Blades game night: @ Swift Current

(From SaskatoonBlades.com)

Saskatoon Blades @ Swift Current Broncos

Tonight’s game is the fifth of eight regular season meetings this season between the Saskatoon Blades (32-9-0-2) and the Swift Current Broncos (22-23-0-1). The Blades have won 3 out of the first 4 meetings, but it was the Broncos who were victorious in the most recent game between these two clubs by a score of 4-2 back January 2^nd. This game is the 2^nd of 5 times that the Blades and Broncos will meet in January. These same two clubs meet again tomorrow night in Saskatoon for the back end of this weekend home and home series.

Josh Nicholls leads the Blades scoring attack against the Broncos, having collected 7 points (4G 3A) in the 4 games vs. Swift Current this season. Following closely behind Nicholls are defensive partners Duncan Siemens (1G 5A = 6pts) and Stefan Elliott (2G 3A = 5pts) who have combined for 11 points and a +11 rating vs. the Broncos this season. For Swift Current, Justin Dowling has picked up 4 points (1G 3A) in the 4 games vs. the Blades this season.

Blades Last Game

It was the Matt Hewitt Show Wednesday as Regina’s rookie goaltender stopped 59 of 62 shots through overtime and the Pats out-lasted the Saskatoon Blades 4-3 in a shootout. The shot tally was 62-33 in favour of the Bridge City Bunch, who never led in the game, but managed a point in the standings when Marek Viedensky scored a power play goal with 5:55 remaining in the third period. The Blades had a great chance to win in overtime when Regina forward Shayne Neigum drilled Saskatoon defenceman Teigan Zahn into the boards from behind...but they couldn't score on the 4-on-3 power play over the final 2:46 of the extra period. Lukas Sutter and Stefan Elliott had the other goals for the 32-9-2 Blades who got shootout goals from Jake Trask and Viedensky...but Pats' captain Garrett Mitchell ended the game by beating Adam Morrison in the fourth round.

Blades Banter

- On Wednesday, the Canadian Hockey League announced the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 Rankings for week 16 of the 2010-11 season. The Saskatoon Blades have been ranked 3^rd this week, up one spot from lat week’s rankings. The weekly rankings of the Canadian Hockey League’s Top 10 teams are selected by a panel of National Hockey League scouts.

- The Blades have recalled Tanner Sohn for tonight’s game vs. Swift Current. Sohn was re-acquired by the Blades on Monday’s WHL trade deadline from the Vancouver Giants.

- On Monday the WHL announced that Stefan Elliott was named the WHL Player of the Week for the week ending January 9^th. Elliott received the honours after picking up 6 points, scoring two goals and four assists to go with a +7 rating, in two games over the past week, helping the Blades to a 2-0-0-0 record in that span. Stefan Elliott is the 2^nd Blade to receive the Player of the Week this season as Darian Dziurzynski also received the honour back in October.

By The Numbers

- Stefan Elliott continues to top the league rankings in numerous categories this season. Elliott is currently ranked 1^st overall in the WHL in: Points by a defenseman with 48, Goals by a defenseman with 19, Plus/Minus with a +33 mark, and GWG with 9. Elliott also enters tonight’s game riding a 7 game point streak which has seen him collect 5 goals and 9 assists over that time.

- The Saskatoon Blades have outshot their opponents in 29 of 43 games played this year and have posted a record of 24-3-0-2 when they do so. In their last 3 games played, the Blades have unloaded 152 shots on opposing netminders, including a 62 shot barrage against Regina on Wednesday.

- Marek Viedensky is on a modest 4 game point streak. During that time, the 20 year old San Jose Sharks prospect, has picked up 3 goals and 3 assists.

- The Blades enter tonight’s game with 2^nd best road winning percentage in the league at 63.0%. The Blades 14-8-0-1 record away from the CUC is good for 29 points in the standings which is tied for the league lead with Kootenay.

Blades 5 Wheat Kings 4 SO

The Blades saw their 10-game home winning streak nearly slip away from them tonight. The Blades went into the season series against Brandon at an even 1-1 and came out with the 2-1 lead.

The Blades got off to a strong start and took a 3-1 lead in the first frame, starting with 17-year-old Darren Dietz who scored the opening goal. David Toews, a point-leader for the Wheat Kings against the Blades, scored a goal to tie the period, 1-1. The next three goals were for the Blades. Ryan Olsen took two whacks at the puck and made the second one count, for his second goal in two nights. Josh Nicholls, through the scramble in front of the net, made a connection to finish the period off. Ferland and Dziurzynski received majors after they swung fists.

