2016-17 Manitoba Bisons/CIS Thread

[RED ARMY EAST]

Alberta

Golden Bears dressed all 3 new recruits (Sanford,Fram,Fiddler)in the home split with lowly T-Birds
All 3 had an impact on the scoresheet in game 1, but not in the loss Saturday night.
There are now 26 skaters on their roster, they can only dress 18 in a game.
That's a lot of passengers.
Goaltending still seems to be a question mark, between the veteran Siemans and Burke who took the loss on Saturday.

 

[Hollywood3]

Sunday Morning Links


Links:
Manitoba-Regina: [MyToba.ca Story]
Calgary-Leth: [UofC Game Story]
Alberta-UBC: [UBC Game Story]


MyToba had a photo of the practice jersey. Looks good! A dark number would show up well, especially on the video streams.

And why does Regina have yellow numbers on a white jersey?

 

[Hollywood3]

Preview: Jan 13-14: Bisons at UBC

BIG ROADTRIP COULD SOLIDIFY PLAYOFF BERTH

MANITOBA BISONS (8-9-1, 15-11-1, OHT35 #18)
U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS (6-10-2, 11-11-2, OHT35 #20)

Friday, January 13th, 7:00 PST/9:00 CST @ DMTSC Vancouver
Saturday, January 14th, 2:00 PST/4:00 CST @ DMTSC Vancouver

Live Links:
• [Live Stats Friday] ∞ [Live Stats Saturday]
• [Video: CanadaWest.tv] : [101.9 CITR (Friday)]

Manitoba Links:
• [UM Highlight Video]
• [UM Preview] ∞ [UM Recap]
• [Hunter AoW] ∞ [Hnidy at Fundraiser]
• [LS Stats] ∞ [LS Schedule/Results]
• [Twitter] ∞ [Facebook]

U.B.C. Links:
• [UBC Preview] : [Butenschon Story]
• [LS Stats] ∞ [LS Schedule/Results]
• [Twitter] ∞ [Facebook]

Prior Games:
Oct 28: UBC 2 UM 3: [LeagueStat] ∞ [CW] ∞ [UofM]
Oct 29: UBC 3 UM 2: [LeagueStat] ∞ [CW] ∞ [UofM]

Other Links:
• [USports Hockey Site] ∞ [Schedule/Links]
• [USports Standings] ∞ [USports Top 10]
• [CW Site] ∞ [Schedule/Links]

This marks the first week with USports instead of CIS urls. What were they thinking when they implemented a new name mid-season?

The Bisons head out to British California 2 points out of 5th and 3 points ahead of 7th, nestled quite nicely into the 6th and final playoff berth. After this weekend there are only 4 weeks of regular season play. So a series win here would almost guarantee the Bisons a playoff berth.

Easier said than done. UBC is coming off a 3-point weekend against the Evil Monkeys, a team they have had much success this year. Over the past 5 years the Herd holds a 10-8 lead head-to-head.

The top 6 for the Bison forwards have now all hit the 10-point mark, although only captain Jordan Depape has cracked the Top Twenty scorers. UBC also has one player in the Top Twenty, Anthony Bardaro (11-7-18 in 18 GP). Overall, the Bisons have more scoring depth. The Bisons have out-scored them 55-43 and have given up fewer, 59-66. By the stats, UBC is a deserving 7th.

Both games can be seen on canadawest.tv.

ELSEWHERE:

CALGARY DINOSAURS (12-5-1, 15-7-2, OHT35 #3)
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES (13-3-2, 14-5-3, OHT35 #2)

Links:
• [UofS Preview] : [[UofS pdf]
• [UofC Site]

This is a battle for first. Bedrock U has exceeded expectations and are in a wobbly 2nd place, 3 points out of 1st. The Dinos have made good use of their goals. They are only a +8, outscoring their opponents 54-46. By comparison, the Mutts are 61-38, or +23. The Dinos could be anywhere from 1st to 4th on Sunday morning.

REGINA COUGARS (3-12-1, 3-18-1, OHT35 #32)
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS (11-6-1, 19-8-3, OHT35 #5)

Links:
• [UofA Preview]
• [UofR Preview]

The Kittens may not be as bad as their record (how could they be?), but it is hard to imagine the Evil Monkeys getting anything less than 4 points after their embarrassment last weekend. If they lose even once I would expect a very nervous team down the home stretch.

LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS (8-7-3, 14-7-3, OHT35 #16)
MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS (11-6-1, 13-9-1, OHT35 #4)

Links:
• [MRU Preview] : [Crowchild Video]
• [UofL Preview]

MRU can look really string when they have their full roster. They lead the CW with 69 goals. Can the Horns rally? They could have made the CW a 5-team race last weekend, but were swept aside by Bedrock U. This is a home-and-home series.

OUT EAST:

OUA

Jan 12 Brock 2 Ryerson 6
Jan 12 Carleton 5 U.O.I.T. 3
Jan 12 Toronto 3 Guelph 6

Jan 13 Concordia at Waterloo
Jan 13 Lakehead at Ottawa
Jan 13 Nipissing at R.M.C.
Jan 13 Queen's at McGill
Jan 13 Ryerson at Windsor
Jan 13 U.Q.T.R. at Laurier

Jan 14 Brock at Western Ontario
Jan 14 Concordia at Laurier
Jan 14 Lakehead at Ottawa
Jan 14 Laurentian at Carleton
Jan 14 R.M.C. at McGill
Jan 14 U.Q.T.R. at Waterloo
Jan 14 York at Windsor

Jan 15 Guelph at Toronto
Jan 15 Laurentian at Ottawa
Jan 15 U.O.I.T. at Nipissing

AUS

Jan 11 St. F.X. 4 Dalhousie 1
Jan 11 Saint Mary's 1 U.P.E.I. 3

Jan 13 Dalhousie at Moncton
Jan 13 New Brunswick at Saint Mary's
Jan 13 U.P.E.I. at Acadia

Jan 14 Moncton at St. F.X.
Jan 14 New Brunswick at Acadia
Jan 14 U.P.E.I. at Saint Mary's

 

[Hollywood3]

Jan 13: Powerplay Goals Sink Bisons

MANITOBA BISONS 3
U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS 4

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary] : [Report] : [Text]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW] : [UofM]
Stories: [UBC*] : [rp @CW*] : [rp @UofM*]

The Bisons got off to a fast start, building a 2-0 lead early in the 2nd period on goals by Nick Zajak and Jodan Depape. Then 6 straight penalties in a 12 minute stretch turned the game around. UBC had a 4-2 lead by the end of the 2nd period. Shaq Merasty scored with 2 minutes left to close the Bisons to within a goal, which is as close as they got. Matt Hewitt made 19 saves for the win. Byron Spriggs had 26 saves in the loss.

Here is the quick summary:
1st
11:00 Man Zajac (5) A: Augert (6), Laurencelle (12)
2nd
3:59 Man DePape (9) A: Stovin (11), Merasty (9) (PP)
7:21 UBC Clayton (6) A: Antilla (5), Buonassisi (8)
8:58 UBC Smith (3) A: Vetterl (10), Bardaro (8) (PP)
11:43 UBC Hayer (4) A: Smith (9), ] Antilla (6) (PP)
17:32 UBC Antilla (5) A: Bardaro (9) Hayer (8) (PP)
3rd
18:01 Man Merasty (6) A: Stovin (12), Henry (4)

The rematch goes Saturday at 4:00 p.m. CST and is avaialble on-line at CanadaWest.tv.

OUT-OF-TOWN SCOREBOARD

CALGARY DINOSAURS 0
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 4

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofS] : [rp @CW] : [UofC]

Since losing to the Bisons, the Mutts have won 5 straight. All against the 2nd place team chasing them in the standings. This one was close after two, 1-0 with shots 23-20. Then the Mutts exploded in the 3rd outshooting Bedrock U 18-10 and racking up 3 goals. Jordon Cooke got the win and Steven Stanford got the loss.

LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS 2
MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS 6

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [MRU] : [rp @CW] : [UofL]

The Hørny Ones looked to be on the verge of becoming a contender as we broke for Christmas. Now the divide has opened up. Leading 3-1 after the 1st period, the Bluegars dramatically took control in the 2nd and 3rd. The shots were 26-5 in that time span. Connor Rankin scored is 12th and 13th and Cam Maclise scored his 9th and 10th for the winners. Colin Cooper got the win and Garret Highson took the loss.

