Vs
Les' Loft - View Entry
[ Recent Entries ] [ Archive View ]
Blades-Regina Review
Posted by Les Lazaruk on Thursday, December 13, 2007 at 01:48:00 PM.
THE RESULT
Saskatoon 3, Regina 2 (OT)
THE SIMPLE SHAKEDOWN
The Blades fell behind 2-0 before the game was five minutes old, but they didn't fold their tents and came back to record the victory with a solid effort in the final 55 minutes and change. With Justin McCrae, Chris Durand and Colton Gillies out, the Blades needed strong efforts from all of their forwards...which they got!
HOW THEY SIT
The Blades improve to 12-19-1-0 on the season...10-4-0-0 at home. They are in 11th place in the Eastern Conference...two points ahead of Red Deer, two back of Prince Albert...but 15 points back of Moose Jaw for the eighth and final playoff spot.
THE SPEC IAL TEAMS
The Blades held the edge here, going 1-for-5 with the man advantage and holding the Pats, owners of the league's best power play percentage coming into the game, without a goal in three chances. Regina only had two shots on goal in those opportunities.
THE CALL UP
LW Darian Dziurzynski made his WHL debut and didn't look out of place. He showed he could keep up with the pace of play, helped create offensive chances and handed out two dandy body checks...one on Garrett Mitchell and the other was a pretty fair defensive play/hit in front of the Blades' net on Rudolf Cerveny. The 1991-born Lloydminster product is 10th in scoring in the Alberta Triple-A Midget League with 28 points in 20 games with the Lloydminster Bobcats and was listed by the Blades recently. He was MVP of the recent IceMania tournament in Prince Albert.
THE BROADCASTERS' THREE STARS
1. D Teigan Zahn, Saskatoon. Picked a great time to score his first WHL goal in his 69th game, 22 seconds into overtime.
2. RW Troy Ofukany, Regina. Best player on the ice for the Pats...in a two-way effort.
3. RW Walker Wintoneak, Saskatoon. Scored a confident goal with that heavy wrist shot to tie the score.
THE UNSUNG HERO
Mike Reich. He started the comeback with his first goal and point as a Blade and was strong in the middle against Tim Kraus and Kirt Hill of the Pats.
THE NEXT ACTION
The Blades visit Brandon Friday, host Kelowna Saturday and then are off until December 27 when they travel to Prince Albert.
3 Comment(s) | Leave a Comment
Comments
| What a finish!!! |
|---|
| from Blue Blood on Friday, December 14, 2007 at 01:21:28 PM |
| The Blades simply out-matched the Regina Pats. It's maybe the most solid win of the season, given the circumstances.
And it's all owed to everyone chipping in! |
| Reich is my hero |
|---|
| from Crispy on Friday, December 14, 2007 at 01:23:19 PM |
| So this is what its like when everyone steps up. Even down 2-0, they played like a team that really rallied behind the aggressive styling of Mike Reich. |
| Mike Reich |
|---|
| from Thaine on Monday, December 17, 2007 at 08:28:46 AM |
| Wow, what an impact player! Mike Reich is a player the Blades have needed all season, A two way player that forces neutral zone turnovers , making the opposing team know they must have their heads up between the blue lines or they are going to be looking for their crayons, and fast. The last three games Mike has also continued to improve along with Patterson, it is obvious with the added ice time that is needed for these players to improve and display their talents is being accomplished by . I hope that this is taken into account, and after xmas when we are back to a healthy roster, that we are rotating at the least three full lines a game . I just feel and it seems at times that the players that are playing well for the Blades at the current time never seem to get the ice they deserve. I am happy to see the effort the boys have been displaying the last five games, and if we could get a couple of bounces on the road , our record would be turned around fast. To all the fans I sit around game after game please remember, there is half a season of hockey left and we are only eight games out of a playoff spot. Lets go boys.TG |