Viedensky scored the only goal of the second period. Curtis Hamilton made his debut back to the Saskatoon Blades after playing for Team Canada in the WJHC with the assist. Stefan Elliott also received an assist on the goal. The Blades left the ice with a 4-1 lead.

Back-to-back goals for the Wheat Kings within 22 seconds are what fired up the 3^rd period, bringing the Wheaties within one point. Brenden Walker connected for the third straight goal from Brandon and a tied score of 4-4. The Blades made the decision to switch up goaltenders and Adam Morrison took over for Steven Stanford.

Adam Morrison made four saves in overtime, but with neither team getting a goal, the game was forced into a shootout.

First shooter for the Blades, Jake Trask, deked and slipped the puck behind the goaltender. None of the Wheat Kings made it past netminder Adam Morrison and the Blades won in the shootout 5-4.

CIS Top 10: men's hockey

1. UNB (13-4-0) / 171 pts (12) / (2)
2. Alberta (12-2-2) / 163 (4) / (1)
3. McGill (18-0-2) / 138 (2) / (3)
4. Saint Mary’s (12-4-1) / 125 / (5)
5. Western Ontario (14-1-3) / 109 / (4)
6. UPEI (10-5-2) / 68 / (6)
7. Saskatchewan (10-6-0) / 67 / (8)
8. Lakehead (13-4-1) / 52 / (7)
9. Manitoba (7-3-4) / 38 / (9)
10. UQTR (13-5-0) / 24 / (10)

Dropped from the top 10: No teams
Other teams receiving votes: StFX (14), Calgary (10), Wilfrid Laurier (6), Nipissing (3), Carleton (1), Guelph (1).

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In other top 10 rankings the Huskie women's basketball team are ranked #1 in the nation while the men's team is ranked #3. Clearly Saskatoon is the hot bed for CIS basketball this year.

Blades game day: Brandon

Saskatoon Blades vs. Brandon Wheat Kings

Tonight’s game is the third of eight regular season meetings this season between the Saskatoon Blades (31-9-0-1) and the Brandon Wheat Kings (14-23-1-5). The Blades and Wheat Kings have split the season series thus far with both home teams picking up wins in their respective buildings. The Wheaties blasted the Blades by a score of 7-0 back on October 1^st in Brandon in the first meeting between these two clubs. The Blades extracted some revenge two nights later when they topped Brandon by a score of 4-3 in Saskatoon.

Line-mates Curtis Hamilton, Marek Viedensky, and Josh Nicholls lead the Blades scoring vs. the Wheat Kings having picked up 2 points each (1G 1A). For the Wheat Kings, David Toews and Wheaton King have each collected 4 points vs. the Blades this season.

Blades Last Game

A solid 60-minute effort propelled the Saskatoon Blades to a 5-1 victory Friday night over the Raiders in Prince Albert. Defenseman Stefan Elliott paced the Bridge City Bunch offence with a goal and an assist while "lesser lights" provided the balance of the scoring. Alex Elliott and Darren Dietz...each with their second goals of the season...Ryan Olsen with his fourth and Jake Trask with his 10^th sniped for the 31-9-1 Blades who out-shot P.A. 50-26. Former Raider Steven Stanford lost his shutout with 2:42 remaining in the third period when Mark McNeill gave 2,584 fans at Art Hauser Centre something to cheer about. The victory was Saskatoon's sixth in seven head-to-head meetings with Prince Albert this season.

Blades Banter

- The Saskatoon Blades made the biggest trade in franchise history yesterday when they acquiredBrayden Schenn from the Brandon Wheat Kings. Schenn along with a 3^rd round bantam draft pick in 2012 come to Saskatoon in a deal which saw the Blades send a total of 4 draft picks as well as two prospects (Tim McGauley and Ayrton Nikkel) to Brandon. Schenn joins the Blades fresh off an amazing World Junior Hockey Tournament which saw him tie the Canadian record for points at a tournament with 18. The 2009 1^st round pick of the L.A. Kings will not be in the Blades line-up tonight as he will be resting a shoulder injury he sustained at the WJHC.

- Yesterday the WHL announced that Stefan Elliott was named the WHL Player of the Week for the week ending January 9^th. Elliott received the honours after picking up 6 points, scoring two goals and four assists to go with a +7 rating, in two games over the past week, helping the Blades to a 2-0-0-0 record in that span. Stefan Elliott is the 2^nd Blade to receive the Player of the Week this season as Darian Dziurzynski also received the honour back in October.