REGINA COUGARS 2
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 6

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofA] : [rp @CW] : [UofR]

After last weekend you just knew the Evil Monkeys were going to bury the Banjocats in this match-up. And the stats show a very one-sided game. The shots were 45-14. Jerry Crooks scored twice for the Monkeys. Luke Siemens got the win but played just two periods, stopping 9 of 10. 3rd stringer Kenny Cameron played the 3rd and saw just 4 shots. Andy Desautels was once again over-worked in the Regina goal.

OUT EAST

AUS

Jan 13 Dalhousie 3 Moncton 5
Jan 13 New Brunswick 3 Saint Mary's 4 (ot)
Jan 13 U.P.E.I. 1 Acadia 8

OUA

Jan 13 Concordia 3 Waterloo 4 (ot)
Jan 13 Lakehead 4 Ottawa 8
Jan 13 Nipissing 2 R.M.C. 4
Jan 13 Queen's 2 McGill 1
Jan 13 Ryerson 7 Windsor 4
Jan 13 U.Q.T.R. 2 Laurier 3 (so)

[US/CIS Schedule/Results]
[US/CIS Standings]

All CW games available at CanadaWest.tv.

* Indicates link not available at the time of posting.

 

[Hollywood3]

Jan 14: Herd Gains a Split

MANITOBA BISONS 4
U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS 2

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary] : [Report] : [Text]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW] : [UofM]
Friday: [UBC] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofM]
Stories: [UBC] : [rp @CW*] : [rp @UofM*]

The Bisons came out firing, as on Friday, but never took 6 minors in a 12 minute span of the 2nd period. The result was that they built a safe lead while dominating all stats. In each of the first two periods they outshot the T'irds 18-11.The stellar goaltending of Derek Dun kept the T'irds from being run out the rink. In the end he stopped 39 of 43. Meanwhile, Byron Spriggs started again and stopped 29 of 31 for the win. Here's who scored:

1st
1:14 Man Stovin (3) A: DePape (8), Merasty (10) (PP)
2:53 Man Lisoway (5) A: S Bowles (4), Johnston (4)
8:29 Man Augert (9) A: Bresciani (7), L Christensen (3) (PP)
2nd
10:58 UBC Vetterl (4) A: Hayer (9), Carvalho (4)
3rd
15:07 Man Merasty (7) A: Lisoway (6), Johnston (5)
17:50 UBC Smith (4) A: Bardaro (10), Hayer (10) (PP)

Scratches for the Bisons were:
9 Hunter (5 minute major last week) - 10 Dudar
14 Nault - 16 Paradis - 19 FRiesen
23 Schreyer - 29 Wasylak - 34 Sydora

This split on the weekend pulls the Bisons level with Lethbridge in 5th place, both 3 points ahead of UBC in the race for 6th. And next week the Bisons are in Lethbridge for two big games. Each team has just 8 regular season games left, four each on the road and at home in most cases.

OUT-OF-TOWN SCOREBOARD

CALGARY DINOSAURS 2
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 8

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofS] : [rp @CW] : [UofC*]

The Dinos can't get back to the Town of Bedrock fast enough after this thrashing. The Banjomutts have now rattled off 6 straight convincing wins over the rest of the top four teams in the CW. Their last loss was 5-2 to the Bisons on Nov 26th, after beating the Herd 2-1 in OT on Nov 25th. The Mutts had period leads of 3-0 and 7-0, and a shots advantage of 28-12. The Dinos saved some face in the 3rd to at least win the period. Jesse Forsberg (a defenceman) had a hat-trick (and has 10 on the season) and Jordon Cooke stopped 23 of 25 to record another win. Matthew Greenfield started and played just one period, giving up 3 goals on 14 shots and getting a loss. Coleman Vollrath came on to stop 15 of 20.

Although Bedrock U remains a respectable 4th, and are 12-7-1, they are now a -2 being outscored 58-56.

MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS 5
LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS 3

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofL] : [rp @CW*] : [rp @ MRU*]

Not a lot of people mention the Bluegars when discuss U-Hockey. They should. These guys have loads of offensive talent, and used that to blast 48 shots at the Hørny Ones' net. Veteran Damien Ketlo stopped 43 of 47 before an empty-netter put it away. Colin Cooper stopped 27 of 30 to claim the win. MRU is now tied with Alberta for 2nd place and Lethbridge is tied with Manitoba for 5th.

