Fabrizi perfect physical fit in “Hockey Town North”

Raiders rearguard gets goal in 4-1 win over Warriors

Matteo Fabrizi scored the Raiders third goal on Friday.

PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. – Matteo Fabrizi said it didn’t take long for Prince Albert to feel like home.

The 19-year-old physical defenceman was acquired by the Prince Albert Raiders in a trade with the Red Deer Rebels on December 31, 2024. By tradition, both the Raiders and the Rebels like to play more of a physical game. That characteristic has allowed Fabrizi’s transition from Red Deer to Prince Albert to be seamless.

“They (the Raiders) traded for me for a reason,” said Fabrizi, who 6-foot-5 and weighs 235 pounds. “They expect a certain game that they know I can play, and that I know I can play too.

“I just try to bring it every night and do what I can to help the team win every night.”

On Friday night at the Art Hauser Centre, Fabrizi was able to chip on offence. At the 9:33 mark of the first period of a WHL regular season contest against the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors, Fabrizi sent a shot from the point that deflected off a Warriors player into the Moose Jaw net.

The Raiders celebrate a goal from Matteo Fabrizi (#5).

That tally was Fabrizi’s first goal as a member of the Raiders and it gave the Prince Albert side a 3-0 lead. The Raiders would cruise to a 4-1 victory from there to the delight of the 2,551 spectators in attendance.

In 51 games split between the Rebels and the Raiders this season, Fabrizi has three goals and nine assists for 12 points. His assist total is a career high and his point total matches a career high. The St. Albert, Alta., product was pleased to get his first goal as a member of the Raiders.

“I mean, no matter who you are, it is always good scoring a goal,” said Fabrizi. “I mean it is nice to get the first one here in the green.

“It is just whatever I can do to help the team.”

Matteo Fabrizi is known for his physical style of play.

The win allowed the Raiders to improve to 32-19-3-1 and jump back into first place in the WHL’s East Division combined with the fact the Brandon Wheat Kings dropped a 5-0 decision at home to the Calgary Hitmen. The Wheat Kings (30-17-4-3) and the Saskatoon Blades (30-18-3-4) both sit one standings point behind the Raiders for first. Brandon has a game in hand on both Prince Albert and Saskatoon.

The Blades slipped past the Rebels in Red Deer 3-2 in overtime on Friday night to keep the first place race in the East Division very heated.

Raiders head coach Jeff Truitt said it was big for the team to add Fabrizi’s physical style of play to the club’s roster.

“He is a big physical guy that stops pucks in our defensive zone,” said Truitt. “He makes the simple plays.

Niall Crocker celebrates scoring the Raiders first goal on Friday.

“He gets one tonight, which is tremendous. It is always nice to get one, but his job is to play defence and move pucks and be strong along the wall. We’ve got enough puck handlers and what not that can really motor.

“We needed to solidify things by adding on to what (import defenceman) Vojtech (Vochvest) does for us. We just thought that we needed a bigger body back there to help be a little bit more physical and simplify the game.”

Fabrizi said was welcomed into the Raiders organization and the team’s dressing room right from the start. He said it has been fun getting to witness the skill of the Raiders high-flying offensive players like Tomas Mrsic, Aiden Oiring, Rilen Kovacevic and Lukas Dragicevic.

Ty Meunier scored the Raiders second goal on Friday.

“They are a great group of guys, and obviously, a lot of them are very high skilled,” said Fabrizi. “It is cool to watch, and it is fun to watch the power play work sometimes.

“I wish I had half that skill sometimes.”

The Raiders offence got going opening the game’s scoring at the 4:15 mark of the first while working the power play. Raiders 20-year-old standout left-winger Niall Crocker tallied from a trademark area from in front of the Moose Jaw net putting home a backhander for his 24^th goal of the season.

Exactly four minutes after Crocker’s tally, Raiders 16-year-old rookie left-winger Ty Meunier slipped home a shot from the left boards in the Moose Jaw zone to put the host side up 2-0. Meunier’s tally was his 13^th of the campaign.

Matthew Hutchinson made 36 saves for the Warriors.

Fabrizi added his goal just 78 seconds after Meunier’s marker and the faithful at the Art Hauser Centre were rocking.

The Warriors were able to get some traction as 18-year-old right-winger and captain Lynden Lakovic tallied on the power play for his 20^th goal of the campaign to trim the Raiders lead to 3-1.

Moose Jaw continued to battle with some pretty good jump for the rest of the contest, but they were unable to get another puck past Raiders star 20-year-old netminder Max Hildebrand, who finished the contest making 28 saves.

Oiring, who is a Raiders star centre, rounded out the game’s scoring with an empty-net goal with 1:43 remaining in the third period. He finished the contest with an assist to go along with his goal. Mrsic, who is a star left-winger, and Brayden Dube, who is breakout right-winger, each collected two assists for the Raiders.

