Family ties makes Blades career special for Robins

Tristen Robins (#11) eyes up a tribute video standing next to his dad, Trevor.

Growing up in Brandon, Man., Tristen Robins said his father, Trevor, divulged small pieces of his memorable past with the Saskatoon Blades.

“He shared a little bit growing up about his time with the Blades,” said Tristen, whose is the 20-year-old captain of the current Blades team. “It was nothing too in depth.

“It was nothing too crazy. I think it was his last year with the Blades where they went on a really far run and ended up losing in the finals, came up a little short. It is pretty cool to even just play for the same organization that my father did.”

Tristen Robin’s WHL rights were originally held by the Regina Pats, who selected him in the fourth round and 76 overall in what was then known as the WHL Bantam Draft. The skilled centre’s WHL rights were acquired in a blockbuster trade on January 8, 2018, when Robins was in his 16-year-old season.

The Pats were loading up their roster that season due to being the host team for the Memorial Cup tournament that crowns a CHL champion. They acquired Blades 19-year-old import Czech defenceman Libor Hajek, who had a signed NHL entry-level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning, in exchange for 19-year-old defenceman Dawson Davidson, Robins, and a first round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft.

Robins suited up in one game before the trade with the Pats and dressed for his first three games as a member of the Blades as the 2017-18 campaign played to a conclusion. He became a full-time member of the team in his 17-year-old season and rose to star status in 2019-20 putting up 33 goals, 40 assists and a plus-16 rating in the plus-minus department appearing in 62 games with the Blades.

Tristen Robins has 200 points in regular season play with the Blades.

Following that season, Robins would be selected in the second round and 56^th overall by the San Jose Sharks in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. He would later sign an NHL entry-level contract with the Sharks.

In total, Robins has played in 211 career regular season games with the Blades posting 85 goals and 115 assists for 200 points.

Robins is skating through his final season as a member of the Blades, and he would like create a lasting post-season memory with the team like his father did.

The younger Robins has one last chance to do that as the Blades (38-26-3-1) begin play in the WHL Playoffs taking on the Warriors (37-24-4-3) in Moose Jaw in Game 1 of a best-of-seven first round series on Friday at 7 p.m. at Mosaic Place. 

The Warriors finished fourth in the WHL’s Eastern Conference with 81 standings points just edging out the fifth-place Blades by a single point.

Robins missed the Blades last four regular season games due to injury but is probable for Game 1 of the playoffs against the Warriors.

“I would love to go as far as we can eventually, you know hopefully, win a championship,” said Tristen Robins. “It is my last kick at the can here, so I’m going to do everything I can here to help lead this team to a championship.”

Tristen Robins had a career high 78 points this season.

Way back at the start of the 1989-90 season, Trevor has been in training camp with the WHL’s Brandon Wheat Kings before being cut. He was quickly picked up by the Blades and made the team as a 17-year-old rookie backing up overager Damon Kustra.

Kustra ultimately was dogged by an abdominal muscle injury, and Trevor found himself in the starting role. Trevor posted a 21-21-1 record, a 4.66 goals against average, a .861 save percentage and one shutout helping the Blades make the playoffs with a record of 33 wins 34 loss and 5 ties.

In the high scoring 1980s and early 1990s, Trevor’s statistics were viewed as being good.

The Blades advanced to the second round to play a best-of-seven series against the Lethbridge Hurricanes, who topped the Eastern Conference with a 51-17-4 record. The Hurricanes took a 3-0 lead in the series, but with Robins in goal outside of a short stretch in Game 5, the Blades rallied to even the series at 3-3.

The Hurricanes claimed Game 7 in overtime 4-3 with the winning tally coming from Neil Hawryluk.

The Blades missed the playoffs in Trevor’s second season in 1990-91, but returned to the post-season with a 38-29-5 record in 1991-92. Trevor was named a first team Eastern Conference all-star posting a 24-23-2 record, a 3.50 goals against average and a .884 save percentage.

Saskatoon advanced to the best-of-seven WHL Eastern Conference Championship series against their archrivals the Prince Albert Raiders, who finished second overall in the WHL with a 50-20-2 mark. The Blades fell behind 2-1 in the series.

Tristen Robins (#11) smiles after scoring a goal on March 25.

In a critical Game 4, Robins made 29 saves to back the Blades to a 2-1 victory before 9,452 spectators at the SaskTel Centre. The Blades used the momentum from that win to take the next two games of the series for a 4-2 victory in the best-of-seven set to advance to the WHL Final.

In the WHL Final, the Blades faced the Kamloops Blazers, who posted the league’s best record at 51-17-4. The Blades fell in a hard-fought series that went seven games to a Blazers squad that went on to win their first of three Memorial Cup titles in four years as CHL champions.

Trevor completed his major junior career with his hometown Wheat Kings in 1992-92 being once again named a WHL first team Eastern Conference all-star posting a 36-17-4 record, a 3.15 goals against average, a .904 save percentage and two shutouts.