REGINA COUGARS 2
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 5

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofA] : [rp @CW] : [UofR]

This was not close but all things considered was about as much as one would expect from the Banjocats. It was just 3-2 heading into the 3rd period. Jamie Crooks led the Evil Monkeys with his 12th and 13th goals of the season. Brendan Burke stopped 25 of 27 to post the win and Dawson MacAuley stopped 35 of 39 in taking the loss.

STANDINGS

OUT EAST

AUS

Jan 14 Moncton 6 St. F.X. 5 (ot)
Jan 14 New Brunswick 6 Acadia 1
Jan 14 U.P.E.I. 2 Saint Mary's 4 (ot)

OUA

Jan 14 Brock 5 Western Ontario 3
Jan 14 Concordia 2 Laurier 0
Jan 14 Lakehead 1 Ottawa 3
Jan 14 Laurentian 2 Carleton 3 (ot)
Jan 14 R.M.C. 1 McGill 2
Jan 14 U.Q.T.R. 4 Waterloo 0
Jan 14 York 0 Windsor 1

UP NEXT

Jan 15 Guelph at Toronto
Jan 15 Laurentian at Ottawa
Jan 15 U.O.I.T. at Nipissing

Jan 18 Moncton at Dalhousie
Jan 18 U.Q.T.R. at Ottawa

Jan 19 Laurier at Guelph
Jan 19 Waterloo at Ryerson

Jan 20 Alberta at Calgary
Jan 20 Manitoba at Lethbridge
Jan 20 Mount Royal at Regina
Jan 20 Saskatchewan at U.B.C.
Jan 20 Acadia at U.P.E.I.
Jan 20 Dalhousie at St. F.X.
Jan 20 Saint Mary's at New Brunswick
Jan 20 Laurentian at Lakehead
Jan 20 McGill at Concordia (Corey Cup Game)
Jan 20 Nipissing at Carleton
Jan 20 Queen's at York
Jan 20 U.O.I.T. at Brock
Jan 20 Western Ontario at Laurier
Jan 20 Windsor at Toronto

[US/CIS Schedule/Results]
[US/CIS Standings]

All CW games available at CanadaWest.tv.

* Indicates link not available at the time of posting.

 

[Hollywood3]

Sunday Morning Links

Quite a few links were not available on Saturday night, so here they are now, except for MRU.

MANITOBA v U.B.C.
Links:
Stories: [UBC] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofM]
Ubyssey: [Winter Classic Debate] : [Friday Game Story]

There were over 5,000 fans at UBC's "Winter Classic" on Friday night. Quite a successful annual event they have going on there. There is one photo from each night.

CALGARY v SASKATCHEWAN
Links:
Stories: [UofC]

MOUNT ROYAL v LETHBRIDGE
Links:
Stories: [UofL rp @CW] : [MRU Team Site]

 

[Hollywood3]

Preview: Jan 20-21: Bisons at Lethbridge

HOME STRETCH STARTS ON THE ROAD

MANITOBA BISONS (9-10-1, 16-12-1, OHT35 #16)
LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS (8-9-3, 14-9-3, OHT35 #17)

Friday, January 20th, 7:00 MST/8:00 CST @ Nicholas Sheran Arena Lethbridge
Saturday, January 21st, 1:00 MST/2:00 CST @ Nicholas Sheran Arena Lethbridge

Live Links:
• [Live Stats Friday] ∞ [Live Stats Saturday]
• [Video: CanadaWest.tv]

Manitoba Links:
• [UM Preview] ∞ [UM Recap]
• [LS Stats] ∞ [LS Schedule/Results]
• [Twitter] ∞ [Facebook]

Lethbridge Links:
• [UofL Preview]
• [LS Stats] ∞ [LS Schedule/Results]
• [Twitter] ∞ [Facebook]

Prior Games:
Nov 11: UL 4 UM 2: [LeagueStat] ∞ [CW] ∞ [UofM]
Nov 12: UL 4 UM 6: [LeagueStat] ∞ [CW] ∞ [UofM]

Other Links:
• [USports Hockey Site] ∞ [Schedule/Links]
• [USports Standings] ∞ [USports Top 10] ∞ [Monday Roundups]
• [CW Site] ∞ [Schedule/Links]

The teams are tied for 5th and have little realistic chance of moving into the top 4, which brings with it the right to host a playoff series. Bedrock U would have to collapse and somebody would have to sweep this series to make it even feasible. The big thing is staying ahead of the 7th place T'irds, who are 3 points back. The Hørny Ones still have a series against the T'irds.