Lynden Lakovic netted the Warriors lone goal on Friday.

Truitt was pleased with the game’s final outcome, but he added there were still areas that could be improved.

“I liked our first period for sure,” said Truitt. “I thought that we dictated a lot of the play.

“In the second period, we didn’t do enough. Even in the third period, I thought that we didn’t do enough. We had too many blind plays when we just let guys come right to our net.

“You’ve got to be tighter than that.”

Matthew Hutchinson turned away 36-of-39 shots to take the setback in net for the Warriors (11-39-4-2).

The Warriors get back in action on Saturday when they return home to host the 36-15-3-2 Calgary Hitmen (7 p.m., Moose Jaw Events Centre). Moose Jaw is looking to end a nine game losing streak.

Max Hildebrand stopped 28 shots in goal for the Raiders.

The Raiders also return to action on Saturday when they travel to Regina to take on the 15-34-5-2 Pats (6 p.m., Brandt Centre).

Back in the 2022-23 campaign, Fabrizi helped the Rebels top the WHL’s Central Division. He is enjoying trying to help the Raiders top their division this season.

“It is our goal, so we’re just trying to stay on the path that we want and put ourselves in a position to control our own destiny however it may be,” said Fabrizi. “We want top spot.”

When the regular season wraps up, Fabrizi said he would like to be part of a long post-season run. In his three previous seasons with the Rebels, Red Deer advanced to the second round of the post-season but was never able to make the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship Series. Fabrizi wants to finally get pass the second round.

The Raiders salute their faithful at the Art Hauser Centre.

“I got a lot of games, but I’m ready for a third round,” said Fabrizi. “Three second rounds in a row, it is time for more.”

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Epic finish to epic series as Warriors take conference title

Lakovic morphs into “Mr. OT” for Moose Jaw

Lynden Lakovic, top left, reacts to scoring his OT winner.

Lynden Lakovic will be “Mr. OT” forever to the city of Moose Jaw.

On Tuesday night playing before a campaign high crowd of 13,240 spectators at the SaskTel Centre, the 17-year-old sophomore right-winger gave what was arguably the greatest WHL post-season series ever played a fitting finish. In a series deciding Game 7 of the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship Series, Lakovic’s Moose Jaw Warriors went into overtime locked in a 2-2 tie with the host Saskatoon Blades.

That marked the sixth time both clubs went to overtime to decide a game in the series, which is a record for the WHL. Just 36 seconds into overtime, Lakovic drove down the right wing into the Saskatoon zone. From a bad angle, Lakovic backhanded the puck toward the Saskatoon net.

Warriors fans cheer their team’s OT winning goal.

Warriors star overage right-winger Atley Calvert drove towards the Saskatoon net while being covered by Blades utility winger Tyler Parr. The puck from Lakovic’s backhand deflected off Parr’s skate into the Saskatoon net to deliver the Warriors to a 3-2 victory in the extra session.

The Game 7 win on Tuesday allowed the Warriors to take the series 4-3 and capture their second Eastern Conference title in team history with the first coming back in 2006. When his latest overtime winner went in, Lakovic said it was a euphoric moment.

The Warriors celebrate their Game 7 OT win.

“It was just pure excitement,” said Lakovic. “I know you probably want like a cool celebration or something, but you can’t really just think of anything.

“So many things are going through your head. You just get so excited you just want to hug all the guys, because without them you wouldn’t be here. I do it for them.”

Lakovic also had the overtime winner in the Warriors 4-3 victory in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference final at the Moose Jaw Events Centre in Moose Jaw on Sunday. He also had an extra time winner back on March 30 in a Warriors 5-4 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings in Game 2 of an opening round series at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.

The Warriors celebrate with players who were scratched and coaches.

Warriors captain Denton Mateychuk said it was cool that Lakovic has come through in multiple big moments in overtime.

“That is awesome,” said Mateychuk. “That is great to see.

“He has been here for a couple of years now. He came in as a young guy and kind of fit in right with our top nine pretty much. He has been a great player for us.

“He doesn’t shy away from those moments, which is great to see.”

With the Eastern Conference title win, the Warriors advance to face the Portland Winterhawks in the WHL Championship Series. The Winterhawks claimed the WHL’s Western Conference Championship Series in six games over the Prince George Cougars.

The Blades react to their Game 7 overtime loss.

Portland closed out the Western Conference final on Monday with a 2-1 victory over the Cougars in double overtime in Game 6 at the CN Centre in Prince George. Standout left-winger Josh Davies scored the winner at the 5:40 mark of the second extra session for the Winterhawks.

Game 1 of the WHL Championship Series is set for Friday at 7 p.m. local time at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland.

In Tuesday’s Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final, the Blades came firing out of the gates to the huge roars of the crowd holding a 7-1 edge in shots on goal over the first 6:39 of the opening frame. Warriors star netminder Jackson Unger stood tall, which included stopping a good backhand chance from Blades gritty left-winger Vaughn Watterodt at the right side of the Moose Jaw net.

