Stars get going for real at Esso Cup

The Saskatoon Stars celebrate a goal by Jordyn Gerlitz.

    After building up anticipation over 24 off days, the Saskatoon Stars will finally get to play at nationals.
    The local midget AAA girls' hockey team left Saskatoon for Red Deer on Saturday to take part in the six team Esso Cup national championship tournament. Saskatoon opens the tournament Sunday, when they take on the Sudbury Lady Wolves. That match happens open the overall schedule for the tourney.
    Sudbury is making its second straight appearance at the Esso Cup after repeating as Ontario provincial champs. The Wolves were 16-5-1 during the regular season and won a bronze medal at last year's Esso Cup.
    The Stars are participating in the Esso Cup for the first time in team history. They have had a memorable season winning the Mac's tournament for the second time in team history and capturing their first Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League title. Including action in the SFMAAAHL regular season and post-season and the Mac's, Saskatoon enters the Esso Cup sporting a 40-3 overall record.
    The contest between Saskatoon and Sudbury contains a classic rest versus rust storyline. The Stars, who have the youngest team at the Esso Cup, haven't played a game since downing the Prince Albert A & W Bears 2-0 in the final contest of the SFMAAAHL championship series on March 25. The Wolves only had a break of about seven days since winning the Ontario final.

Sophia Shirley has been invited to a Hockey Canada camp in May.

    Saskatoon was led in scoring by the dynamic duo of Nara Elia and Sophia Shirley, who were first and second respectively in SFMAAAHL scoring. Elia had 23 goals and 17 assists helping the Stars post a 25-3 regular season record, while Shirley had 22 goals and 17 assists. Both have two years of midget eligibility remaining.
    Shirley was recently invited to Canada's National Women's Program strength and conditioning camp, which runs May 6-10 in Hamilton, Ont.
    The Esso Cup will mark the final games captain Paige Michalenko, Brittany Heuchert, Courtney Cormack and Karlee Fetch at the midget level. Defender Jenna Nash, who has committed to play for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies, will also graduate from the midget ranks, but the she will sit out the Esso Cup due to injury with an anterior cruciate ligament tear in one of her knees.
    The six teams at the Esso Cup will play five round robin games each, and the top four teams advance to the tournament's semifinal round on April 24. The bronze and gold medal games close the event on April 25.

Swan song for Tigers overagers

Tyler Lewington, left, celebrates a goal with Marek Langhamer.

    The WHL's Medicine Hat Tigers arguably will miss their three overage graduates more than most teams in the major junior ranks will.
    When the Tigers saw their playoff run come to an end Friday with a 4-3 double overtime loss to the Hitmen in Calgary, the major junior careers of goaltender Marek Langhamer and defencemen Tyler Lewington and Kyle Becker came to a conclusion. All three were key contributors to the Tigers on the ice and in the dressing room.
    Langhamer, who has an NHL entry-level contract signed with the Arizona Coyotes, was with the Tigers for three campaigns posting a 68-42-7 record, a 2.86 goals against average, a .905 save percentage and six shutouts during his regular season career. At the moment, it appears the Czech product will be the last European goaltender to play in the WHL unless the Canadian Hockey League changes its import player rules to allow overseas goalies to play again.
    He again had a big post-season posting a 5-5 record in 10 starts with a 2.28 goals against average and a .924 save percentage.
    Lewington, who has an NHL entry-level contract signed with the Washington Capitals, spent four seasons with the Tigers. He arguably had one of the highest compete levels out of any player in the WHL, and he was the Tigers captain this past season. The Sherwood Park, Alta., product was solid in both the offensive and defensive zones posting nine goals, 36 assists, a plus-25 rating in the plus-minus department and 113 penalty minutes in 69 regular season games this past campaign.
    Becker finished the 2011-12 season with the Tigers playing 11 regular season games and two post-season contests and became a full-time team member for the past three campaigns. The Langley, B.C., product developed a reputation for handling the back end with a calming presence. As an overager, he posted 11 goals, 14 assists and a plus-11 rating in 57 regular season games.
    The Tigers entered the 2014-15 campaign with the potential to go a long way in the post-season. They fell 4-1 in a best-of-seven second round series to the Hitmen.