Lethbridge was on the verge of joining the top 4 in the race two weeks ago. But 4 straight losses have dashed those hopes. Still a playoff berth would make a nice change. They have not been in the playoffs since 2009, and only twice since 2003. (In 2010-12 they finished 5th and 6th in the seasons when just 4 teams qualified.)

The Bisons have a 12-6 lead over Lethbridge over the past 5 years. However, that includes many seasons in which the 'Horns were very much a weak sister. Earlier this year the teams split, although the Bisons could have swept. In the Friday night game the Bisons outshot them 36-20 but goaltender Garrett Hughson saved the day for the 'Horns. Saturday's rematch looked closer than it was. The game was 6-2 until two late goals helped Lethbridge massage the scoreline.

Lethbridge is led by two top-20 scorers, one of whom is all goals (Justin Valentino, 13-6-19) and one is all assists (Mitch Maxwell, 2-17-19). The Bisons have been developing some reliable secondary scoring. As many as 5 players are in or could finishing in the top 20 (Depape, Merasty, Laurencelle, Augert, Stovin). Rookies Zajac and Lisoway are also in double digits and are not far off.

Both teams have usually split their goalending duties. However, at this time of the season they may be leaning to sticking with a hot hand. For Manitoba that means Byron Spriggs (7-6-1, 2.87 GAA, .912 S%) and for Lethbridge it means rookie Garret Hughson (8-6-1, 3.41 GAA, .900 S%). For Manitoba Spriggs has 14 starts, to 6 for Justin Paulic. For Lethbridge, Hughson has 15 starts, and veteran Damien Ketlo has 5.

Both games can be seen on canadawest.tv.

ELSEWHERE:

SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES (15-3-2, 16-5-3, OHT35 #2)
U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS (7-11-2, 12-12-2, OHT35 #20)

Links:
• [UofS Site]
• [UBC Preview]

The Banjomutts are by far the hottest team in the CW right now. Since losing 5-2 to the Bisons on Nov 26th, the Mutts have won 6 straight games, all against the top 3 opponents. UBC currently is outside the playoffs, 3 points behind each of Lethbridge and Manitoba. Their road to the playoffs is either a head-to-head sweep of Lethbridge or picking up unexpected points, such as in this series. Meanwhile, the Mutts have separated from the pakc and enjoy a 5 point lead atop the standings.

CALGARY DINOSAURS (12-7-1, 15-9-2, OHT35 #6)
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS (13-6-1, 21-8-3, OHT35 #5)

Links:
• [UofC Preview] ∞ [UofC Crowchild (w video)]
• [UofA Preview]

This home-and-home series is the key series of the weekend because it involves 2 of the 3 teams in the race for 2nd place. It is an important race because the 2nd place teams gets a bye to the semi-finals, which they would also host. On paper, the Evil Monkeys should be a dominant team. In their last 4 series they have splits against Lethbridge and UBC, a sweep of Regina, and were swept by Sask. That's pretty average. At the same time, Bedrock U's lofty standing could be a case of smoke and mirrors. They have 56 goals and have given up 58, for a -2. By comparison, Alberta is 75-54 (+21) and MRU is 80-53 (+27).

MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS (13-6-1, 15-9-1, OHT35 #4)
REGINA COUGARS (3-16-1, 3-22-1, OHT35 #31)

Links:
• [MRU Preview]
• [UofR Preview]

My guess is the Bluegars will sweep this and stay high in the race for 2nd. ANything less than 4 points would be a severe disappointment.

OUT EAST:

OUA

Jan 18 U.Q.T.R. 2 Ottawa 4
Jan 19 Laurier 1 Guelph 2
Jan 19 Waterloo 3 Ryerson 8
Jan 20 Laurentian at Lakehead
Jan 20 McGill at Concordia (Corey Cup Game)
Jan 20 Nipissing at Carleton
Jan 20 Queen's at York
Jan 20 U.O.I.T. at Brock
Jan 20 Western Ontario at Laurier
Jan 20 Windsor at Toronto
Jan 21 Laurentian at Lakehead
Jan 21 Nipissing at McGill
Jan 21 Ottawa at Concordia
Jan 21 Queen's at Brock
Jan 21 U.O.I.T. at York
Jan 21 Western Ontario at Toronto
Jan 21 Windsor at Ryerson
Jan 21 Waterloo at Guelph

Exhibition
Jan 21 R.M.C. at U.S. Military Academy (NCAA)

AUS

Jan 18 Moncton 4 Dalhousie 5
Jan 20 Acadia at U.P.E.I.
Jan 20 Dalhousie at St. F.X.
Jan 20 Saint Mary's at New Brunswick
Jan 21 Acadia at New Brunswick
Jan 21 St. F.X. at Moncton
Jan 21 Saint Mary's at U.P.E.I.