The Blades and Warriors go through traditional post-series hand shakes.

The Warriors took the wind out of the home crowd’s sails with 6:25 remaining in the opening frame with a positive bounce goal. Warriors offensive-defenceman Kalem Parker took a shot from the point that was deflected by left-winger Ethan Semeniuk in front of the net.

Semeniuk’s deflection hit the right post of the Saskatoon goal, deflected off the back of the leg of Blades breakout rookie netminder Evan Gardner and went into the net. That tally gave the Warriors a 1-0 lead. The officials video reviewed that goal and concluded it was a goal.

Denton Mateychuk (#5) receives the Eastern Conference title trophy.

The Warriors finished the frame with a good surge of chances. When the first period ended, the Warriors held a 1-0 lead, while the Blades had a 9-7 edge on shots on goal.

The Warriors came with pressure to start the second holding a 5-2 edge in shots on goal in the first 10:15 of the frame. At that point, the Blades found another gear and outshot the Warriors 15-4 through the rest of the stanza.

With 7:38 remaining in the second, Blades standout overage left-winger Easton Armstrong roofed a backhand shot past Unger to even the score at 1-1. Armstrong’s goal brought the crowd at the SaskTel Centre back to life.

Warriors fans salute their team’s Eastern Conference title win.

Blades captain Trevor Wong thought his squad played a sound game despite coming up on the wrong end of the scoreboard.

“We played real well I thought,” said Wong, who exhausted his WHL eligibility with Tuesday’s loss. “It was a pretty complete game.

“I thought we took over in the O-zone a bunch of times. Moose Jaw, they’ll counter attack you quick if you make one mistake. We knew that, and it happened to us.

“We can’t think about that, because I thought we played a real good game.”

Lynden Lakovic has three OT winners in the 2024 WHL Playoffs.

The two sides started out playing cautiously in the third, which resulted in no shots on goal for the first 3:20 of the stanza. At that point, the pace picked up.

With 9:47 remaining in the third, the Warriors big stars came through in centre Brayden Yager and right-winger Jagger Firkus. Yager stole the puck behind the Saskatoon net from Blades 19-year-old defenceman Ben Saunderson.

After making the steal, Yager centred a pass to the front of the net to Firkus. Firkus buried his 12^th of the post-season to put the Warriors in front 2-1. The sizable contingent of Warriors fans in attendance roared their approval.

That tally would not hold up as the winner.

Easton Armstrong (#27) had the Blades first goal on Tuesday.

With 3:07 remaining in the third, Watterodt positioned himself midrange in front of the Moose Jaw net and blew home the equalizer to the top left corner of the goal that forced a 2-2 tie. The crowd at the SaskTel Centre exploded with their loudest cheers to that point in the campaign.

Wong said the Blades have been great at bouncing back this season when things have gone wrong.

“It was kind of all year,” said Wong. “We’re a resilient team.

“We knew we weren’t out of it when they scored that one. I thought we kind of carried the play most of it. It was huge for Vaughner (Watterodt) to step up there, but that is kind of how we were all year.

Trevor Wong played his final WHL game on Tuesday.

“Guys would step up like that in big moments. That was a huge goal. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get it done, but it just kind of shows the character that we have in that room just pushing back there.”

The Blades actually had the first chance to score in overtime. Shortly after the extra session started, Warriors star centre Matthew Savoie gave away the puck in his own zone to Blade star import right-winger Egor Sidorov.

Sidorov put a quick shot on goal that Unger had to make a smart glove save on. The Warriors would win the ensuing defensive zone faceoff and start the rush that resulted in Lakovic’s winner.

“I’m just really sad,” said Blades head coach Brennan Sonne. “We had a staff, a group, a team of players that just worked so hard to be in this position completely dedicated all in.

Fraser Minten breaks into the offensive zone for the Blades.

“I’m just really sad that the result didn’t go our way.”

Gardner turned away 22 shots to take the setback in net for the Blades. Unger stopped 37 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Warriors.

Sonne believed his club came with a big effort on Tuesday.

“I thought we played really hard tonight,” said Sonne. “I thought we played really, really hard tonight.

“I thought we put ourselves in a good position. We left it all out there.”

Going into the Eastern Conference Championship Series, it was expected the Blades and Warriors would put on a battle, and the series greatly exceeded those expectations that were set at the outset.

Vaughn Watterodt celebrates his third period equalizer.

During the regular season, the Blades topped the WHL’s overall standings with a 50-13-2-3 record and were rated sixth in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. The Warriors finished fifth overall in the WHL’s regular season standings with a 44-21-0-3 mark.

The two sides split their six head-to-head encounters in the regular season without having to go to extra time. 

In the Eastern Conference final, the Warriors claimed the series 4-3 with six contests going to overtime. Each side won three contests in extra time.

