Monday morning

Rise and shine. Feel free to go and grab some hot breakfast and we'll get down to business.

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Only a few notes this morning and we'll start with hockey.

Team Canada West came up just short at the WJHC and will have to settle for silver. The team lost the gold medal game 2-1 to the USA on Sunday. Klippers' head coach Larry Wintoneak was an assistant with Team Canada and will return home and should be behind the bench Wednesday when the Klippers visit the Melville Millionaires.

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The current poll question on www.sjhl.ca asks: Which team do you expect to emerge from 2nd-6th logjam in the Sherwood?

Right now Kindersley and Yorkton are tied for 2nd with 22 points a piece. My vote goes to the Jr. K's. Melville has the most votes with 321 but how can you ignore the Hounds? They only have 124 which is only higher than Estevan's 99. The hounds are 9-4-2 and have played just 15 games. They're two points back of 2nd with 5 games in hand. How can they NOT emerge?

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This week is going to be crazy as we look ahead to Saturday's provincial 9-man football final between Lumsden and Swan Valley.

Everyone will bring up Lumsden's 44-8 regular season victory over the Tigers but I'm not looking to much into it. Back when I was playing for Wynyard we lost to Lumsden 37-0 in the regular season and beat them 21-10 or something like that in the provincial final. ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN.

We'll be hyping this game all week long.

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Any suggestions for a new poll question on www.saskgridiron.com? I'm looking for something better than who do you think will win the final. Hit the comments section.

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Ok, that's all for now.

Cheers,

dd

Hounds 5 Klippers 1

The Klippers and Hounds hooked up in Kyle, SK for a neutral site game Sunday night.

Leedahl scores the lone goal for the Jr. K's as they drop their second straight game.

Sunday report

It's been a great weekend for sports and I'm lacking with the updates here on the blog so here we go.

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The Kindersley Klippers had their 4 game winning streak snapped Friday in North Battleford. The Stars got out to a 5-0 lead and it was more than enough. Kindersley faught hard and made it 5-3 in the third but that was a close as they would get.

The Jr. K's will face Notre Dame tonight in a neutral site game that will be played in Kyle. The neutral site games are a great way to showcase the talent in the SJHL. We need to get one in Wynyard.

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Larry Wintoneak and Team Canada West are off to the WJHC gold medal game this afternoon in Summerside P.E.I. You can catch the game at 3pm on TSN.

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The Lumsden Devils and Swan Valley Tigers have made it to the provincial 9-man football final after their Saturday victories against Foam Lake and Humboldt respectively. I'm looking forward to the final on Saturday.

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The Leafs have won two in a row after their 5-1 win over Detroit Saturday night in the hall of fame game. We're going to run the table now and take the world by storm.

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The Riders beat Calgary on Saturday to clinch the West for the first time in 33 years. They'll host the West final in two weeks time. Word is there are still a couple hundred tickets available. Snatch 'em up quick.

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Ok, I'm going to work on putting together that announcement that I have been talking about for far too long.

Enjoy your Sunday.

dd

Klippers @ Stars tonight

(Game preview from the blog of North Stars play-by-play voice Dan O'Connor)

Whenever these two teams get together, fans can expect a battle. There is certainly no love-loss between the Klippers and North Stars. Kindersley has won four straight games, while the North Stars are a perfect 8-0 at home. Sadly one of these streaks will end tonight.



Record: 11-7

Who's Hot Up Front:

No surprise really that Jordan Braid is leading the charge with 23 points in 18 games. But what maybe does come as a surprise is the fact that second-year Klipper Andrew Dommett has 21 points. Dommett is tied for the team lead in goals with 13, and has proven to be an outstanding secondary scoring threat for the Klippers.

Who's on D:

Steven Turner leads the Klippers with five goals and 14 points to start the season. He's a solid two-way defensive threat who will likely log a ton of ice-time tonight. Look for other D-Men like Kurt Leedahl, Sean Flanigan and Justin Wilkinson to see a lot of minutes as well.

Who's in Goal:

With the way he is playing right now, I'd be shocked if we saw anybody other than Josh Thorimbert. The 17-year-old native of Saskatoon has been super for the Klippers, and was recently named SJHL Rookie of the Month for October.

X-Factor:

Taylor Duzan is probably the smallest player in the SJHL, but you'd never know it by watching him play. He's shifty, physical, and talented. Duzan has shown tremendous poise and vision over the years, and always seems to bring his best when the North Stars are involved. If the Stars can limit his time and space, they will likely find some success against the Klips.


Record: 11-7-1-0

Who's Hot Up Front:

Coming into tonight's game, Blake Peake is the hottest North Star's forward. Peake scored twice earlier this week in Nipawin and La Ronge, and seems to have regained some offensive confidence. Josh Daley and Shay Neufeld continue to provide Peake with some great support. I've also noticed that Peake tends to do well against Kindersley.

