Blades winning streak falls due to hectic schedule

Saskatoon goes down gutty playing third game in 48 hours

Chase Wouters and the Blades were in tough on Sunday.

    The WHL schedule maker might have gained an assist in bringing the Saskatoon Blades winning streak to an end.

    On Sunday, the Blades played their third game inside of 48 hours over a three day span, when they traveled to Brandon to take on the Wheat Kings for a 4 p.m. engagement. Saskatoon had a seven game winning streak intact going into Brandon.

    After downing the Kootenay Ice 4-2 at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon on Saturday night, the Blades stepped off the ice at around 9:20 p.m., and proceeded to eat, load up the bus and head out to Brandon. They arrived in Brandon at about 5 a.m. on Sunday and rested up as much as they could for a contest that was less than 11 hours away.

    The Wheat Kings came into the game having Saturday off after defeating the visiting Swift Current Broncos 3-2 in overtime on Friday night at Westman Place.

    Going into Brandon to win against the Wheat Kings is difficult at the best of times, but it is almost near impossible under the circumstances the Blades were facing.

    As has been the case all season, the Blades brought all that they could on that night, and the found themselves locked in a 3-3 tie after winger Chase Wouters scored his second of the night at the 11:32 mark of the third. All of a sudden, a Wheat Kings victory was by no means a given.

    Still, the expected Brandon victory in that scenario came to pass. Ty Lewis, who is Brandon’s 19-year-old star winger, scored his second goal of the night with 1:56 to play in the third to give the Wheat Kings a 4-3 lead. Centre Stelio Mattheos scored his 29^th goal of the season into an empty net 47 seconds later to seal a 5-3 victory for the host side before 3,051 spectators at Westman Place.

    The Wheat Kings improved to 27-12-0-1 with the win, while the Blades fell to 21-18-2-1 as their seven game winning streak came to an end. Both teams are currently holding playoff positions.

Ryan Kubic made 25 saves in goal for the Blades.

    Brandon took a 3-1 lead in the first period off of Lewis’s first goal of the contest and singles from the sticks of Connor Gutenberg and Tanner Kaspick. Star overage winger Braylon Shmyr had the lone reply for Saskatoon in the opening 20 minutes.

    While the Blades were down, they didn’t pack it in. Wouters scored his first of the night in the second period to cut the Wheat Kings lead to 3-2. Brandon only held an 18-15 edge in the shots on goal department over the first 40 minutes despite being more rested than Saskatoon.

    Fatigue finally caught up to the Blades in the third period. Wouters managed to tie the contest in the third, but the Wheat Kings carried play in the frame holding a 12-3 edge in shots on goal.

    The Blades needed one more positive bounce somewhere to escape with victory, but it never came. Ryan Kubic turned away 25-of-29 shots to take the setback in goal for the Blades. Logan Thompson stopped 15 shots to pick up the win in the Wheat Kings net.

    Defensive defenceman Jackson Caller had assists on all three Saskatoon goals.

    All WHL teams face hectic parts in their schedules, but hopefully situations like the Blades faced this past weekend become less of a norm next season, when the regular season schedule shrinks from 72 games to 68 contests for each club.

    While four fewer games might not seem like a big decrease, it will create more situations were teams play on a Saturday night and get to be off until Wednesday. Playing three games in less than 48 hours increases the chances a player could be injured in the third game just due to fatigue. If you can lessen the chances of doing that, it is always a good thing.

Jackson Caller had three assists for the Blades on Sunday.

    In the current day of the WHL, players seem to be more connected with their families thanks to social media. When teams play on Saturday and proceed to be off until Wednesday, a large number of teams make Saturday a non-curfew night. Players in the current day often spend those nights going out for dinner at a nice restaurant with their families and having a quality visit.

    When the 68-game regular season schedule comes into effect, it should provide a few more chances to play on Saturday and be off until Wednesday.

    You won’t be able to loosen up all the hectic parts of the WHL schedule, but the 68 game regular season schedule should ensure there are less moments where teams play three times in less than 48 hours. That small move should do wonders for competitive balance.
    The Blades return to action on Wednesday, when they host the Medicine Hat Tigers at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

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

-------

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

Golden Bears take opening round with Huskies

The Huskies and Golden Bears scrum it up late in the third period on Friday.

    As crazy as this sounds, a 6-1 final in favour of the University of Alberta Golden Bears didn’t do justice for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team.