Following that one campaign with the Wheat Kings, Trevor played three seasons in the minor system of the San Jose Sharks after signing a free agent contract with the NHL club. That same Sharks side ultimately drafted and signed Tristen in 2020.

As for Tristen, he has enjoyed his time with the Blades and appreciates hearing old stories from Saskatoon residents about his dad from when he played with the team. The son got a laugh out of hearing how Trevor got kicked out of the Blades Game 5 win in Lethbridge in their 1990 second round playoff series with the Hurricanes.

With the Blades up 6-5 late in the second period, Blades defenceman Mark Wotton was engaged in a fight with Hurricanes rearguard Pat Pylypuik. Trevor got involved in the altercation trying to both break it up and pull Wotton away from the fisticuffs.

Tristen Robins has a signed contract with the NHL’s San Jose Sharks.

The officials ruled Trevor was the third man in on the fight booted him from the game, which the Blades would take by a 7-6 final.

Tristen said Trevor talking glowingly of the crowds especially the massive turnouts that came to see the Blades during playoff time that often saw over 10,000 spectators pack into the SaskTel Centre.

“He just said it was crazy back then,” said Robins. “We’re getting glimpses of that this year with the great crowds that we are getting.

“I’m super excited for what is to come.”

Blades head coach Brennan Sonne, who is in his first season with the organization, said Robins has been valuable to the club in many ways both on and off the ice. Sonne has been impressed with how Robins has shouldered the role of becoming captain late in the campaign.

On March 30, the Blades announced offensive-defenceman Aidan De La Gorgendiere, who is the team’s captain, needed season ending shoulder surgery and wouldn’t be available to return to the team until the start of training camp next season. Robins was given the role of captain for the rest of the current campaign.

“Just like anything, your actions much louder than your words,” said Sonne. “I think Robby has internalized that a little bit.

Tristen Robins will be skating in his last post-season with the Blades.

“I thought he led the way in terms of dig in, buy in and all that kind of stuff. It is really unfortunate that we lost De La (Gorgendiere). We wish him the best with his surgery and recovery.

“Again, we still have a group, and we put in a lot of time. Robby has stepped up to be that central leadership figure for the players.”

Robins is having his best season during his final campaign in the major junior ranks. In 62 appearances with the Blades, he has posted 33 goals and 45 assists for 78 points and his assist and point totals were career highs. He also has a plus-four rating.

Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world, Robins wasn’t able to skate in any post-season action in 2020 and 2021, because the WHL wasn’t able to hold playoffs due to challenges with the pandemic. The Memorial Cup was cancelled in each of the past two years.

Robins has only been able to experience one post-season in 2019. The Blades finished fourth overall in the WHL in that regular season with a 45-15-8 record but lost a second round series in six games to the eventual WHL champion Raiders, who topped the regular season standings with a 54-10-2-2 record.

The playoff format for that campaign created a bracket that saw the Blades and Raiders meet in the second round.

Robins said it is different to think that the upcoming post-season will be his last in the major junior ranks.

“It is emotional for sure, but at the same time, I’m super grateful for how this organization has treated me after I came from Regina,” said Robins. “It has been nothing but class.

Tristen Robins gives “fives” to his Blades teammates.

“I just want to pass on a legacy of Blades culture and positivity.”

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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From Blades to Sharks, Robins follows father’s footsteps

Tristen Robins was a second round NHL Entry Draft pick.

At times, it seems like the hockey Gods have predetermined Tristen Robins’ path through the game.

That path sees Tristen following in the footsteps of his father, Trevor Robins. The one big difference between the two is Tristen is a high-scoring centre, while Trevor was a solid puck stopping goalie.

For three seasons from 1989 to 1992, Trevor, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 179 pounds, played in the WHL for the Saskatoon Blades. He was named to the WHL’s Eastern Conference first all-star team in 1991-92, which was a campaign where the Blades advanced to the WHL Championship series and fell in a series deciding seventh game to the eventual Memorial Cup champion Kamloops Blazers.

Tristen Robins is a star with the Blades.

As for Tristen, it appeared at first his WHL career was going to be with the Regina Pats, who selected him in the fourth round and 76^th overall in the 2016 WHL Bantam Draft.

On January 8, 2018, Tristen’s WHL rights were acquired by the Blades in a blockbuster trade. In that trade, Tristen, defenceman Dawson Davidson and a first round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft went to the Blades in exchanged for import Czech defenceman Libor Hajek.

The Pats acquired Hajek in order to load up their roster as the host of the Memorial Cup tournament in May of 2018.

Tristen, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 173 pounds, has played two full seasons with the Blades. He shot up to star status this past campaign piling up 33 goals, 40 assists and a plus-16 rating in the plus-minus department in 62 regular season games.

On Wednesday, the hand of fate saw Tristen once again follow in his father’s hockey footsteps. 