Kyle Becker, right, clears a puck out from deep in his zone.

    Medicine Hat's undoing in the playoffs was due to the fact the offence dried up. In 10 post-season games, the Tigers gave up 25 goals against but only had 25 goals for. Three of the five games with the Hitmen went to overtime, and Calgary claimed two of those contests, which turned out to be the final two games of the series.
    The overtime results were a key factor in the Hitmen winning the series, and it also showed the Tigers weren't able to get the goals they needed at key times in that best-of-seven set.
    Going forward, Langhamer, Lewington and Becker all have potential to experience longer futures in hockey. The Tigers have made the playoffs for 13 straight seasons, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see them extend that run to 14 seasons in 2015-16, when the begin play in the new Medicine Hat Regional Event Centre.
    With their playoff elimination, the Tigers time playing games out of The Arena, which is their long time legendary home rink, has come to an end.

Wapple valiant for Pats

Daniel Wapple stood tall in goal for the Pats in the playoffs.

    Daniel Wapple made the Brandon Wheat Kings sweat.
    The Wheat Kings, who topped the WHL's regular season standings with a 53-11-4-4 mark, were heavy favourites to take out Wapple's Regina Pats in the second round of the post-season. Regina appeared to be in a rebuilding phase trading away a number of key veterans before the league's trade deadline, but the Pats surprised many finishing eighth overall with a 37-24-5-6 record.
    The Pats qualified for just their second appearance in the second round since 1998. They swept the Swift Current Broncos 4-0 in the opening round and were playing with house money.
    After the Wheat Kings took the first two games of their series with the Pats, Wapple stepped up to give Brandon all sorts of fits. The Saskatoon product made 39 saves in a 3-2 Pats victory in Game 3 of the series in Regina. Game 4 in Regina went to overtime, and Wapple made 45 saves before Brandon escaped with a 3-2 win.
    In Game 5 on Friday in Brandon, Wapple made 48 stops before the Wheat Kings prevailed again in overtime by a 3-2 score.
    Wapple will likely be back with the Pats for his overage season, which has to make fans in the Queen City feel good about their prospects in the 2015-16 campaign.

Narcisse all-star event set for Saskatoon

A Don Narcisse card from 1999.

    Former Saskatchewan Roughriders wide receiver Don Narcisse has a one-day football kids' camp coming up in Saskatoon.
    The camp is slated for Saturday, April 25, and it is set to run from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Sasktel Sports Centre. The camp is open for players aged 7 to 18 and the cost is $80 per player plus GST. The fees include a T-shirt and lunch.
    Following the camp, there will be a dinner gala held at the Travelodge Hotel at 6 p.m. with current Roughriders star defensive end John Chick slated to be the keynote speaker. Tickets for the gala dinner are $100 plus GST individually or $750 plus GST for a table of eight. Narcisse has goal to sell 20 tables by Tuesday, and he had six sold by Saturday.
    All proceeds from the camp and the dinner gala go to support Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Saskatoon and Area. Registration for the camp or gala can done by phoning 306-652-1487 or by going online through Narcisse's website by clicking here.

Oilers build NHL Draft Lottery dynasty

A memento from the Oilers winning era.

    The Edmonton Oilers accomplished a dubious milestone on Saturday.
    For the fourth time in six years, the Oilers won the NHL Draft Lottery, and they will have the first overall selection at the 2015 NHL Entry Draft set for June 26-27 in Sunrise, Florida. The distinction is dubious, because the Oilers also had to finish low enough for a number of consecutive years in the NHL standings to collect those first overall picks.
    The consensus first overall pick this year is viewed as a big prize in forward Connor McDavid of the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League. McDavid, who netted 44 goals and 76 assists in 47 regular season games with the Otters, is being described as the best draft prospect since the Pittsburgh Penguins selected Sidney Crosby back in 2005.
    The Oilers haven't made the playoffs since 2006, when they advanced to the Stanley Cup finals and fell in seven-game series to the Carolina Hurricanes. Since that time, Edmonton's NHL team has been the butt end of jokes for how bad it has been.
    When it was announced the Oilers had the first overall pick, social media, especially Twitter, blew up. People were in disbelief the Oilers won the pick. There were all sorts of predictions made that the Oilers will find a way to mess everything up.
    Time will tell, but it will be interesting to see how everything plays out over the next two months leading up to the NHL Entry Draft.