Who's on D:

The North Stars are probably looking for a more collective offensive effort from the back-end. No D-Man stood out really during the two-game road swing up North. Jesse Lebreton, Cody Folstad, and Woody Klassen in particular are all players that are going to be knocking on the door tonight, and if one of those three can pick up a couple of points, the North Stars could be on their way to win number nine at home.

Who's in Goal:

Kyle Birch likely gets the call again tonight, as he looks to redeem himself after a two-loss road trip. Birch played well in both games, but has exactly looked "himself" lately. If both Birchy and Thorimbert are on their game tonight, we could be in for a low-scoring affair.

X-Factor:

No player has had more scoring chances lately than Blake Tatchell. The 18-year-old North Battleford boy has been a little snake-bitten recently around the net. If Tatch can get off the schnide tonight, the Stars will have a very good chance at victory.

Lets get over 1000 people to the Civic Center tonight. We've got some redeeming to do after a couple of smaller crowds in recent weeks.

For those that can't make it, you can catch the broadcast tonight on CJNB/CJNS starting at 7:15 with the SaskTel Pregame Show.

Friday news and notes

Here are some news and notes for your Friday afternoon.

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The BlackBerry says it's +16 this afternoon in Saskatoon and tomorrow it's calling for +8 and +5 on Sunday. Not too bad for this time of year.

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Canada West is off to the semi-finals at the World Jr A Hockey Hockey Challenge in P.E.I. after a 7-3 win over Belarus yesterday. They'll take on Canada East tonight at 5pm Sask time.

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What do you get when you mix MMA and soccer? Answer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNmPybFK2_o&feature=player_embedded.

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The Klippers are in action tonight in North Battleford and it's the SJHL's Game of the Week on Access 7. The Jr. K's will be looking for their season high 5th win in a row. They've been very successful offensively scoring 15 goals in their past two games.

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It's looking like tomorrow is going to be a great day for football in Foam Lake. The Panthers host the Lumsden Devils in provincial semi-final action and the forcast is currently calling for sunshine and +7. I'd say that's not too shabby.

The forecast is similar for Humboldt where the Mohawks will host the Swan Valley Tigers in the other semi. In each location the wind is expected to be somewhere between 15 and 20km/h.

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Keeping with 9-man football and the visitor poll on SaskGridiron.com is showing that 49% feel that Lumsden and Swan Valley will meet in the final next weekend while 35% feel it will be Lumsden and Humboldt. Only 14% feel Foam Lake can beat Lumsden tomorrow.

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After the Manitoba Bison's were forced to forfeit two victories because they were using an ineligible player, the University of Regina Rams will be in Saskatoon to take on the U of S Huskies in a Canada West playoff game tomorrow afternoon.

Darryl Skender of CJVR will have the call (link to CJVR on the right) from Griffiths Stadium.

I'm looking forward to this one. The Huskies own the season series 2-0 but these two teams do not like each other and it's playoff football, anything can happen.

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My Tennessee Titans will look for their second straight win Sunday when they play the 49ers. These two teams haven't met since 2005 (which the Titans won of course). VY needs to keep his play up if he want's to prove that he's the QB of the future in Tennessee.

If the Titans run the table do they have a shot at the playoffs?

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Ok that's all I have for now. Enjoy this weather!

dd

Wednesday morning

Good morning and welcome to the blog. Go ahead and grab some coffee and breakfast. I'll still be here when you get back.

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I was walking through the university last week and of the 6 or so people I saw using the computers probably 5 of them were on Facebook.

Is it still that popular?

For the most part I have stopped using Facebook however I might start back up. I have started linking some of my tweets to my Facebook page.

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Details were released last week regarding the return of the SJHL showcase weekend. This year it will be at the Civic Centre in North Battleford.

I'm all for the showcase weekend. It gives scouts and fans a chance to see every SJHL team play in the same weekend. Plus, I love the idea of hosting the event in an SJHL centre rather than in Saskatoon. I feel that it can also be used to showcase our communities and I hope this trend continues and we see the event moved around the league each year.

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No word on the status of a couple injured Klippers. It's still early in the season so I say stay out of the line-up until you are 100%. There is nothing worse than coming back earlier and then the injury becomes worse.

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Speaking of the Klippers, the offense has been on a tear as of late and the team has tied a season best by winning four straight. They'll look for number five in North Battleford on Friday.

The Klippers are now the highest scoring team in the Sherwood conference.

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My favorite song is still "Toes" by the Zac Brown Band. I know, this song has been out for a while but I still like it. It reminds me of summer and is one of those songs that just releases stress.

Do you have a song like that? One that just eases all the stress and makes you feel good? Please share.

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Some exciting news to share with you today. There is a new Klippers' blog!

Play-by-play voice Kriss Hussey has started up a blog for the Jr. K's. You can find it at http://klippershockey.blogspot.com. I have attatched a link under my blog list on the left hand side.

It's great to see a Klippers' blog again. For me, it's tough to keep tabs on the team when I'm not around them every day.

I want to be the first to welcome Kriss to the blogosphere (?) or blogiverse (?) or how about just the blog world. I look forward to reading what you have to write.