Tristan Robins led the Blades with 73 points last season.

At the NHL Entry Draft that was via video conference call from the NHL Network Studios in Secaucus, New Jersey, the San Jose Sharks picked Tristen in the second round and 56^th overall.

The Sharks happened to be the first professional team Trevor signed with.

Following the 1991-92 season, Trevor was traded by the Blades to the Brandon Wheat Kings, who had finished last in the entire league with a record of 11 wins, 55 loses and six ties. Brandon is the hometown of the Robins family.

With Trevor starting in goal as an overager, the Wheat Kings shot up to fourth overall in the WHL with a record of 43 wins, 25 losses and four ties. He was again named to the WHL’s Eastern Conference first all-star team.

Tristen Robins followed his dad’s footsteps to the Blades.

Trevor ended up signing a free agent contract with the Sharks.

In his second season as a professional in 1994-95, Trevor was called up from the International Hockey League’s Kansas City Blades to the Sharks, who dealing with injury problems in goal. Trevor spent about three months going up and down between the two teams but ultimately never saw action in and NHL game.

One day, Tristen, who is 18-years-old, might be able to one-up his father and hit the ice for an NHL game.

This was first time Tristan was eligible for the NHL Entry Draft due to his birthday being in November. Players need to be born on or before September 15 the year they turn 18-years-old to be eligible for the NHL Entry Draft.

Tristen Robins is following his dad’s footsteps to the Sharks.

Tristan will be playing in his 19-year-old season in the 2020-21 WHL campaign, which is targeted to start late on Dec. 4 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

The NHL is targeting to start its regular season on January 1, 2021.

As an 18-year-old sophomore, Tristen kept turning more and more heads of NHL scouts. He was rated 134th among North American Skaters in the midterm ranking put out by NHL Central Scouting.

Tristen Robins (#11) celebrates one of his 33 goals last season.

Tristen leaped up to the 86th spot among North American skaters on the final NHL Central Scouting rankings. His stock continued to rise resulting in a second round draft selection.

The 2019-20 WHL campaign was ultimately ended on March 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but had Tristen been able to participate in the playoffs for a second straight year, he might have further increased his draft stock.

Tristen helped the Blades post a 34-24-2-3 record to officially lock up a playoff berth before the season was halted.

He has the skating, puck handling, shooting and hockey sense abilities few have. Tristen has also been a perfect representative for the Blades in the community.

It would not be a surprise to see Tristen put all of those characteristics on display in the NHL some day. He has the potential to make the Sharks brass look very wise for selecting him.

Tigers G Garin Bjorklund was picked by the Capitals.

The NHL Entry Draft concluded on Wednesday with teams selecting players in rounds two through seven. Over the draft’s two days, 28 players from the WHL were picked up NHL clubs.

Left-winger Cross Hanas of the Portland Winterhawks was the first WHL player taken in Wednesday’s NHL Entry Draft proceedings going in the second round and 55^th overall to the Detroit Red Wings. The Highland Village, Texas, product posted 22 goals, 27 assists and a plus-20 rating in 60 games with the Winterhawks.

Of some of the other various notables, Moose Jaw Warriors defenceman Daemon Hunt was taken in the third round and 65^th overall by the Minnesota Wild. The Brandon, Man., product was limited to 28 games this past season due to a skate cut injury to his arm.

Hunt had 15 assists in those games and was playing for the Warriors when the campaign was stopped due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Brandon’s Ben McCartney (#22) was picked by the Coyotes.

Kamloops Blazers goalie Dylan Garand was selected in the fourth round and 103^rd overall by the New York Rangers. The Victoria, B.C., product posted a 28-10-3 record, a 2.21 goals against average, a .921 save percentage and four shutouts in 42 games last season with the Blazers.

Medicine Hat Tigers right-winger Lukas Svejkovsky was taken in the fourth round and 108^th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

The Point Roberts, Wash., product recorded 18 goals, 20 assists and a plus-38 rating in 52 games split between the Vancouver Giants and Tigers. The Tigers acquired Svejkovsky via a trade.

Portland Winterhawks left-winger Jaydon Dureau was selected in the fifth round and 147^th overall. The White City, Sask., product recorded 19 goals, 51 assists and a plus-41 rating in 61 regular season games.

Tristen Robins (#11) celebrates a Blades win with Riley McKay.

Tigers netminder Garin Bjorklund was picked in the sixth round and 179^th overall by the Washington Capitals. The Grande Prairie, Alta., product posted a 20-5-1 record, a 2.91 goals against average, a .897 save percentage and one shutout last season as a 17-year-old rookie.

Wheat Kings left-winger Ben McCartney was selected in the seventh round and 204^th overall by the Arizona Coyotes. The Macdonald, Man., product collected 25 goals, 36 assists and a plus-eight rating in 61 games last season for the Wheat Kings.