Warriors head coach Mark O’Leary was proud of what his players were able to accomplish with the series win.

Blades fans cheer Vaughn Watterodt’s third period equalizer.

“I think it is such a tight group,” said O’Leary. “We said it all along they just don’t want to let each other down.

“Whether you give up a tough goal late there or you get scored on early like a couple of games ago. There is just nothing that fazes this group. They are just destined for big things, and we saw it here tonight.”

It is believed that only two other series in the WHL post-season have ever had five overtime finishes. 

Jackson Unger made 37 saves for the Warriors on Tuesday.

That included the 2008 Western Conference Championship Series that saw the Spokane Chiefs down the Tri-City Americans in seven games. The Chiefs would go on to with the WHL title and capture the Memorial Cup as CHL champions.

The first round series in 2013 between the Kelowna Rockets and the Seattle Thunderbirds also had five overtime games. The Rockets won that series in seven games after the Thunderbirds opened the set winning three straight overtime contests.

Lakovic said his team’s conference title series win over the Blades felt special.

“We made WHL history tonight I think with six of the seven games going to overtime,” said Lakovic. “It doesn’t get any closer than that.

The Warriors are pictured with the Eastern Conference title trophy.

“I think I said this last time (after Game 6) if these teams were to play 10 series I bet you there would be a different winner each time. I think this definitely did feel like a championship series.”

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Game 7- final chapter comes for epic Blades/Warriors series

WHL’s Eastern Conference title goes to winner

Charlie Wright could potentially play his last WHL game on Tuesday.

Charlie Wright is having a career WHL post-season, and now he is looking for one more big game to keep his WHL career alive.

The 20-year-old defenceman is a career member of the Saskatoon Blades and the longest tenured member of the team. The Blades selected Wright in the third round and 70^th overall in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft.

The Olds, Alta., product joined the Blades as a 16-year-old rookie in the 2019-20 campaign. In his time with the Blades, Wright played in 256 career regular season games recording 15 goals, 89 assists and plus-43 rating in the plus-minus department.

He has appeared in all of the Blades 15 games to date in the 2024 WHL Playoffs posting five goals, eight assists and a plus-10 rating.

On Tuesday, Wright’s Blades face the Moose Jaw Warriors in Game 7 of the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship Series. The winner takes the Eastern Conference title and advances to the WHL Championship Series, while the losing squad heads off into the off-season.

Wright is tightly attached emotionally to the Blades and is proud and honoured to be a member of Saskatoon’s major junior franchise.

“It has been awesome,” said Wright. “I’ve loved being with the Blades all five years.

“It has been a blessing. I love the city. I love the organization.

“I would say it is the best in the WHL. It is fantastic the way we are treated. I absolutely love it and don’t want it to end.”

Denton Mateychuk leads the WHL with 27 points in the playoffs.

Going into the Eastern Conference Championship Series, it was expected the Blades and Warriors would put on a battle, and the series has greatly exceeded those expectations that were set at the outset.

During the regular season, the Blades topped the WHL’s overall standings with a 50-13-2-3 record and were rated sixth in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings. The Warriors finished fifth overall in the WHL’s regular season standings with a 44-21-0-3 mark.

The two sides split their six head-to-head encounters in the regular season without having to go to extra time.

In the Eastern Conference Championship Series, the two clubs split the first six encounters of the set with five of those contests going to overtime. The Blades have won three games in overtime, while the Warriors have won twice in extra time and once in regulation.

Wright believes it could be the deciding factor in the series that his squad hosts Game 7 at the SaskTel Centre. The Blades are potentially expecting their biggest crowd of the overall 2023-24 campaign.

“I think we earned it throughout the regular season,” said Wright. “It is definitely nice to have it at home and have our fans loud.”

Warriors captain and star offensive-defenceman Denton Mateychuk leads the WHL in post-season scoring with 27 points coming off eight goals and 19 assists to go with a plus-19 rating. Warriors star right-winger Jagger Firkus sits second in post-season scoring with 26 points coming off 11 goals and 15 assists to go with a plus-seven rating.

Blades star import right-winger Egor Sidorov leads the WHL post-season with 15 goals to go along with eight assists and a plus-nine rating.

Warriors veteran centre Brayden Schuurman said it is easy to get up for a game like Tuesday’s Game 7, because the Eastern Conference title and a berth in the WHL Championship Series is on the line.

Egor Sidorov leads the WHL with 15 goals in the playoffs.

“As a hockey player and as an athlete, that is really what you look forward to,” said Schuurman. “I think big Game 7s, big moments, win or lose, winner take all, I think that gets our group excited.

“I think we have a lot of big game players. I think we are really excited to get moving in this Game 7.”