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The provincial semi-finals are set in 9-man football for this Saturday afternoon. Swan Valley visits Humboldt at noon while Foam Lake will host Lumsden at 1:00pm. Both these games should be very entertaining.

I'll be working on game previews this afternoon and will hopefully have something for you later on today or sometime tomorrow.

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If I can get all my ducks in a row today I will have some big news for you in regards to SaskGridiron.com. That's all I'll say for now. I do have to get organized first.

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Get your H1N1 shot yet? I've been pounding back the fruits and veggies to keep that immune system up. If you can't get the shot yet the best think you can do is to try and be as healthy as you can. In my mind a healthy diet is #1.

I smashed a whole box of Christmas oranges in a matter of days.

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I'm starting to calm down when it comes to other drivers on the road. It's a slow process but I just pop in a little "Toes" and it takes the edge right off. Either that or some Taylor Swift; she's pretty easy on the ears.

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Ok it's time to face the day. Wish me luck.

dd

Klippers 9 Broncos 5

Andrew Dommett scored three times for his first career hat trick. Also scoring for the Jr. K's was Jordan Braid (2), Braedyn Adamyk, Travis Eggum (2) and Steven Turner. Sean Flanigan had three helpers in the victory.

Josh Baker was between the pipes for Kindersley and stopped 29 of 34 shots.

The Klippers have now won four straight games leading up to Friday's tilt in North Battleford.

SJHL Power Rankings

NOVEMBER 2/09 (next rankings Nov 13)

		W	L	OTL	SOL
1	Weyburn (1)	11	2	0	4
	--Even when they lose, they are tough (5-0-0-and-4 in last nine).
2	Flin Flon (3)	11	5	0	2
	--Bombers have won five of six.
3	Battlefords (2)	11	5	1	0
	--Five straight wins and a legitimate threat.
4	Kindersley (7)	10	7	0	0
	--Up and down club is hot again, winners of three in a row.
5	Yorkton (5)	10	7	0	0
	--Terriers have won eight of ten at home.
6	La Ronge (6)	9	6	1	1
	--A hot streak away from joining upper echelon.
7	Notre Dame (8)	7	4	0	2
	--Hounds hanging around despite flu, inexperience in goal. A team to watch.
8	Humboldt (4)	9	8	1	1
	--They are not hard to play against right now.
9	Melville (10)	7	7	2	0
	--Four game win streak halted.
10	Melfort (9)	6	8	2	1
	--Mustangs are 1-and-1 on big four game stretch that still includes games against La Ronge and Battlefords.
11	Estevan (11)	6	10	2	1
	--Three wins in their last twelve.
12	Nipawin (12)	5	10	2	0
	--Completely retooling with new acquisition in goal and 2/3rds of top line dealt.

Monday blogging

Here's a little update as you enjoy your lunch today.

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Team Canada West lost 2-1 to Russia in their opening game at the WJHC. Breitkreuz (Terriers) scored the lone goal for Canada West in the loss.

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You know what really grinds my gears lately?

People not signaling when making a turn. What could they possibly be thinking? Do they want to save their signal light so it doesn't burn out?

If there is a traffic light that has a signal arrow does that mean the vehicles don't have to use theirs? I'm a really calm and relaxed guy but that just fires me up.

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The Klippers are rolling along after a solid weekend and now face the Humboldt Broncos at the WCEC on Tuesday. Remember last time these two hooked up? I bet the Broncos do! I for one am hoping for a repete.

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The provincial semi-final match-ups are set in 9-man football. Foam Lake will host Lumsden while Swan Valley will travel to Humboldt.

The winner of Lumsden/Foam Lake will host the final unless the final is between Foam Lake and Humboldt. In that case, since Humboldt finished ahead of Foam Lake (they are in the same conference), Humboldt would host the final.

The same scenario played out last year when Humboldt hosted Foam Lake and won provincials.

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Ok, that's all for now. Enjoy your afternoon.

dd

Thorimbert named SJHL's rookie of the month

SJHL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH for October
Josh Thorimbert, Kindersley Klippers

1992 G Josh Thorimbert (Saskatoon SK) has a rare spot in the SJHL in that he’s a number one goaltender on a competing team despite still being midget eligible in age. Thorimbert saw the lion’s share of the work in October between the pipes for the Klippers and he led them with a 7-and-2 record to go along with a 2.31-GAA and .933-SPCT. Overall, he’s 8-and-2, 2.45, .926.

Runners-up: Justin Buzzeo, Humboldt; Andrew Johnston, Flin Flon; Chris Daniels, Weyburn; Charlie Pogue, Melfort; Luke Boechler, Yorkton; Dylan Smith, Estevan.

Thorimbert was also a runner up for SJHL's goaltender of the month while F Braedyn Adamyk was a runner up for player of the month.

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The SJHL announced it's player of the week winners and the Klippers' Taylor Duzan and Jordan Braid were runners up for the honor while goaltender Josh Baker was runner up for goaltender of the week and Justin Perreaux was a runner up for defenceman of the week.