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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Robins on the rise, tops Blades prospects for NHL Entry Draft

Tristen Robins is expected to be an NHL Entry Draft pick.

Tristen Robins might make some NHL scout or general manager look like a genus somewhere down the line.

Since joining the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades on a full-time basis as a 17-year-old rookie at the start of the 2018-19 season, the skilled centre as steadily improved. During that first season, Robins appeared in all of the Blades 68 regular season games posting nine goals, 16 assists and a plus-seven rating in the plus-minus department.

In the Blades march to the second round of the 2019 WHL playoffs, Robins appeared in all 10 of the team’s post-season games collecting three goals and one assist.

Tristen Robins led the Blades with 73 points last season.

The Blades were very deep at forward that season finishing fourth overall in the WHL regular season standings at 45-15-8, so Robins wasn’t relied upon for offence. Still, the Brandon, Man., product showed flashes in the offensive zone to make one suspect there was more potential to unlock at that end of the ice.

He piled up the points in Brandon’s minor hockey system growing up to further show that potential was there.

Last year as an 18-year-old sophomore, Robins, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 173 pounds, appeared in 62 regular season games with the Blades leading the team in scoring with 33 goals and 40 assists for 73 points to go along with a plus-16 rating.

Tristen Robins scored 33 goals for the Blades last season.

He played a key role in helping the Blades post a 34-24-2-3 record to lock up a WHL playoff berth for the second straight year. The Blades were unable to enjoy any post-season action as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic ultimately put an end to the overall WHL campaign on March 12.

Thanks to his performance in the 2019-20 regular season, Robins was rated 86^th among North American skaters in the final NHL Central Scouting rankings, which was a huge jump from being rated 134^th among North American skaters in the midterm rankings.

It is conceivable Robins could have increased his NHL Entry Draft potential had there been a post-season in major junior hockey.

Tristen Robins made big strides in two seasons with the Blades.

At the moment, it looks like the odds are high Robins will be picked in one of the middle rounds of the upcoming NHL Entry Draft.

The NHL Entry Draft will start with round one on Tuesday via video conference call from the NHL Network Studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. Rounds two through seven will be held on Wednesday by that same video conference call format.

This marks the first time Robins will be eligible for the NHL Entry Draft due to his late in the year birthday. Players need to be born on or before September 15 the year they turn 18-years-old to be eligible for the NHL Entry Draft.

Robins has been a great fit for the Blades after they acquired his WHL rights from the Regina Pats in a trade on January 8, 2018. In that trade, Robins, defenceman Dawson Davidson and a first round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft went to the Blades in exchanged for import Czech defenceman Libor Hajek.

Tristen Robins is one of the Blades top players.

The Pats acquired Hajek in order to load up their roster as the host of the Memorial Cup tournament in May of 2018.

With that move, Robins followed in the footsteps of his father, Trevor, in being a member of the Blades. Trevor played three seasons for the Blades from 1989 to 1992, and was part of the Blades team that fell in Game 7 of the WHL Championship Series in 1992.

During the 1992 post-season, Trevor played a big role in helping the Blades turn around a league semifinal series against their archrivals the Prince Albert Raiders. In Game 4 of that series, Trevor made 29 saves in a 2-1 victory over the Raiders to even that best-of-seven series at 2-2.

The Blades would take that series in six games to advance to the WHL final.

Rhett Rhinehart could be an NHL Entry Draft pick.

Now Tristen has made his own name for himself with the Blades. Any NHL team would be wise to select him in the NHL Entry Draft, because it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Robins one day crack into that level.

He has the skating, puck handling, shooting and hockey sense abilities few have. During the extended off-season, Robins travels to Winnipeg, Man., in order to continue to sharpen his skills at the Rink Hockey Academy.

Besides Robins, the Blades had four other players break on to the final NHL Central Scouting rankings.

Defenceman Rhett Rhinehart came in at the 151^st spot among North American skaters. Like Robins, Rhinehart is eligible for the NHL Entry Draft for the first time due to his late in the year birthday.

Aidan De La Gorgendiere is on the NHL’s radar.

Playing last season as a third-year 18-year-old veteran, Rhinehart, who stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 205 pounds, appeared in 57 regular season games split between the Prince George Cougars and Blades collecting three goals, 15 assists and a minus-12 rating.

The Blades acquired Rhinehart in a deal on January 10 just before the WHL trade deadline. The Lloydminster, Alta., product was a plus-one in 21 appearances with the Blades.

Rearguard Aidan De La Gorgendiere, who is a product of Langley, B.C., cracked the final NHL Central Scouting rankings at the 197^th spot among North American skaters after not being listed on the midterm rankings. 

De La Gorgendiere, who stands 6-feet and weighs 184 pounds, improved steadily during his 17-year-old sophomore campaign appearing in all of the Blades 63 regular season games posting four goals, 24 assists and a plus-two rating.

Kyle Crnkovic's skill overcomes his lack of size.