- The Blades made one last move yesterday on WHL trade deadline day by re-acquiring defenseman Tanner Sohn from the Vancouver Giants. Sohn, who played 4 games between 2007-09, was acquired in exchange for a 10^th round draft pick in 2013. Sohn has played in 64 career WHL games picking up 10 assists and 88 PIM’s.

By The Numbers

- Adam Morrison is riding a 3 game winning streak coming into tonight’s game. During that stretch Morrison has surrendered just two goals and has posted a 97.6% save percentage.

- Stefan Elliott, who leads the WHL in scoring by a defenseman with 44 points, has picked up points in 14 of his last 15 games played. Elliott also leads the league in goals scored by a d-man (18), in +/- (+33), and in GWG (9).

- In addition to Elliott’s league leading +33, the Blades have 4 other players ranked in the top 6 in the leagues +/- ratings. Curtis Hamilton and Marek Viedensky are tied for 2^nd with +27 marks, and Josh Nicholls & Duncan Siemens are tied for 5^th with +26 ratings

- The Saskatoon Blades are sporting the leagues 3^rd most potent offense, having scored 156 goals in 41 games this season. Led by Darian Dziurzynski and Josh Nicholls with 19 goals apiece, the Blades line-up boasts 5 players who have scored 15 or more goals this season.

Schenn a Blade!

Saskatoon, SK – Head Coach and General Manager, Lorne Molleken announced today that The Saskatoon Blades Hockey Club have made a trade with the Brandon Wheat Kings to acquire centre, Brayden Schenn and a 2012 3^rd Round Draft Pick. In exchange the Blades have given up four draft picks: 1^st Round in 2011, 2^nd Round in 2011, 1^st Round in 2012 and 1^st Round in 2012 Import Draft. The Blades also included in the trade two prospects: Ayrton Nikkel (Pursuit of Excellence M-AAA) and Tim McGauley (Regina M-AAA).

19-year-old Brayden Schenn is a first round draft pick for the Los Angeles Kings, where he spent the first two months of the hockey season. With the NHL’s Kings, Schenn picked up two assists. He also spent time on a two week conditioning assignment in the AHL, for the Manchester Monarchs, where he collected 3 goals, 7 points and 4 PIM in 7 games.

Brayden Schenn was sent back to his club team, the Brandon Wheat Kings, on December 2, 2010. He played two games with the Wheat Kings, in which he collected 1 goal and 3 assists. Schenn recently competed, for his second year in a row, at the IIHF World Junior Championship on Team Canada and was titled Top Forward and MVP of the 2011 tournament. Assistant Captain, Shenn, collected 8 goals, 10 assists and a +10 rating in 7 games of the 2011 IIHF World Junior Championships and his 18th tournament point has tied Dale McCourt for the Canadian record for most points by a Canadian in the tournament.

“The Saskatoon Blades are extremely pleased to be able to acquire a player of Brayden Schenn’s calibre. It has been a long process. When you are making a deal of this magnitude there is a lot of time and deliberation put into it. We feel that Brayden Schenn is a player that can help us achieve our goal which is to become WHL League Champions and ultimately Memorial Cup Champions.” Head Coach and GM Lorne Molleken continued, “Over the last number of years we’ve been building toward this, ultimately we want to win a championship and we feel we have the team for it this year. Acquiring a Saskatoon-native who is the Top Forward and MVP of the World Juniors, gives us a chance to achieve our goal. What we have given up is a piece of our future, but we want to accomplish something special here in the present. We have an opportunity to bring a young man back home to finish his WHL career, which we are extremely excited about as an organization.”

Blades call press conference

The Saskatoon Blades have called a 2pm press conference. Let the speculation begin about what they're giving up.

You can listen to the press conference live. It will be broadcast by CJWW and 92.9 The Bull.

Monday morning water cooler

Good morning and welcome back for the start of the second week in 2011. Today we've got a some hockey notes as well as some other odds and ends that should dominate the sports talk around the water cooler this morning.

It's been a crazy start to 2011 but for the teams that we cover here on the MMWC it's been mostly good.

The Saskatoon Blades continue to roll in the new year and appear to be close to grabbing the biggest name on the market ahead of the WHL's trade deadline today. More on that below.

The Blades are 3-1-0 through 4 games in 2011 and 7-1-0 dating back to December 17th. They'll play host to the Brandon Wheat Kings on Tuesday night.