Warriors 17-year-old sophomore right-winger Lynden Lakovic said his squad has to get out to a good start in Game 7 like they did in Game 6. In Game 6 on Sunday at the Moose Jaw Events Centre in Moose Jaw, the Warriors scored first, held 2-1 lead heading into the first intermission, and ultimately won 4-3 in overtime with Lakovic getting the winner.

Moose Jaw fell behind 3-2 in the third before Warriors veteran right-winger Rilen Kovacevic scored the equalizer that tied the game 3-3 and forced overtime.

The Blades have scored first in four out of the first six games in the series. Lakovic said those slow starts put his squad in a spot where they were chasing the game for a short time.

“We have to play a full 60,” said Lakovic. “I thought (in Game 6) we had a really good start, but I though this series I think their starts have been better.

“I think we have to have a start like (in Game 6) and just play a full 60, not give up or let up for 10 or 15 minutes or a period and just keep on going.”

Last year, the Blades won two Game 7s in the WHL Playoffs to advance to the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship Series, where they fell in four games to the Winnipeg Ice. Blades head coach Brennan Sonne said he has unlimited faith in his guys going into Game 7.

Jagger Firkus has 26 points for the Warriors in the post-season.

“We’ve been here before,” said Sonne. “This group went to multiple Game 7s last year.

“For us, it is really just to focus on our competitive habits that would be the main thing. Anything can happen in Game 7. They’re wild, so really it is just about our compete and effort that is what our focus is.”

Both the Blades and Warriors have gotten big saves from their goaltenders in the post-season. Blades breakout rookie netminder Evan Gardner has posted a 10-3 record, a 2.29 goals against average, a .912 save percentage and one shutout. 

Warriors star goalie Jackson Unger has recorded an 11-3 record, a 3.22 goals against average and a .899 save percentage.

Warriors head coach Mark O’Leary said Tuesday’s Game 7 where a conference champion and a berth in the league final is decided are the types of games you want to be in.

“You can smell it,” said O’Leary. “It is right there.

“It is one game. There is nothing you need to say to try and get the players excited or energized for it. Both teams have played the same amount of games here throughout the playoffs.

“Everybody is tired. Everybody is sore. You just really need to bring your very best game for one game and lay it out there with the prize being the chance to play in the final. I think that is special, and this group deserves it.”

Wright said he is going to do everything he can to help his Blades pull out victory. With the way the series has gone, Wright has a suspicion that the series will be decided in one specific way.

“It probably is going to go into overtime looking at the other games here,” said Wright. “It is going to be exciting.

Blades D Tanner Molendyk (#24) battles Warriors RW Lynden Lakovic.

“It is a Game 7. They are always intense. It should be a good game.”

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Lakovic’s OT winner keeps Warriors alive against Blades

WHL’s Eastern Conference final goes to Game 7

Lynden Lakovic reacts to scoring the OT winner for the Warriors.

MOOSE JAW, Sask. - Lynden Lakovic kept the Moose Jaw Warriors and one of the greatest WHL post-season series of all-time alive.

On Sunday, the Warriors went into Game 6 of the WHL’s Eastern Conference Championship Series facing elimination against the Saskatoon Blades. The Blades entered the contest leading the best-of-seven set 3-2. The Warriors went into contest backed by most of a vocal gathering of 4,582 spectators at the Moose Jaw Events Centre outside of a sizable following that was cheering for the Blades.

Living up to a fitting way with how the series has gone, Game 6 went to overtime with the two sides locked in a 3-3 tie. That marked the fifth in the series that overtime was needed to decide a game’s final outcome.

The Warriors and their fans mob OT hero Lynden Lakovic.

Lakovic’s moment came early in the extra session. Just 2:57 into the extra session, the 17-year-old sophomore right-winger had the deep in the right corner of the Saskatoon zone.

Facing a sharp shooting angle, Lakovic wired home the winning goal to the top right corner of the Saskatoon net short side on Blades breakout netminder Evan Gardner. Lakovic’s tally gave the Warriors a 4-3 win in the contest and allowed them to even the series 3-3.

Fittingly, the two sides are now forced to play a series deciding Game 7 on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon.

Warriors fans cheer their team’s overtime winner.

“It just goes to show you what playoff hockey is all about,” said Lakovic. “It is back and forth.

“This is the fifth game that has gone to overtime. It shows anything can happen. In a game like that, you kind of just throw it on net and hope something happens, and tonight, it did.”

Lakovic had one other overtime winner in this post-season. That tally came back on March 30, when the Warriors downed the Brandon Wheat Kings 5-4 in Game 2 of an opening round series at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.

Lynden Lakovic has two OT winners in the 2024 post-season.

He said Sunday’s overtime winner against the Blades sits at the top in his career.

“It was probably the biggest one,” said Lakovic. “This happened to be my second (overtime) game winner these playoffs.

“This is definitely up there. You are not going to get another chance like this probably ever again. To come up clutch and do it not just for myself but the guys more importantly is huge.”