Left-winger Kyle Crnkovic checked in at the 208^th spot among North American skaters in the final NHL Central Scouting ranking also after not being listed on the midterm rankings.

In his two seasons with the Blades, Crnkovic has established as one of Saskatoon’s top players that comes through in the clutch. The Chestermere, Alta., product appeared in all of the Blades 63 regular season games finishing second in team scoring with 21 goals and 43 assists for 64 points to go along with a plus-nine rating.

While Crnkovic has skill, his lack of size is the biggest characteristic that likely holds him back in the eyes of NHL scouts, as he stands 5-foot-7 and weighs 161 pounds. Still, Crnkovic can play the game at a very high level.

Koen MacInnes had a solid rookie season for the Blades.

Koen MacInnes is the fifth member of the Blades to make the final NHL Central Scouting rankings coming in at 22^nd among North American goalies. MacInnes was rated 31^st in the midterm ranking among North American goalies.

The Burnaby, B.C., product had a solid 17-year-old rookie campaign last season with the Blades posting a 14-5-1 record, a 2.84 goals against average, a .901 save percentage and three shutouts. MacInnes also stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 184 pounds, and NHL scouts will likely appreciate the netminder’s size.

Overall at this moment, Robins heads the class of Blades players eligible to be picked in the NHL Entry Draft.

You have a feeling his hockey career has the potential to contain a few heroic moments in the future.

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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Fan reaction over the top on Blades two biggest media hits in 2017-18 WHL season

The Blades celebrate a goal on March 17.

    When the dust settled from the 2017-18 WHL season, it felt like a loud group of fans really went off the rails reacting to the plight of the Saskatoon Blades.

    If you play, coach and manage in the WHL, you know you will deal with fan criticism at some point. The same goes for those in the media that cover the league.

    Due to how much the mainstream media in Canada has been cut, teams like the Blades aren’t covered on an everyday basis like they once were. If the team has a big news hit that attracts most to almost all the community’s media both mainstream and non-mainstream, it seems like fans pay attention to those hits more than usual due to the fact they are receiving the same information from seemingly numerous sources.

    There were two hits last season the fans seemed to be caught up on judging by the reaction on social media and radio call in lines. The first was the action that occurred on the personnel front the two days before and the day of the WHL’s Jan. 10 trade deadline. 

    The second hit came when Dean Brockman was relieved of his duties as head coach on March 18, which occurred the day after the Blades played their final regular season game where they downed the Prince Albert Raiders 5-4 at the SaskTel Centre.

Winger Josh Paterson emerged as a key scorer last season.

    The Blades posted a 35-33-3-1 regular season record, but still missed making the post-season for the fifth straight campaign. The sting was compounded by the fact the Blades had the seventh most posts in the WHL’s 12 team Eastern Conference, which meant two clubs with weaker records than Saskatoon’s made the playoffs.

    The Blades finished three points back of the Prince Albert Raiders (32-27-9-4) for the second wildcard berth in the conference.

    With the Blades having missed the post-season again, it seemed a sizable group of fans took what happened at the trade deadline and Brockman’s departure in directions that were not intended. The uproar was a bit startling, because Blades fans had seemed to be more on the quiet side in recent years.

    First let’s review what happened shortly before the WHL trade deadline passed.

    On Jan. 8, Saskatoon sent Libor Hajek, who is a 19-year-old import Czech defenceman and had a signed NHL entry-level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning, to the Regina Pats in exchange for 19-year-old defenceman Dawson Davidson, 16-year-old forward prospect Tristen Robins and a first round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft.

Max Gerlach was an important trade pick up for the Blades.

    On Jan. 10, the Blades and the Pats combined for another blockbuster. The Blades sent overage star centre and local product Cameron Hebig and 19-year-old goaltender Ryan Kubic to the Pats in exchange for overage star netminder Tyler Brown, 17-year-old right-winger Bryan Lockner, a first and a second round selection in the 2020 WHL Bantam Draft, a third round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft and a third round selection in the 2021 WHL Bantam Draft.

    The Blades proceeded to deal Lockner, a first round selection in the 2020 WHL Bantam Draft and a second round selection in the 2021 WHL Bantam Draft to the Medicine Hat Tigers in exchange for 19-year-old star centre Max Gerlach.

    Before deadline passed on Jan. 10, the Blades made one more deal acquiring centre Eric Florchuk, who was in his 17-year-old season, from the Victoria Royals for a first round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft, a first round selection in the 2021 WHL Bantam Draft and a fourth round selection in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft that was originally obtained from the Brandon Wheat Kings in an earlier deal. 

Blades C Eric Florchuk (#17) works his way through the Raiders.

    Florchuk was originally selected by the Royals in the first round and 13^th overall in the 2015 WHL Bantam Draft.

    In that flurry of action, it seemed fans got caught up on the names of Hebig and Hajek and didn’t hear anything else that happened. It was interpreted that the Blades were throwing a grenade at their roster and giving up on the season playing out of an extremely tough East Division by dumping their two best players.