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

New rule adds to dogfight in Can West women’s hockey

Lauren Zary wheels with the puck for the Huskies.

            Wow! Two regulation wins later and the University of Saskatchewan Huskies jump from a tie for fifth into a tie for first in the Canada West women’s hockey standings.

            Last weekend, the Huskies swept away the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns by scores of 3-0 and 2-0 on Friday and Saturday night respectively at the ancient Rutherford Rink. The victories allowed the Huskies to improve to 9-3-2 and vault into a four-way tie for first in the conference with 26 points at the halfway point of the regular season.

            The four-way tie was caused because the women’s Canada West conference is using a news system for tallying points in the standings this season, which is similar to one used in the Olympics. Regulation time wins are worth three points, extra time wins two points and one point is awarded for an extra time loss.

The same system is being utilized in the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League.

            The Huskies recorded their 26 points thanks to six regulation wins. The other three teams with 26 points include the Alberta Pandas (9-5) with eight regulation wins, the Manitoba Bisons (9-4-1) with seven regulation wins, and the UBC Thunderbirds (8-3-3) also with seven regulation wins.

            The Calgary Dinos are a point back of that foursome with a 7-3-4 record. All of their wins have come in regulation. The Regina Cougars sit holding the final playoff berth in the conference at 9-4-1, but they only have 22 points in the standings due to only winning three times in regulation.

            If the standings were still tallied the old way where a win in any form was worth two points, the Huskies would have been alone in first with 20 points. The Bisons, Thunderbirds and Cougars would have all been tied for second with 19 points. The final two playoff berths would be held by the Pandas and Dinos tied with 18 points.

            So what does one make of the logjam?

            The rule for putting in three points for a regulation win was put in to reward a squad for earning victory in the regular three periods of play. The idea of this rule has been bantered around at the NHL level. In theory, it was expected earning three points for a regulation win would create more separation in the standings.

            In the Canada West women’s standings where there isn’t that much difference between the teams, the standings are still tight even with three points being awarded for a regulation win.

            The Regina Cougars could argue they are the biggest loser under the new system. To be fair, they found the heart to get six wins done in extra time, but are given no reward for having that heart. That is the downfall of a system that awards three points for a regulation win as opposed to giving two points for any type of win.

            For me, the jury is still out on which system is better. The final judgment will likely be made during the Canada West league meetings in the off-season.

            As for the Huskies at this point in time of the season, there are always things to improve on, but they have to be really happy with where they sit. They have been very consistent in executing game plans, overcoming points of adversity and taking each step of the way very professionally.

They are not visibly too high after wins or too low after setbacks, and that is a very impressive thing to see.

In the sweep of the Pronghorns, the Huskies big players came through. Goaltender Cassidy Hendricks made 34 save over the two matches to up her shutout total to three on the season.

Marley Ervine, Kaitlin Willoughby and Julia Flinton had singles on the first night. Rachel Johnson scored twice on the second night.

They conclude play before heading into the Christmas break and final exam period this coming Friday and Saturday hosting Mount Royal University Cougars (2-9-3) at 7 p.m. each night at the Rutherford Rink.

Back to .500

Michael Sofillas in action for the Huskies.

            The Huskies men’s hockey team extended their winning streak to three games earning a pair of wins on the road against the Pronghorns.

            On Friday, the Huskies exploded for a 3-0 lead and held on for a 3-2 win. Michael Sofillas, who is starting to find an offensive touch, scored twice, while Sean Aschim had a single. Ryan Holfeld made 31 saves for the win.

            On Saturday, the Huskies posted a much more convincing 5-1 victory. Josh Roach scored twice, while Matthew Spafford, Sofillas and Parker Thomas all had singles. Jordon Cooke made 29 saves to pick up the win.

            The Huskies (8-8) have been up and down in the goal scoring department this season, so they will be looking to keep the offensive numbers up during their final two games before the Christmas break. They travel to Calgary this coming Friday and Saturday to take on the Mount Royal University Cougars (10-6).