    On Friday night at the Ancient Rutherford Rink, the forever rivals renewed acquaintances for the first time in the regular season during the 2017-18 U Sports campaign.
    The Golden Bears entered the contest rated first in the U Sports Top 10 rankings, while the Huskies were rated third.

    The two teams could have easily been locked in a 1980s style shootout as opposed to the lopsided win the final result was.
    The Golden Bears made good on their chances, while the Huskies couldn’t finish on their golden scoring opportunities.

    There is a good chance Huskies head coach Dave Adolph, his staff and his players will review the game tape and wonder what might have been.

Dylan Bredo had a pair of goals and an assist for the Golden Bears.

    At the start of the first period, Huskies defenceman Tanner Lishchynsky and star centre Kohl Bauml both rang shots off the post of the Golden Bears net.

    After those chances came and went, Golden Bears fourth-year defenceman Dylan Bredo slipped home a point shot to put the visitors up 1-0 at the 11:32 mark of the opening frame.

    Bredo’s goal didn’t put the brakes on the Huskies push. A short time after U of A went ahead, the Huskies had another golden scoring chance, when right-winger Parker Thomas passed the puck from behind the U of A net to linemate Alex Forsberg in front of the goal.

    Forsberg appeared to have a shot pegged for the top left corner of the U of A net, but he was robbed by the glove hand of Golden Bears netminder Brendan Burke.

    Bredo proceeded to put the Golden Bears up 2-0, when he scored from the low left slot with 1:42 to play in the first period.

Jamie Crooks celebrates his hat trick goal.

    The Huskies answered that with a power-play goal with 23 seconds to play in the opening frame, when centre Logan McVeigh slipped a pass from behind the U of A net to linemate Michael Sofillas. Sofillas buried his fifth goal of the season to cut the U of A lead to 2-1.

    Just 47 seconds into the second, left-winger Taylor Cooper potted his third goal of the season to give the Golden Bears a 3-1 edge.

    The Huskies proceeded to get on the power-play twice, but they couldn’t find the back of the net. The opportunities included a misfire by McVeigh on a backdoor passing play.

    Right after the second of those to power-play chances expired, the Golden Bears got up ice in clunky fashion with numbers resulting in a goal from left-winger Jamie Crooks.

    After 40 minutes, the Huskies trailed 4-1, while the shots on goal were even at 22-22. U of S had four power-play chances after two periods resulting in one goal. U of A had two power-play chances over the opening 40 minutes but was unable to cash in on those opportunities.

    The first and second periods included the usual pushing and shoving and beaking after the whistle, and the Huskies did a great job of keeping their emotions in check during that span of time.

    The Huskies needed to score early in the third to get some traction, but Crooks potted his second of the game at the 4:15 mark to put the visitors up 5-1. After that, garbage time ensued, where tempers did flare up.

Josh Roach controls the puck at the point during a Huskies power play.

    Huskies star defenceman Jesse Forsberg got in scrum with Golden Bears centre Tyson Baillie with 10:53 to play, and the officials sent them off with minors for roughing and game misconducts.

    A short time later, Huskies fourth-year defenceman Jordan Fransoo received minors for tripping and checking from behind and a game misconduct during one sequence.

    The most dangerous altercation occurred with 2:15 to play, when Golden Bears right-winger Steven Owre hit Huskies defenceman Sam Ruopp knee-to-knee. Huskies feisty forward Jaimen Yakubowski went after Owre, and a scrum ensued.

    Owre received a major penalty for kneeing and a game misconduct. His infraction will be reviewed for a possible suspension for Saturday’s clash between these same two clubs at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

    Yakubowski received a minor for roughing and a game misconduct, and Ruopp picked up a roughing minor.

U of S’s Kendall McFaull (#2) and U of A’s Jayden Hart battle for the puck.

    All the penalties did was allow Crooks to complete his hat trick with 33 seconds to play on a rare four-on-three power play.

    The officials should be given credit for kicking players out of the game, when the contest was basically decided on the scoreboard. While there were 73 minutes in penalties handed out in the third period, there could have potentially been a lot more dished out had the officials not handled things the way they did.

    Burke made 27 stops to pick up the win goal for the Golden Bears, who improved to 11-0 to remain first in the Canada West Conference. Jordon Cooke turned away 29 shots to take the setback in goal for the Huskies, who fell to 8-2-1 but still remained second in Canada West.

    The Huskies couldn’t be faulted for their effort on Friday. If they bear down on their golden scoring chances and clean up a couple of mishaps defensively, Saturday’s encounter can easily have a different storyline.