    The truth was they worked the roster in a way that they were still able to compete for a playoff berth that season and gained assets to help in the future. Saskatoon posted a 20-19-2-1 record in the 42 games played before those trades and a 15-14-1 mark in the 30 games that came after those deals.

    When all of the WHL games on Feb. 19 had wrapped up, the Blades were 31-27-2-1 and had an eight point lead over the Prince Albert Raiders for the second wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference. The Blades were two points behind the Brandon Wheat Kings for the first wildcard position.

Goalie Nolan Maier makes a glove stop for the Blades last season.

    Over their final 11 games, the Blades posted a 4-6-1 mark to fall out of the playoff picture.

    The Blades still had a roster that could compete with the rest of the teams in the East Division, and they compiled an 18-17-2-1 mark against their East Division rivals.

    When the Blades released Brockman at the end of the season, it felt like some of the heat thrown the way of Blades general manager Colin Priestner went way over the top. I remember viewing a number of comments sent his way via the public social media platform of Twitter addressed to his Twitter handle that made me feel uncomfortable.

    It almost felt like he might just get jumped in the street or physically harmed in some way, and that is taking things too far.

    I thought it was fair comment for fans to say they thought missing the playoffs was less Brockman’s fault than Priestner’s fault, because Brockman has a lengthy hockey background and Priestner has a much smaller one in comparison.

Fans took the release of Dean Brockman as Blades head coach hard.

    A number of the vocal fans took issue with the fact that Priestner holds the general manager’s role on a club that is owned by his father, Mike Priestner. I would say that is a fair comment, because Colin would have had trouble landing a general manager position with any other WHL team, because he only had three seasons of front office experience under his belt when he became the Blades general manager.

    The scenario of people grinding an axe due to a family member getting a high ranking position because another family member is the manager or owner is something that has come up frequently over the course of time in the work place.

    Still, there were times the criticism of Colin on that front went from fair comment to being beyond personal on that front which isn’t right.

    For me, the separation between Priestner and Brockman felt like more of a situation where the two sides determined they couldn’t work together anymore, which is something that often happens in sports.

    Priestner has made good moves and played a hand in bringing netminder Nolan Maier, forwards Kirby Dach, Chase Wouters and Josh Paterson and defencemen Jackson Caller and Jake Kustra to the Blades. They are all quality players, and it would not be a surprise if the Blades had a strong season in 2018-19.

Blades GM Colin Priestner took heat from fans.

    When it came to delivering the information on those two big media hits, the Blades communications staff did an admirable job of relaying the information to the local area media, and the local area media did a great job of delivering the information about what was going on with the team to the public.

    No one can control how some fans will take that information. It also has to be viewed as a good thing in one respect fans can still be really passionate about the team.

    Hopefully, some in the loud vocal group of fans will learn to maybe take deep breaths before reacting on big developments with Saskatoon’s WHL squad. At the end of the day, the Blades are only playing a game.

    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 come out winners in a bonkers WHL trade deadline day

Max Gerlach (#9) battles for the puck for the Blades.

    A former standout veteran WHL executive once told me anybody in the league can be traded depending on what you want to give up.

    That played out to be true on Wednesday’s WHL trade deadline day, where 17 deals were made on that day alone before the deadline of 4 p.m. Saskatchewan time. That doesn’t include all the massive amount of moves that were made in the 10 days leading up to trade deadline day.

    When you step back and look at what was given up to get standouts that might be rentals for a maximum of five months, some of the WHL general managers and executives were out of their minds. Way too many deals were made in the fashion of an armchair general manager running a fantasy sports NHL team.

Netminder Tyler Brown (#31) helps out on the Blades bench.

    On the Saskatoon Blades front, credit has to be given to them for taking advantage of some good opportunities when they came about. Some of their good fortune was used to get a couple of good players they might not have originally thought they could pick up.

    Blades general manager Colin Priestner, his scouts and executive staff on the hockey side of things made the right hockey moves when it came to popular veterans Libor Hajek and Cameron Hebig when the Regina Pats camp calling. The Pats were stocking up their roster to be a solid host side when they host the Memorial Cup tournament from May 17 to 27. The Blades took advantage of a team in need.

    On Monday, Saskatoon sent Hajek, who is a 19-year-old import Czech defenceman and has a signed NHL entry-level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning, to Regina in exchange for 19-year-old defenceman Dawson Davidson, 16-year-old forward prospect Tristen Robins and a first round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft.

Dawson Davidson jets up ice for the Blades.

    On Wednesday morning, the Blades and the Pats combined for another blockbuster. The Blades sent overage star centre and local product Hebig and 19-year-old goaltender Ryan Kubic to the Pats in exchange for overage star netminder Tyler Brown, 17-year-old right-winger Bryan Lockner, a first and a second round selection in the 2020 WHL Bantam Draft, a third round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft and a third round selection in the 2021 WHL Bantam Draft.