Blades 20-year-old defenceman Charlie Wright said he had it in the back of his mind that the series was destined to go to Game 7 with how competitive it has been. He said his teammates were doing their best to try and win the Eastern Conference title on Sunday, but a suspicion was there a Game 7 was going to happen.

Charlie Wright scored to give the Blades a third period lead.

“To be honest it did,” said Wright. “Obviously, we were hoping to end it tonight, but things happen.

“It did feel like it was destined to go seven.”

The Warriors got the quick jump in Sunday’s clash scoring 38 seconds into the first period. Warriors right-winger Rilen Kovacevic had the puck at the left corner of the Saskatoon zone and made a pass across the face of the Blades goal to veteran centre Brayden Schuurman at the right side of the net.

Schuurman tapped home his fifth of the post-season to give the Warriors a 1-0 edge. That lead didn’t last long.

Rilen Kovacevic had a goal and two assists for the Warriors.

Just 3:07 later, Blades star import right-winger Egor Sidorov circled in the Moose Jaw zone for a midrange shot from the front of the net. Sidorov wired home his league leading 15^th goal of the post-season to even the score at 1-1.

Warriors star centre Matthew Savoie had a great chance to put the Warriors back out in front, when he put a backhand shot to a seemingly open side of the Saskatoon net with about 5:03 remaining in the frame. Gardner made a stretching right pad save to stone the chance.

A short time later, Savoie tried put a shot home at the right side of the Saskatoon goal, but Gardner made a shoulder stop to deny the opportunity.

With 2:02 remaining in the first, Kovacevic entered the Saskatoon zone on a rush down the right wing and tried to put a pass across the ice to a linemate. 

Brayden Schuurman scored a pair of goals for the Warriors.

The pass was broken up by Wright, but Wright poked the puck right on to the stick of Schuurman. Schuurman blew home a shot from the front of the Saskatoon net to put the Warriors up 2-1 heading into the second intermission.

“To contribute to my team in any way is obviously good,” said Schuurman. “Getting them going early with a goal is obviously a really good feeling for our group and for me.”

The Blades came with a big push back in the second period holding a 13-8 edge in shots on goal for the frame.

With 4:14 remaining in the second, the Blades evened the score at 2-2 with a power-play goal from Rowan Calvert. During a mad scramble in front of the Moose Jaw net, Calvert potted home a loose puck for the equalizer and his third of the post-season.

Egor Sidorov had a goal and two assists for the Blades.

Blades head coach Brennan Sonne thought his squad was trending in a good direction as the game went on.

“It got better as we went I would say,” said Sonne, who squad finished first overall in the WHL’s regular season with a 50-13-2-3 mark. “I didn’t think it was there to start, but it got better as we went.”

At the three-minute mark of the third, the Blades took a 3-2 lead on a smart offensive pinch from Wright. Entering the Moose Jaw zone on an offensive rush, Blades captain Trevor Wong jetted down the left wing with the puck.

He passed the puck to the front of the net to Wright, who rushed in from his defensive position. Wright tapped home his fifth of the post-season to give the Blades their one-goal edge.

Rowan Calvert celebrates scoring an equalizer for the Blades.

The Warriors didn’t go away. With 9:04 remaining in the third, Kovacevic threw a shot from the right side boards that deflected off Wright and got past Gardner to even the score at 3-3. Reflecting on the sequence where he scored and the Warriors equalizer deflected in off him, Wright said he was just determined to keep grinding.

“I think everyone always hopes that when you are up it is going to hold,” said Wright. “They get a lucky one off my pants.

“I get one in one end, and it goes off me into our net. I think you just keep playing.”

Ultimately, the exchange of goals in the third set the stage for overtime.

Evan Gardner made 31 saves in goal for the Blades.

Early in overtime, Blades centre Lukas Hansen drove into the Moose Jaw zone down the right wing and he took a shot that deflected off Warriors offensive-defenceman Kalem Parker going to the Moose Jaw net, but Warriors star netminder Jackson Unger came up with the stop.

Lakovic would proceed to score his winner just over 50 second later.

“It was a fun game,” said Warriors head coach Mark O’Leary, whose squad finished fifth overall in the WHL’s regular season standings with a 44-21-0-3 mark. “I think it had everything that this series has had you know the momentum swings and goals on both sides.

“It is fun. I think our guys they’re playing hard. Maybe tonight wasn’t our most clean game.

Jackson Unger made 30 saves in goal for the Warriors.

“The last two I thought we played better games. When you are going to play seven games, you are going to have nights like this where last shot wins.”

Gardner turned away 31 shots to take the setback in net for the Blades. Unger stopped 30 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Warriors.

Sidorov had a pair of assists to go with his goal. Kovacevic had a pair of assist to go with his tally.

Now the focus for both club turns to Game 7. The Blades won two Game 7s last year to advance to the Eastern Conference Championship Series before falling to the Winnipeg Ice. Sonne believes the past experience will help his club.