            Those two clubs split their two meetings earlier this month at the Rutherford Rink.

Collins is on fire

The Huskies men's basketball team huddles around their bench.

            Dadrian Collins was sinking threes like he was a secret character on that 1990s legendary video game NBA Jam on Saturday.

            The fifth-year forward went off for the Huskies men’s basketball team from beyond the arch going 8-for-8 from downtown on Saturday at the Physical Activity Complex on the U of Saskatchewan campus. He hit seven of his threes in the game’s first half. Overall, he finished the contest with 28 points helping the Huskies cruise to a 95-70 victory over the University of Victoria Vikes.

            One night earlier, the Huskies downed the Vikes 82-70, and fourth-year guard Michael Scott led the way for the Dogs with 19 points. The Huskies sit at 4-2 in regular season play.

            The Huskies women’s team earned a sweep over the Vikes winning 71-62 on Friday and 89-68 on Saturday. Star post Dalyce Emmerson led the way leading the Huskies with 17 and 20 points on respective nights.

 One year anniversary of Grey Cup joy

           

Mosaic Stadium at the close of the 101st Grey Cup.

            Most people in Saskatchewan will be able to remember where they were a year ago today.

            The Saskatchewan Roughriders blasted the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 45-23 in the 101^st Grey Cup at Mosaic Stadium, which I still refer to commonly as Taylor Field. It was the last Grey Cup to be played as Mosaic, as a new stadium is currently being built in Regina.

            The contest also marked the first time the Roughriders were in the Grey Cup final at home and the only time they would win the legendary trophy on the field they have called home since 1910.

            I was at the game in person and being there in person was beyond anything you could have imagined for the bucket list. I have been at Taylor Field in many difference capacities for many football games at various levels, and the 101^st Grey Cup was definitely the most memorable.

            I also remember partying until like 5:30 a.m. out in the streets and in various locations in Regina. I think it took like two days to sleep that all off.

            The night had a euphoric experience from a fan perspective I had never seen before or since. I could not imagine what the feeling was like for the players, and I had a few buds on the team.

            As for players, I was most happy for quarterback Darian Durant, who put so many years of hard work in with the team and finally won the big one as the starter. In my handful of dealings with him, it is very evident he cares a lot about the Roughriders franchise, and I still don’t think the team’s fan base fully appreciates that fact.

            I was also really happy for my old Regina Rams bud Neal Hughes, who won his second Grey Cup ring. He took the victory with the joy of a little kid playing minor football on Regina’s Leibel Field.

            In my heart, I hope that wasn’t the last Grey Cup win he tasted as a player. The 34-year-old fullback was limited to playing just two games because of a nagging foot injury this past season. After 11 seasons in the league, there is no certainty his playing days will continue.

            With that said, it is great for today to look back and remember how great the day was.

If you have any feedback on this blog, feel free to email comments to stankssports@gmail.com.

3 on 3 OT is the best

The Cougars and Huskies in action on Saturday.

            Three-versus-three overtime is a winner, even if it didn’t decide Saturday’s Canadian Interuniversity Sport men’s hockey game between the Saskatchewan Huskies and Regina Cougars at the ancient Rutherford Rink.

            Both the CIS men’s and women’s hockey leagues have a unique overtime format for the regular season. If a game is tied after regulation, both teams play a five minute overtime period with four skaters per side. If the contest is still tied after that frame, the two clubs play through another five-minute overtime stanza with three skaters per side.

            If the game is still tied after the second five-minute overtime period, you advance to a shootout format that is used in the NHL and major junior ranks.

            The theory of having the three-on-three overtime frame is it doesn’t totally eliminate the team aspect of hockey like the shootout does, which becomes a skater against a goaltender duel, and it also could be as or even more exciting than the shootout.

            The three-on-three overtime frame between the Huskies and Cougars was definitely more exciting than the shootout. If you saw that extra session live in person, you would not be able to come away with an observation other than that.

            The Huskies played about 1:30 of the frame on the power play, but pretty much the rest of the time was three-on-three hockey. With only three skaters per side, there was a whole bunch of open ice available and the skaters used.