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The U of S Huskies are off to a great start in the new year as well. The men's hockey team kicked off the new year with a weekend sweep of a home and home series with the University of Regina Cougars. New additions Matt Delahey and Derek Hulak were in the line-up and contributing. Both scored in Saturday's 6-2 win at Rutehrford and for Hulak, his goal and 2 assists earned him the game's second star. He was outshone only by Kyle Bortis who netted a pair on Saturday which followed a two goal effort in a 3-1 win over the same Cougar team a night earlier.

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The women's hockey team also earned a sweep in a home and home with the Cougars and the men's and women's basketball teams earned sweeps in Brandon.

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Over the past week one hot streak ended while another continues in junior hockey in this fine country.

For the SJHL's Kindersley Klippers, their winning streak came to a halt at 8 games thanks to the Melville Millionaires. The Mills knocked off the Jr. K's 5-4 on Saturday night.

In Whitecourt goaltender Jordan Panasiuk has 8 straight shutouts for the NWJHL's Whitecourt Wolverines (Jr. B). Has not been scored on in 494 minutes and 12 seconds. That's an incredible streak in any league.

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The headlines will be mostly dominated today by junior hockey teams in the province as the trade deadline approaches.

Let's start with the biggest news from the past 24 hours and it comes out of Saskatoon where the Blades appear to be on the verge of acquiring the biggest name on the junior hockey market ahead of the 4pm CST trade deadline.

Reports out of Brandon say that the Wheat Kings are finalizing a deal that would send Brayden Schenn back to his hometown of Saskatoon and to the Blades organization.

At this point I do not know what the Blades would give up in such a deal but judging by a move made prior it could be a lot.

Earlier Sunday the Swift Current Broncos dealt forward Cody Eakin for five players and three draft picks. The price was high and the Broncos sold and are cashing in nicely. The future looks bright in Speedy Creek.

That makes a person wonder what the Wheat Kings could possibly get for Schenn if this deal is for real. There is one thing to keep in mind when thinking of what the Blades would give up for the talented hometown boy. That is that the Blades have made it known that they are interested in hosting the 2013 Memorial Cup and in order to be picked the selection committee has to be confident that the host team (who also earns an automatic berth in the tournament) can ice a competitive team. If the Blades sell the farm and a series of draft picks it would really hurt their chances of hosting that Memorial Cup.

On the flip side, this team is very dangerous right now and picking up Schenn would make them a serious threat to represent the WHL at this year's national championship.

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In the SJHL the Melfort Mustangs made the first splash early in the new year acquiring Brayden Metz from the Melville Millionaires who have become clear sellers as the deadline approaches.

The next big splash came courtesy the Yorkton Terriers who acquired 20 year old forwards Justin Buzzeo and Jeremy Boyer for future considerations.

The Broncos then sent forward Riley Gillies to Dauphin in the MJHL The Kindersley Klippers got on board the Broncos sell off and picked up Spencer Braaten for futures which, at the time of this post, appears to be the latest OFFICIAL move.

Word out of Melfort is that the Mustangs have acquired Cody Hanson from the Melville Millionaires although nothing has been officially confirmed at this moment.

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I don't expect to be breaking any trades today but I will be passing along everything I hear so for the latest be sure to follow me on Twitter at Twitter.com/DarrenDupont.

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Former Huskie receiver and current Winnipeg Blue Bomber Scott McHenry re-tweeted the following quote yesterday and I like it so I'm going to pass it along.

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit."- Aristotle.

Words to live by.

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I really thought that Michael Vick was going to lead the Philladelphia Eagles to the Super Bowl this year but sadly that's not the case. Vick and the Eagles came up short in Sunday's playoff game against the Green Bay Packers.

As it was put by Rider receiver Jason Clermont, with his salary restrictions, Vick is basically volunteering in the NFL. The ring is the only thing right now. I really thought he was going to get it done. Watch for him. He'll get his ring.

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With Vick and the Eagles out I am officially on the Jets bandwagon. I have been on their bandwagon ever since my Titans were officially eliminated from playoff contention. In my dream the Jets and Eagles would meet in the Super Bowl and I wouldn't care who won.

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Here's a tweet from Alberta Golden Bears color commentator Evan Daum.

@evandaum: I'll make my prediction official and tweet it: @HuskieAthletics will be at the University Cup in Fredericton come March.

I hope your right. And with two teams from Canada West going to Fredericton it could very well be the Huskies making the trip.

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It was GX94's Craig Stein who had everyone on pins and needles this past week waiting to hear the news out of Yorkton. He had monstrous news that he couldn't quite share until it became official but when it did it sent shock waves throughout the league.

