’s family. Jean Jr., who is from the Chipewyan Prairie Dene First Nation located in northeast Alberta just south of Fort McMurray, started the season playing five games with the Tri-City Americans in Kennewick, Wash.

After deaths in his family, he approached Americans management with a wish that he would like to be closer to home. The Americans obliged and dealt him to the Rebels. The challenges due to fate on the family front continued, so netting the winner in Game 3 against the Blades had extra meaning for Jean Jr.

Christoffer Sedoff had a big assist on the Rebels first goal.

“I had my mom here,” said Jean Jr. “I haven’t got to see her much.

“My dad has been in the hospital. Just to have her here and score my first playoff goal with her here is unbelievable. I just have to say that I love her, and that was for her.”

By the end of the second, the Blades momentum faded as the Rebels held a 15-13 edge in shots on goal at the conclusion of 40 minutes of play.

In the third, both clubs had great scoring chances, but Kelsey and Elliott stood their ground. Lind proceeded to seal things with his empty-netter with 45.8 seconds to play.

Rebels LW Kalan Lind shields the puck on a rush.

Kelsey stopped 22 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Rebels. Elliott turned away 23-of-25 shots to take the setback in net for the Blades.

Konowalchuk was pleased by the response of his players when they got behind.

“I thought our guys kept playing,” said Konowalchuk. “That is important.

“You just keep playing and try not to change your game. You try not to ride the emotional roller-coaster. I thought our guys kept playing after that.”

Going into the series, neither team was expected to get out to a 3-0 lead. 

Vaughn Watterodt (#18) looks to make a pass for the Blades.

The Blades finished fourth in the overall WHL regular season standings with a 48-15-4-1 record and were rated 10^th in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. The Rebels finished fifth in the overall WHL standings and topped the Central Division with a 43-19-3-3 mark.

Like he did after his Rebels won Game 1 and 2 in Saskatoon, Konowalchuk was already talking about focusing on his team’s next game.

“We have to reset for tomorrow, but it is nice to get a win,” said Konowalchuk. “We just have to enjoy this for a real quick little bit here, but then, we have to be ready for tomorrow.”

NOTES – In the history of the WHL dating back to the circuit’s start in 1966-67, only two teams have rallied back to win a best-of-seven series having trailed the set 3-0. The Spokane Chiefs, who were guided by Mike Babcock as head coach, trailed the Portland Winterhawks 3-0 before rallying to take a first round series 4-3 in 1996. The Kelowna Rockets fell behind the Seattle Thunderbirds 3-0 in 2013 before rallying back to claim that first round series 4-3.

The Rebels celebrate their Game 3 win on Tuesday.

Saskatoon trailed the Lethbridge Hurricanes 3-0 in a second round series in the 1990 WHL Playoffs before rallying back to tie the set at 3-3. In a series deciding Game 7 in Lethbridge, the Blades fell 4-3 in overtime with defenceman Neil Hawryluk netting the winning goal for the Hurricanes.

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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