            There were piles of good scoring chances created, and the forwards and defenders that hit the ice showed whole piles of imagination. Skilled and aggressive offensive play was the name of the game. The game should have ended with a goal in that period but credit the work of Huskies goaltender Jordon Cooke and Cougars goaltender Lucas Gore for keeping the pucks out of their respective nets.

            Both puck stoppers had to make way more difficult saves in the three-on-three overtime session than they did in the first 65 minutes of the game. You came out more in awe of how well both goaltenders did.

            During that extra period, it was hard to stay in your seat that night at the Rutherford Rink.

            When the shootout took place, the Huskies took that tiebreaker 2-0 with goals coming from Jesse Ross and Parker Thomas for 2-1 overall victory in the contest. Craig McCallum scored for the Huskies in the first period, while Miguel Pereira scored for the Cougars to tie things up at 1-1 with two seconds to play in the second.

            Cooke made 40 stops through 70 minutes and turned back both shooters he faced in the shootout for the win. Gore made 37 stops over 70 minutes, but failed to make a save in the shootout in the setback.

            The three-on-three overtime period is used in a few other hockey leagues, but it is not used in the NHL of in hockey’s major junior ranks. It would be cool of those loops would correct that oversight.

            If draws are not part of the game, the three-on-three overtime period would be great to have in the extra time format as another opportunity to keep team play involved, while still opening up play.

            On Saturday night in the Western Hockey League, the host Brandon Wheat Kings downed the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers 3-2 after a shootout at Westman Place. Both squads are sitting in the top four of the WHL’s overall standings at the moment, and they are loaded with offensively talented players, who would put on quite the show in a three-on-three overtime frame.

            If the Tigers talented forwards of Cole Sanford and Trevor Cox along with offensive defenceman Tommy Vannelli could face their Wheat Kings counterparts in forwards Rihards Bukarts and Jayce Hawryluk and offensive defenceman Ivan Provorov in a three-on-three situation, you can’t even imagine the plays that could be made.

            Until the NHL and the major junior ranks visit the idea of a three-on-three overtime frame, it will be a hidden gem in leagues like the CIS. 

 

Expect the Huskies to bounce back

The Cougars and Huskies faceoff on Friday.

            The Huskies women’s hockey team might have dropped two overtime heartbreakers on the weekend to the Regina Cougars, but you get the feeling they will get past that obstacle.

            When bad things happen to the Huskies, they keep showing they have the ability to rebound and push forward. That was seen during Friday’s clash with the Cougars at the Rutherford Rink.

            The Cougars jumped in front 2-0 with power-play goals from Brooklyn Moskowy and Caitlin Dempsey. The Huskies rebounded with power-play markers from the sticks of Kaitlin Willoughby and a point blast from rearguard Julia Flinton.

            Regina bounced on a bad line change in overtime by the Huskies resulting in Emma Waldenberger netting the winner in a 3-2 Cougars victory.

            Toni Ross made 18 stops to pick up with win, while Cassidy Hendricks turned away 20 shots in the loss.

            On Saturday in Regina, Kylie Gavelin scored early in overtime to give the Cougars a 1-0 decision over the Huskies. Jennifer Schmidt made 27 stops in net for the win for the Cougars (8-3-1), while Hendricks turned away 36 shots in goal for the Huskies (7-3-2).

            The Huskies play their last four games before the Christmas break at home, so they have a good opportunity to get another other roll before the focus switches to the classroom and final exams.         

Roughriders’ loss continues season of CFL stinkers

 

             The Saskatchewan Roughriders loss in the West Division semifinal seemed to mirror all that was wrong with the CFL this season.

            During the campaign, many fans groaned that way too many games lacked excitement, lacked offence and games were dragged down due to inconsistent penalty calling by the officials. Struggling offence was a theme in 2014, because of bad execution as opposed to stellar defensive play.

            On Sunday in Edmonton, the host Eskimos downed the Roughriders 18-10 in a contest that was hardly a classic. In a group effort, everyone was bad in that game. The Eskimos won because they performed less poorly than the Roughriders and the officials.

            To be blunt, the Roughriders were the worst team on the field, the officials the second worst and the Eskimos third worst. It felt like fans of the Roughriders and Eskimos would be the only people that could stay hooked watching this game. Any casual football watcher would have flipped to see what was happening in the NFL.