“We’ve been here before,” said Sonne. “This group went to multiple Game 7s last year.

Denton Mateychuk controls the puck for the Warriors.

“For us, it is really just to focus on our competitive habits that would be the main thing.”

O’Leary believes having a Game 7 is ultimately the right way for the Eastern Conference Championship Series between the Blades and Warriors to conclude.

“I said this when it was 2-2 that if you told me it was going to be 2-2 I would have believed you,” said O’Leary. “You can say the same thing about 3-3.

“I just think that both teams played each other so well in the regular season. We bring out the best in each other I think. It is competitive.

The Warriors salute their fans after their OT win on Sunday.

“It just feels like the Western Hockey League. It is just good hockey, and why not play seven?”

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Lakovic delivers Warriors OT win, 2-0 series lead on Wheaties

Brayden Yager had a goal for the Warriors on Saturday.

Lynden Lakovic ensured the Moose Jaw Warriors held serve at home.

On Saturday night, the Warriors found themselves locked in a 4-4 draw in overtime taking on the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings in Game 2 of a first round series in the WHL Playoffs between the two sides. Just 2:15 into the extra session, Warriors 19-year-old right-winger Rilen Kovacevic stole the puck from a Wheat Kings defenceman in the left corner of the Brandon zone.

Kovacevic backhanded a pass to the front of the Brandon net to Lakovic. The 17-year-old sophomore left-winger made no mistake burying the overtime winner to deliver the Warriors to a 5-4 victory before an elated 3,557 spectators at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.

The win allowed the Warriors to take a 2-0 series lead in the best-of-seven set. Moose Jaw claimed Game 1 on home ice Friday by a 7-4 score.

In Saturday’s clash, Warriors star centre Brayden Yager gave the host side a 1-0 lead in the opening frame. Later on in the first, Wheat Kings import centre Dominik Petr and 17-year-old centre Roger McQueen scored goals six second apart from each other to give the visitors a 2-1 advantage.

With 3:42 remaining in the first, Warriors star 20-year-old centre Atley Calvert potted a short-handed goal to even the score at 2-2.

In the second, Wheat Kings 19-year-old Rylen Roersma tallied a short-handed marker and McQueen potted his second of the contest to give Brandon a 4-2 advantage.

Inside the final two minutes of the second, the Warriors scored two goals 23 seconds apart coming from the sticks of star centre Matthew Savoie and left-winger Pavel McKenzie to even the score at 4-4.

The two sides played through a scoreless third period leading up to Lakovic’s winner. The Wheat Kings got the first four shots on goal in overtime before Lakovic tallied on Moose Jaw’s first shot on net of the extra frame.

Jackson Unger stopped 30 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Warriors. Carson Bjarnason turned away 34 shots to take the setback in net for the Wheat Kings.

Calvert collected a pair of assists to go with his goal putting up a three-point night for the Warriors. Savoie had an assist to go with his goal. Warriors 20-year-old defenceman Brenton Lucas picked up a pair of assists in the win.

Roersma had an assist to go with his goal for the Wheat Kings.

The series now shifts to Brandon for Games 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively for a 7 p.m. local start time on both nights at Westoba Place.

The Warriors finished second overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference in the regular season with a 44-21-0-3 mark. They are the third seed in the conference for the first round of the playoffs due to not finishing first in a division. The Wheat Kings placed sixth in the Eastern Conference with a 33-28-6-1 record.

Broncos outlast Hurricanes 4-3 in Game 2

Josh Filmon scored for the Broncos on Saturday.

The Swift Current Broncos are showing early signs that they might be giving their fans another spring to remember.

On Saturday before a sellout crowd of 2,890 spectators at the InnovationPlex, the host Broncos took a 4-3 thriller over the Lethbridge Hurricanes in Game 2 of a best-of-seven first round series in the WHL Playoffs between the two sides. With the win, the Broncos take a 2-0 lead in the set. Swift Current took Game 1 of the series 3-0 win on home ice on Friday.

In Saturday’s encounter between the two sides, the Hurricanes took a 1-0 lead early in the first period on a goal by 18-year-old right-winger Leo Braillard.

The visitors held their lead until the 14:24 mark of the second when Broncos star left-winger Josh Filmon tallied on the power play to even the score at 1-1.

Just under three minutes later, Hurricanes 20-year-old centre Sean Tschigerl popped home his first of the post-season to give the visitors a 2-1 edge heading into the second intermission.

At the 2:38 mark of the third, Broncos 20-year-old defenceman Ryan McCleary netted the equalizer that forced a 2-2 tie. Just under three minutes later, Broncos star 19-year-old right-winger Connor Hvidston scored on the power-play to put the host side in front 3-2.