Dogs get a visit from a special Nova Scotian

Nova Scotia product Lindsay Horne, right, performs a ceremonial faceoff.

    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team a special and familiar visitor this weekend.

Coal Harbor, Nova Scotia, product Lindsay Horne traveled at his own expense this weekend to Saskatoon to see the Huskies in action. Horne is well-known to the Huskies.

    At the 2016 University Cup national championship tournament in Halifax, N.S., Horne was assigned as the Huskies volunteer host. Horne performed various assigned duties that included driving team staff members to various destinations, picking up baggage and delivering it and setting up facilities.

    Besides being the volunteer host, Horne became a fan of the team. He made tournament organizers aware of the squad’s tradition in the 2015-16 campaign of warming up in #24 jerseys to honour the late Cody Smuk, who was the Huskies gritty, hard-working forward that passed away of cancer in June of 2015.

    Horne, who is a full-time sales representative for Choisy Laboratories, organized his sons and their classmates to become a Huskies cheering section wearing #24 shirts at each game the Dogs played.

    When the Huskies returned to the University Cup in 2017 held in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Horne took time off work, drove to Fredericton and convinced the organizing committee to let him serve as the team’s volunteer host once again. Horne was named an “Honourary Huskie” by the Dogs for his efforts.

    Horne followed the Huskies U Sports game broadcasts online, but he had a desire to see a contest live in the Rutherford Rink and maybe assist in a rust clean up.

    He visited the U of S campus and the team’s practice on Thursday. Before Friday’s game, Horne dropped the puck for a ceremonial faceoff.

    There was one rust break in Friday’s game, where the puck hit the Rutherford Rink roof dropping rust to the ice surface, but Horne didn’t have to help with the cleanup.

    Horne will be in attendance when the Huskies face the U of Alberta Golden Bears on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

Pandas end Huskies winning streak

Kori Herner scored for the Huskies on Friday.

    The defending U Sports national champion U of Alberta Pandas women’s hockey team brought the U of Saskatchewan Huskies four-game winning streak to an end.

    On Friday at the Clare Drake Arena in Edmonton, the Pandas, who are rated first in the U Sports Top 10 rankings, downed the Huskies 3-1.

    The Pandas carried a big advantage in play outshooting the Huskies 20-6 over the first two periods. Thanks to the play of Huskies netminder Jessica Vance, the hosts were only able to build a 1-0 lead on a second period goal by Pandas captain Cayle Dillon.

    Fifth-year forward Ashley Morin extended the Pandas lead to 2-0 at the four-minute mark of the third.

    Just 29 seconds after that tally, fifth-year forward Kori Herner potted her second goal of the season for the Huskies to cut the Pandas edge to 2-1. Huskies sophomore checking forward Danielle Nogier picked up her first career U Sports regular season point with an assist on Herner’s goal.

    U of S played a strong third, but Pandas third-year forward Autumn MacDougall scored with 5:02 to play in the third to round out the scoring in U of A’s two-goal win.

    Vance made 23 stops to take the loss in goal for the Huskies (7-3-1). Kirsten Chamberlin turned away 16 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Pandas (7-2-2).

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday in Edmonton at the Clare Drake Arena.

Wheat Kings’ Thompson stones Blades

Cameron Hebig scored the Blades lone goal on Friday night.

    The Saskatoon Blades fired everything including the kitchen sink at Brandon Wheat Kings goalie Logan Thompson but were only able to get one goal past the overage veteran.

    Thompson made 42 saves to back the Wheat Kings to a 4-1 victory over the Blades before 6,242 spectator at the SaskTel Centre. The Blades pulled in their second largest crowd of the season due to the clash with Brandon being the annual game where the “blue and gold” honours First Nations.

    After the two teams played through a scoreless opening frame, the Wheat Kings jumped ahead 3-0 in the second period with singles coming from the sticks of Baron Thompson, Cole Reinhardt and Linden McCorrister.

    At the 7:58 mark of the third, star overage centre Cameron Hebig scored the Blades lone goal to cut the Wheat Kings lead to 3-1.

    Stelio Mattheos netted a single to restore Brandon’s three-goal lead at the 12:55 mark of the third.

Nolan Maier, who is a 16-year-old rookie making his second career WHL regular season start, turned away 21 shots to take setback in goal for the Blades.

    The Wheat Kings have won their last four straight to improve to 13-6-0-1. The Blades fell to 8-11-1.

    “The Bridge City Bunch” returns to action on Saturday, when they travel to Moose Jaw to face the WHL leading Warriors (17-5).