    The Blades proceeded to deal Lockner, a first round selection in the 2020 WHL Bantam Draft and a second round selection in the 2021 WHL Bantam Draft to the Medicine Hat Tigers in exchange for 19-year-old star centre Max Gerlach.

    Before deadline passed on Wednesday afternoon, the Blades made one more deal acquiring centre Eric Florchuk, who turned 18 on Wednesday, from the Victoria Royals for a first round selection in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft, a first round selection in the 2021 WHL Bantam Draft and a fourth round selection in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft that was originally obtained from the Brandon Wheat Kings in an earlier deal. 

Bryan Lockner (#28) was dealt to the Tigers by the Blades.

    Florchuk was originally selected by the Royals in the first round and 13^th overall in the 2015 WHL Bantam Draft.

    After the dust settled, the Blades managed to help themselves in the present as the arrivals of Brown, Gerlach and Davidson make up for the departures of Kubic, Hebig and Hajek. As a bonus, Brown is a big upgrade over Kubic, and Gerlach has the potential to return next season as an overager, while Hebig, who has an NHL entry-level contract signed with the Edmonton Oilers, will exhaust his major junior eligibility.

    Saskatoon now has one of the best goaltending tandems in the league with Brown being pair up with rookie sensation Nolan Maier, who turned 17 on Wednesday.

Max Gerlach zips into the offensive zone for the Blades.

    The Blades also helped themselves in the near future with the additions of Florchuk, who could potentially play the next three seasons in the WHL, and Robins, who appeared in one game with the Pats this season and could potentially play the next four campaigns in the WHL. Florchuk was in transit to join the Blades for the rest of the current campaign on Wednesday, while Robins currently plays for the Rink Hockey Academy prep team in Winnipeg, Man.

    On the WHL Bantam Draft front, the Blades came away with one less first round pick, one less fourth round selection, and they added two third round selections. The movement on the draft picks front won’t cause the Blades any pain, when it comes to building in the future.

Jaegar White, left, and Max Gerlach were teammates at Wednesday’s start.

    Overall, the Blades have to come away from this season’s action at the trade deadline feeling good about themselves. Their grade is an ‘A’ for what they accomplished.
    It should be noted they were able to do what they did on the trade front, because they didn’t want to trade Hajek or Hebig. Being in that position in a genuine state allowed the outrageous offers to materialize. 

    At the other end of the spectrum, the Pats might regret the fact they let Brown get away. They weren’t able to make a deal with another netminder, so they have to go through the rest of the season with Kubic, Max Paddock and Jacob Wasserman as their goals. Paddock and Wasserman are both in their 17-year-old rookie seasons.

    Only six players remain on the Pats roster who were full-time members of their squad that advanced to the WHL championship last season. They include forwards Sam Steel, Jake Leschyshyn, Nick Henry, Robbie Holmes and defencemen Josh Mahura and Liam Schioler. Regina is in for a challenging future in regards to playing the rest of the current campaign and a majorly challenging future when next season rolls around.

Rookie sensation Nolan Maier is now part of stellar goalie tandem. 

    The Blades will be a major contender to earn their first playoff berth since 2013 this season. Their prospects are also bright for future seasons.

    On Wednesday night with Gerlach and Davidson on the ice and Brown dressed as the backup goalie, the Blades dropped a 3-2 decision to the Tigers before 2,709 spectators at the SaskTel Centre.

Chase Wouters had a goal and an assist for the Blades, while Braylon Shmyr had a single. Gerlach picked up an assist in the setback.

    Gary Haden, Lockner and David Quenneville replied with singles for the Tigers.

    Maier made 43 stops to take the setback in goal for the Blades (21-19-2-1). Jordan Hollett turned away 31 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Tigers (23-16-3). Hollett was with the Pats last season and was dealt to the Tigers shortly after Regina lost out in the WHL championship series last May.

The Blades hope to celebrate a number of goals with their new additions.

    The Blades hold the second wildcard berth in the WHL’s Eastern Conference, and they have a seven point cushion in the standings over the Prince Albert Raiders (15-18-6-2). The Raiders have two game in hand on the Blades.

    Saskatoon is a point behind Regina in the standings for the first Eastern Conference wildcard berth after the Pats record moved to 21-19-4 after a 4-3 loss in overtime at home to the Edmonton Oil Kings on Wednesday night. The Blades have a game in hand on the Pats.

    The Blades return to action on Saturday, when they travel to Red Deer to face the Rebels.

    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 in the thick of things at WHL Christmas break

Nolan Maier (#73) and Randen Schmidt celebrate a Blades win.

    The Saskatoon Blades are in the thick of the race to make the playoffs at the WHL’s Christmas break, and that development is a welcome site.