            The East semifinal in Montreal wasn’t much more to write home about as the host Alouettes destroyed the visiting B.C. Lions 50-17. The Alouettes put up 50 points with 291 yards of offence. To be fair, Montreal’s defence did play well.

            Management in CFL offices has to be cringing a little as to how Sunday’s playoff games went. They also have to be praying the East and West finals this coming Sunday end up being better contests.

The Als travel to Hamilton to play the Tiger-Cats, while the Esks head to Calgary to take on the Stampeders.

If you have any feedback on this blog, feel free to email comments to stankssports@gmail.com.

Canadian media loves easy NHL money

An NHL exhibition game held in Saskatoon in September.

            When it comes to sports media in Canada, it is all about the NHL.

            The only place that might not be true is Saskatchewan, where the CFL’s Roughriders are number one. In the consolidated media world that marks the landscape in Canada, the NHL is where it is at as far as sports coverage goes. As a result, coverage for all other sports ultimately suffers.

            As the media in Canada continues to consolidate, the various outlets end up looking to gain the biggest bang for the buck. The industry for all intensive purposes has been in a negative economy cycle for two decades going back to before the Internet became big, which has created the need to get the biggest bang for the buck.

When it comes to covering sports, the NHL has a huge captive audience in Canada that isn’t going anywhere. If you produce anything on that league, you can be sure someone will read it, listen to it, or watch it.

            If media outlets in Canada really wanted to, they could likely get away with just running sports stories on the NHL. In Western Canada, you would still have to acknowledge the CFL, but the NHL rules the roost.

            I remember a conversation I had with an elite level goalie coach in summer. He said there seemed to be more media than ever circling around Canada’s NHL teams. That is likely true.

            Besides having the regular print, radio and television media following the team, you have personnel from NHL clubs themselves putting together stories and videos for websites. You also have people there from the league itself putting together items for various NHL run media platforms.

            Due to the overwhelming attention the NHL gets in Canada, regular media companies are hesitant to cut back coverage in that area. It is giving you the biggest bang for your buck. If you take away coverage in this area, you will lose a big amount of followers and the advertising bottom line gets hurt.

            When cuts do come down, it is usually at the expense of all other local sports. That is seen in various mid-market centres like Kelowna, Red Deer or Lethbridge where papers that once had sports staffs of three or four are shrunk to one or two. As most know, advertising dollars are usually sucked out of those communities to the head office of the consolidated media company.

            Red Deer actually once had a Global station, but that is gone. In Kamloops, you don’t even have a daily newspaper there anymore.

            The reason it is easy to cut sports coverage on the local level is because it takes a lot of resources to go out there and keep followers. Covering things like sports at the Canadian Interuniversity Sport level or sports at the high school level takes a lot of effort to get followers and keep them. In all reality, you are catering to a niche audience that doesn’t have a whole lot of room for expansion.

            In a ratio sense, a set amount of resources that would be used to cover the NHL will yield a much greater return than the same set amount of resources used to cover sports at the local level.

             With Postmedia Network Canada Corporation’s $316-million deal announced earlier this month to buy 175 newspapers and digital publications where the bulk of the deal included former Quebecor Media Inc. assets, local sports coverage will ultimately take another hit.

            Despite the cuts, almost all those that are actually on the front lines covering the local sports scenes in their various communities work very hard at what they do. In a lot of cases, they push themselves too hard to bring those stories to light and suffer burnout.

            In Saskatoon, the work that the sports media does in the city has to be rated as outstanding. The numbers in the sports media in town have shrunk, which seems strange for centre that has witnessed a population increase of about 50,000 people in the last eight years.

            It would be nice if media companies would increase the number of front line reporters in order to bring more local sports stories to the readers, or at least get numbers up to what they used to be a decade ago. There are a lot of good athletes with great stories working hard at what they do, and people don’t realize they are there.

            Unfortunately, it costs money to bring in more reporters and add resources to cover these stories. No consolidated media company would want to do that, when you can turn to the cash cow that is the NHL to make some easy coin.

If you have any feedback on this blog, feel free to email comments to stankssports@gmail.com.