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. A big thanks goes out to Michael P.J. Kennedy at the U of Saskatchewan for the huge assist with the section on Huskies fan Lindsay Horne.

-------

    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.

Shmyr sparks Blades, brings ugly skid to an end

Braylon Shmyr, left, celebrates his winning goal for the Blades.

    Braylon Shmyr sparked and finished things for the Saskatoon Blades.

    On Friday night at the SaskTel Centre, the 19-year-old Calgary product scored 12 seconds into a WHL clash against the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings to give the host side a 1-0 lead. Shmyr also tucked home a gritty winner from the right side of the Brandon goal with 41.9 seconds to play in the third period to break a 2-2 draw and deliver the Blades to a 3-2 victory.

    The win allowed “the Bridge City Bunch” to end an ugly four-game losing skid where they were outscored 24-6.

    “We always talk about having a good start, so that first shift that we had that we scored on, that set the momentum for the game,” said Shmyr, whose team improved to 10-15-1 with the win. “It is always nice getting those game-winning goals.

    “It is just all about battling and finishing right to the end. We had a week of just setting down and having team meetings. We were just figuring out what we could do to win games, and I think it paid off for us.”

    Wearing their classic blue Pac-Man jerseys, the Blades immediately engaged the crowd of 3,929 spectators with Shmyr’s first goal that seemed to come out of nowhere.

Jesse Shynkaruk speeds up the ice for the Blades.

    The hosts then appeared to have total control of the contest after overage centre Jesse Shynkaruk laser beamed his seventh of the season top left corner on Wheat Kings goaltender Logan Thompson. The tally gave the Blades a 2-0 edge at the 7:10 mark of the second.

    The visitors replied with a big push back.

    Just 33 seconds after Shynkaruk’s goal, Wheat Kings left-winger Tyler Coulter wired home his 10^th of the season to cut the Blades lead to 2-1.

    Brandon evened the score up at 2-2 with 3:11 to play in the second, when defenceman Schael Higson floated home a point shot.

    When the second came to a close, the Wheat Kings were carrying the momentum holding an overall 21-17 edge in shots.

    The Blades recovered their footing in the third, where Shmyr came through with the winner. Brandon applied pressure in the final seconds but couldn’t put the puck past Blades netminder Logan Flodell.

Logan Christensen (#41) steals the puck for the Blades.

    Flodell made 31 stops to earn the win in goal. Thompson turned away 25 shots to take the loss for the Wheat Kings, who fell to 12-9-3.

    “It feels good just to win - period,” said Blades head coach Dean Brockman. “I think our group was pretty gutsy in the third.

    “It is good for our club. Hopefully, we can get some confidence going.

    “You could see we were scrambling a little bit in the third period. That is just a team that hasn’t won for a while.”

    Brockman was happy to see Shmyr come through with a nice night against his former team. The Blades acquired Shmyr in a trade with the Wheat Kings shortly before last season’s WHL trade deadline.

    “He has probably been our best player over the last 10 or 12 games,” said Brockman. “Just to see him get rewarded against his old team it is a really good for him.”

The Blades salute the SaskTel Centre crowd.

    The Blades return to action on Saturday, when they host the red hot Medicine Hat Tigers at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.
    After pounding the Raiders 7-1 on Friday night in Prince Albert, the Tigers sit first overall in the WHL at 19-5-1 and have won eight straight games.

Hausinger dealt to Rebels

    The Blades were active on the trade front before Friday’s game rolled around.

    Saskatoon dealt 17-year-old right-winger Cameron Hausinger to the Red Deer Rebels in exchange for a seventh round selection in the 2017 WHL Bantam Draft and a fifth round pick in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft. 

    In 20 games this season, Hausinger had three assists, 22 penalty minutes and a minus-seven rating in the plus-minus department.

McCarty goes down

    The Blades lost team scoring leader Mason McCarty to injury late in the second period.

    The 19-year-old winger has 14 goals and eight assists in 26 games. His status is uncertain for Saturday’s game against the Tigers.

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

Hebig hits stride with Blades

Cameron Hebig has exploded offensively for the Blades.

    When Cameron Hebig achieves a milestone, he automatically sets his sites on a higher goal.

    After his hometown Saskatoon Blades selected him in the third round and 56^th overall in the 2012 WHL Bantam Draft, Hebig saw that moment as an opportunity he wanted to take advantage of.

    “I just wanted to make it a goal of mine to make it into the WHL,” said Hebig. “The goals just keep getting hirer and hirer. I am always setting goals.”