    In the early going, the Blades stumbled out of the blocks posting a 3-7-1 after falling 7-2 to the Victoria Royals at the SaskTel Centre on Oct. 24. At that point, it appeared the Blades might be in for a long season.

    Things have gotten a lot better since then. At the Christmas break, the Blades (15-17-2-1) are tied with the Prince Albert Raiders (13-14-5-2) for the second wildcard berth in the WHL’s Eastern Conference standings at 33 points. The Raiders have a game in hand.

    Both of those squads are two points behind the Memorial Cup hosting Regina Pats (16-17-3) for the first wildcard berth. The Raiders have two games in hand on the Pats, while the Blades have one game in hand on the Regina side.

    The Blades are trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2013 playing out of a tough East Division in the WHL.

Nolan Maier makes a glove stop for the Blades.

    The East Division has three teams ranked in the Canadian Hockey League’s Top 10 Rankings including the Moose Jaw Warriors (27-6-1-1), the Swift Current Broncos (25-7-2) and the Brandon Wheat Kings (24-8-0-1) who are rated second, fourth and fifth respectively.

    At the moment, the six clubs that make up the East Division are sitting in the top seven in the Eastern Conference. It is possible that all of these clubs could finish in the top eight in the Eastern Conference forcing one team to miss the post-season to a club with a weaker record.

    Starting with the 2014-15 campaign, the WHL changed its playoff format to match the NHL’s. In the format that has been used since that campaign, the top three teams in each division make the playoffs plus two wildcard entries from each conference.

Kirby Dach is finding his groove with the Blades.

    Before the 2014-15 campaign, the first place teams in each division make the post-season plus the teams with the next six best records in each of the Eastern and Western Conferences after the division winners. The old system was better for ensuring the clubs with the best records made the post-season.

    The Blades could finish last in the East Division, but place in the top eight of the Eastern Conference and miss the post-season under the present system. If that came to pass, the season would likely still be graded as one with progress.

    With all that said, there has to be optimism that the Blades could make playoffs regardless. The team’s goaltending has come around with the emergence of 16-year-old rookie and Yorkton, Sask., product Nolan Maier, while 19-year-old veteran Ryan Kubic appears to have found his confidence after a slow start.

    Overage forwards Cameron Hebig and Braylon Shmyr have been lighting it up as Hebig leads the Blades in scoring with 26 goals and 23 assists for 49 points, and Shmyr is second with 14 goals and 26 assists for 41 points.

Libor Hajek has been solid on the back end for the Blades.

    Kirby Dach, the team’s highly touted 16-year-old forward, is getting more and more comfortable with each outing and has four goals and 18 assists in 27 games. Josh Paterson, who is an 18-year-old winger, has quietly collected 12 goals and seven assists so far this season.

    Import defenceman Libor Hajek, who is currently with the Czech Republic’s world junior team, has been a rock on the back end, and rearguard Jackson Caller has made big strides in his 18-year-old year.

    There should be a lot of excitement at the SaskTel Centre after the Christmas break.

    The Blades return to action on Wednesday, when they host the Raiders at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

Christmas had to be a relief for Pats

The Pats haven’t met the expectations of a Memorial Cup host squad so far.

    The WHL Christmas break likely couldn’t have arrived quick enough for the players of the Regina Pats, who will host this season’s Memorial Cup.

    The Pats entered the break posting three regulation losses and an overtime loss in their last four games. They hold down the first wildcard playoff spot in the WHL’s Eastern Conference with a 16-17-3 record. If they had three fewer points in the standings, they would be sitting out of a playoff position.

    Right now there are a lot of vocal members of the “Pats Regiment,” who are voicing their displeasure with how the season has progressed so far. If the players venture out of their billet homes to get out into the city, they might likely encounter a fan here or there getting on them about their record.

    Players might likely overhear a person here or there cutting him or his teammates and coaches down. You could try to live in a bubble between your billet home and the rink, but that gets old after a while. You have to get out and live at some time.

Goalie Tyler Brown and the Pats need some time to rest.

    The break will allow the Pats players to get out of Regina and exit the pressure cooker for a little over a week providing some welcome relief.

    When the Pats last hosted the Memorial Cup in the 2000-01 campaign, the team was almost in a similar spot. At the WHL Christmas break in 2000-01, the Pats had a record of 17 wins, 17 losses, one tie and two overtime losses. The WHL still had ties back in those days.

    The heat was on the team to become a squad that was more worthy to be a Memorial Cup host. The heat then was a little less than it is now due to the fact the Pats in 2000-01 were still comfortably in a playoff position at the Christmas break. After making a number of trades before the WHL’s trade deadline, the Pats finished the campaign with 40 wins, 27 losses, three ties and two overtime losses.

    It is conceivable the Pats, who host the Memorial Cup this coming May 17-27, could have a similar turnaround this season. At the moment, the players should take every opportunity to rest and recharge.

    The Pats return to action on Wednesday, when they travel to Brandon to face the Wheat Kings.

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

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