The Broncos then appeared to have iced the game when star centre Conor Geekie scored into an empty-net with 2:14 remaining in the third to push the host’s advantage out to 4-2. Just four seconds later, Hayden Pakkala scored for the Hurricanes to cut the Broncos lead to 4-3.

The Hurricanes weren’t able to find the equalizer after that.

Reid Dyck made 29 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Broncos. Harrison Meneghin turned away 32-of-35 shot to take the setback in net for the Hurricanes.

Left-winger Luke Mistelbacker had a pair of helpers for Swift Current.

The Broncos are making their first appearance in the WHL Playoffs since their WHL championship winning season in 2018. They topped the Central Division this season posting a 40-22-4-2 mark.

The Hurricanes finished seventh in the WHL’s Eastern Conference with a 33-28-7 record.

The series now shifts to Lethbridge for Game 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively to be held at 7 p.m. local time both nights at the Enmax Centre.

McKenna powers Tigers past Rebels, other notes

Gavin McKenna had a goal and two assists for the Tigers.

Gavin McKenna broke out the biggest post-season outing of his young WHL career to power his Medicine Hat Tigers to a big rebound win.

On Saturday night, the Tigers star 16-year-old rookie left-winger scored 21 seconds into Game 2 of the Tigers first round series against the Red Deer Rebels. McKenna picked up assists on the Tigers two goals in the second frame as they down the visiting Rebels 3-1 before an appreciative crowd of 4,175 spectators at Co-op Place.

The win allows the Tigers to even the best-of-seven series with the Rebels at 1-1. In Game 1 at Co-op Place on Friday, the Tigers jumped out to 4-0 only to see the Rebels rally back and claim a 5-4 victory in double overtime.

In Game 2 on Saturday, McKenna gave the Tigers a 1-0 lead scoring 21 seconds into the game potting a rebound at the right side of the Rebels net from a shot taken by linemate Hunter St. Martin.

At the 9:22 mark of the second, McKenna and Tigers 18-year-old star left-winger Andrew Basha combined to set up 18-year-old offensive-defenceman Reid Andresen for his first goal of the post-season to push Medicine Hat’s advantage out to 2-0.

Working on the power play with 4:32 remaining in the second, Basha and McKenna combined to set up sophomore star centre Cayden Lindstrom, who turned 18-years-old in February, for his first of the playoffs. Lindstrom’s tally pushed the Tigers lead out to 3-0 going into the second intermission.

After 40 minutes, the Tigers held their 3-0 edge while building a 23-13 advantage in shots on goal.

The Rebels came with a big push back in the third holding an 18-3 edge in shots on goal for the frame. The visitors were only able to get one goal coming from the stick of sophomore centre Ollie Josephson coming at the 6:32 mark of the period.

Zach Zahara stopped 30 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Tigers. Chase Wutzke turned away 23 shots to take the setback in net for the Rebels.

As a rookie, McKenna led the Tigers in regular season scoring with 97 points coming off 34 goals and 63 assists. His 97 points are a Tigers team record for most points scored in one season by a 16-year-old.

He finished 12^th in the WHL’s scoring race. Due to being born in late December, McKenna isn’t eligible for the NHL Entry Draft until 2026.

The Tigers finished fourth overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference in the regular season with a 37-23-6-2 mark. The Rebels were fifth overall in the conference with a 33-26-3-6 record.

The series between the Tigers and Rebels now shifts to Red Deer for Games 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively at 7 p.m. both nights at the Peavey Mart Centrium.

• On Saturday in Prince George, centre Riley Heidt had three assists as his host Cougars downed the Spokane Chiefs 7-4 in Game 2 of their first round series. Layton Feist scored twice for the Chiefs. The Cougars, who finished second overall in the WHL regular season with a 49-15-1-3 mark, lead the series 2-0.
• On Saturday in Portland, the host Winterhawks dumped the Victoria Royals 5-1 in Game 2 of their first round series. James Stefan had a pair of goals and an assist for the Winterhawks, while Gabe Klassen picked up three assists in the win. The Winterhawks, who finished third overall in the WHL’s regular season standings with a 48-15-4-1 mark, lead the series 2-0.
• On Saturday in Everett, the host Silvertips got a pair of goals from Austin Roest to down the Vancouver Giants 2-1 in Game 2 of their first round series. Brett Mirwald made 53 saves taking the setback in goal for the Giants. The best-of-seven series between these two clubs is tied 1-1.
• On Saturday in Wenatchee, the host Wild fell 3-1 to the Kelowna Rockets in Game 2 of their first round series. Caden Price picked up assists on all three goals for the Rockets. The best-of-seven series between these two squads is tied 1-1.
• On Friday, the WHL announced Brandon Wheat Kings 19-year-old physical left-winger Matt Henry has been suspended eight games for a first-time violation of the CHL’s Anti-Doping Policy. Henry appeared in 37 regular season games for the Wheat Kings this season collecting one assist and 100 penalty minutes.

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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