    The speedy centre cracked the Blades lineup as a 16-year-old in the 2013-14 campaign. With the Blades having turned over most of their roster after hosting the 2013 Memorial Cup, Hebig received a lot of opportunity to gain experience and picked up 13 goals and 13 assists in 67 games.

    Having learned what the grind of the circuit was about, Hebig set out to improve his game in both the offensive and defensive zones as a 17-year-old sophomore last season. He dressed for all of the Blades 72 regular season games picking 18 goals and 22 assists.

    This season Hebig has become a force offensively piling up 22 goals and 27 assists in 43 games.

    “I just had a good start to the year and have just been positive,” said Hebig, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 190 pounds. “I think if you are working hard chances will come, and you just have to bury those.

    “I’ve been grateful for the points I have got and just keep going.”

    In their third season since hosting the Memorial Cup, the Blades are still going through growing pains. After jumping out to a strong 7-4-3 start, the Blades, who still have one of the youngest teams in the WHL, hit the wall in the middle of November. After falling 6-2 to the Brandon Wheat Kings before 4,637 spectators on Saturday night at the SaskTel Centre, Saskatoon’s record dropped to 17-27-4.

    Hebig’s jump has not waivered during the down stretches. On Saturday night, he netted both of the Blades goals on a couple of nice shots and was a plus-two in the plus-minus department. On his second tally, he stole the puck from a Wheat Kings defender, used another rearguard as a screen and tucked a shot home past netminder Logan Thompson.

Cameron Hebig celebrates with his teammates after scoring a goal.

    “He (Hebig) is our best player, and he brings it every night,” said Blades head coach and general manager Bob Woods. “He is not a real vocal guy, but he leads by example because of his work ethic.

    “He is a big part of our offence, so we really depend on him to take care of that.”

    Woods believes a missed goal helped kick Hebig into another gear this season.

    “I think not getting drafted (into the NHL) was kind of not a wakeup call, but he just didn’t like it,” said Woods. “He worked extremely hard this summer on his game.

    “We talked a little bit about just being the complete player. I thought last year maybe he didn’t do the things that he has to do. He is a skilled player, but he is not skilled enough to live on that.

    “He has to be that guy that can kills penalties and block shots and play good defensively. I think he has really come through with that, and I think that is a big reason why he is having more success.”

    Hebig prides himself in playing a strong two-way game. On the intangible side, he finds he just doesn’t get down on himself or his team when things get rough.

    While the Blades trail the Edmonton Oil Kings (19-22-6-1) by seven points for the final playoff berth in the WHL’s Eastern Conference, Hebig believes it is still possible for his club to make an appearance in the post-season.

Cameron Hebig looks to make a play in the offensive zone for the Blades.

    “We’ve got a good group here, and we believe in ourselves,” said Hebig. “When things get tough, we can’t pack it in. We always have to bring it every game and always try to get better.

    “Obviously, we want to make the playoff push. It is a goal of ours. It is just about sticking together as a team and playing together. Anything is possible.”

    When it comes to making the NHL, Hebig’s lack of size might be the biggest obstacle he has to overcome. He is quick to point out you don’t have to be 6-foot-2 and weigh over 200 pounds to make an impact in the NHL.

    The shifty skater lists off Tyler Johnson of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Brendan Gallagher of the Montreal Canadiens and Brad Marchand of the Boston Bruins as smaller players that have made an impact in hockey’s top professional league. Gallagher and Marchand both stand 5-foot-9, while Johnson is 5-foot-8.

    “When you are small, you just have to use your speed and show that you can play there and show that you are worthy of a draft pick,” said Hebig, who is rated 140th among North American skaters in NHL Central Scouting's midterm rankings. “I don’t like the size comparison. I think it is what is in the heart.”

Cameron Hebig gets set to take a draw for the Blades.

    In Saturday’s tilt with Brandon, the Wheat Kings, who top the WHL’s East Division with a 29-13-2-2 mark, led 2-1 after the first period and 5-2 after the second frame after Hebig gave the Blades a short-lived 1-0 edge.

    Reid Duke had a hat trick for the Wheat Kings, who received a two-goal performance from Jayce Hawryluk and a single from John Quenneville. Thompson made 18 stops to earn the win in goal.

Brock Hamm turned away 25 shots to take the loss in net for the Blades.

    The Blades return to action Friday, when they travel to Regina to take on the Pats. The Wheat Kings are in Regina to face the Pats on Sunday.

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