I've now been on both sides when it comes to announcing or talking about trades that take place in junior hockey. I completely understand the trust and respect that there is between a play-by-play voice and the team that he covers. No play-by-play voice is going to go behind his team's back to break a trade or break that trust by leaking information that was said to them in confidence but with social media taking off like it has people are breaking trades or discussing possibilities like never before. It's really an exciting time for junior hockey in Canada.

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According to Bob Weeks at Score Golf, Weyburn's Graham DeLaet's surgery went well. His agent said that he expects to make a full recovery on schedule. That would mean teeing it up in March.

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Want to check out some behind the scenes footage from TSN and Brayden Schenn? Hit up this link: http://yfrog.com/ngiagz

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That's it for right now. There will be lots more developing today so stay tuned and for the latest follow along on Twitter at Twitter.com/DarrenDupont.

Schenn to Saskatoon?

ctvwinnipeg.ca

With the WHL trade deadline looming on Monday, reports surfaced Sunday evening that Brayden Schenn was traded from the Brandon Wheat Kings to the Saskatoon Blades. However, according to the Blades, no announcement will be made tonight and those close to the team say they believe the deal is not done.

Schenn, a Saskatoon native, has been home recovering from a separated shoulder that he suffered at the World Junior Championship, where he was the tournament MVP with 18 points.

It has been an adventurous season for Schenn, starting in the NHL with the LA Kings (fifth pick overall in the 2009 draft). He appeared in nine games with the Kings before spending heading to the Manchester Monarchs of the American Hockey League for conditioning.

On Dec. 3, the Kings returned Schenn to the Wheat Kings.

Then, Schenn went on to represent Canada at the World Junior Championships for the second time. He was the only returning forward and he led the Canadian offense to a silver-medal finish.

The Saskatoon Blades are currently the top team in the WHL (31-9-0-1) and a 2011 memorial Cup contender.

In other trading news, WHL.ca is reporting that the Swift Current Broncos announced Sunday that forward Cody Eakin, a Winnipeg native, has been traded to the Kootenay Ice. In return, the Broncos are getting forward Christian Magnus, listed players Ryan Bloom, Jarett Zentner, Colby Cave and Steven Myland along with a 1st and 2nd round pick in 2011 and a 3rd round pick in 2012.

Huskies 6 Cougars 2

Four University of Saskatchewan Huskie goals in the first 10 minutes of the opening period proved to be the difference in a 6-2 victory over the visiting University of Regina Cougars Saturday night in Saskatoon's Rutherford Rink.

Jason Wagar, Chris Durand, Derek Hulak and Kyle Bortis all notched goals for the Huskies before the 10:56 mark of the first period. With the win the Huskies sweep the weekend home-and-home series with the Cougars. A night earlier in Regina, the Huskies won 3-1.

The Huskies now move into sole possession of second place with a 10-6 record, two points ahead of the Universities of Manitoba and Calgary, who both didn't play Saturday night. Regina drops to 6-12 after the loss.

Fifth-year Wagar opened the scoring at 3:35, and just over two minutes later Durand netted the Huskies second goal at 5:54. Huskie newcomer Derek Hulak potted his first CIS goal at 8:24 on the power play when he sent the puck top shelf over Cougar netminder Adam Ward's stick. Kyle Bortis made the game 4-0 at 10:56.

Cougar Carter Selinger got the Cougars on the board with just 17 seconds left in the first to make the game 4-1 when he beat David Reekie five-hole.

Saskatchewan added two power play goals in the second period. Bortis netted his second of the game at 12:48, followed by Matthew Delahey's first CIS goal at 19:57.

Neil Kodman scored Regina's second goal just eight seconds into the third period.

Ward stopped 36 shots for the Cougars, while Reekie made 24 saves for the Huskies at the other end of the ice. Regina was 0-2 with the man advantage, while the Huskies were 3 for 9 on the power play.

The Huskies remain at home to host the University of Manitoba Bisons next weekend, while the Cougars get a week of rest with a bye.
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld

Huskies game night: vs Regina

The University of Saskatchewan Huskies play the back end of a home and home with the University of Regina Cougars tonight at Rutherford Rink.

Not much of an update prior to puck drop tonight but I'll give you all the details just before 7 if you tune into the webcast online. Head to Huskies.usask.ca to find the webcast. I'll be joined by Bruce Bradshaw in the booth for tonight's game.

I'll talk to you then!