 

[Hollywood3]

Jan 20: Herd Handles Hørny Ønes

LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS 0
MANITOBA BISONS 4

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary] : [Report] : [Text]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW] : [UofM]
Stories: [UofL] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofM*]

Byron Spriggs paced the Bisons to victory with a 31 save shutout. The win puts them 2 points ahead of the now 6th-place Hørny Ønes. More importantly, the Herd is 5 points up on UBC, and even within 4 points of Calgary.

Here's who scored:

1st
12:30 Man Zajac (6) A: Hunter (2), Laurencelle (13) (PP)

2nd
No Scoring

3rd
10:10 Man Bilton (1) A: L Christensen (4) (SH)
14:45 Man Wasylak (3) A: Brooks (4), Henry (5)
17:17 Man Zajac (7) A: None (EN, SH)

Scratches:
3 S Christensen - 14 Nault - 17 Callis
16 Paradis - 19 Friesen - 23 Schreyer
25 Merasty - 34 Sydora

Garret Hughson stopped 30 of 34 shots to take the loss. I am not sure if Merasty suffered an injury last week.

Saturday's rematch starts at 1:00 p.m. MST, or 2:00 p.m. CST, and is avaialble on-line at CanadaWest.tv.

OUT-OF-TOWN SCOREBOARD

MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS 4
REGINA COUGARS 3

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofR] : [rp @CW] : [MRU]

Never count out a home team, I guess. In this Cougar fight the shots were relatively low (25-21 in favour of the green ones). Since MRU has the most high-powered offence in the league, that is quite a performance by the last placed team. Ian McNulty scored twice for the losers. Wyatt Hoflin got the win in a rare start and Andy Desautels got the loss.

ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 2
CALGARY DINOSAURS 1

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofC] : [rp @CW] : [UofA]

The Evil Monkeys had the strangest stat in this game. Down 1-0 heading into the 3rd, they scored 2 goals on 3 shots to scoop the victory. In the end, Bedrock U won 30-21 on the shot clock, whilst the Apes won 2-1 on the scoreboard. That never happens to the Monkeys. The rematch in the series goes Saturday in Edmontown. Brendan Burke stopped 29 of 30 to get the win and Steven Stanford stopped 19 of 21 in taking the loss.

SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 2
U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS 1

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UBC] : [rp @CW] : [UofS]

The Banjomutts racked up a 7th consecutive win on the left coast. UBC can be credited with giving them their toughest battle during this stretch. However, it was still a solid win. Of note, the Sask defence held UBC to just 15 shots. Jordon Cooke got the win and Matt Hewitt took the loss (stopping 28 of 30 shots).

OUT EAST

AUS

Jan 20 Acadia 2 U.P.E.I. 1
Jan 20 Dalhousie 3 St. F.X. 1
Jan 20 Saint Mary's 2 New Brunswick 5

OUA

Jan 20 Laurentian 3 Lakehead 4 (ot)
Jan 20 McGill 2 Concordia 1 (ot)
Jan 20 Nipissing 0 Carleton 3
Jan 20 Queen's 4 York 5 (so)
Jan 20 U.O.I.T. 4 Brock 1
Jan 20 Windsor 1 Toronto 3

[US/CIS Schedule/Results]
[US/CIS Standings]

All CW games available at CanadaWest.tv.

* Indicates link not available at the time of posting.

 

[Hollywood3]

Saturday Morning Links

Some stuff was not uploaded until Saturday morning, so here we go with an update.

MANITOBA v LETHBRIDGE
Links:
Stories: [UofL] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofM]
Media: [Lethbridge Herald]

 

[Hollywood3]

Jan 21: Bison Goal Explosion Leads to a Sweep

MANITOBA BISONS 9
LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS 3

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary] : [Report] : [Text]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW] : [UofM]
Stories: [UofL] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofM]

The Hørny Ønes were clearly out of of viagra on Saturday afternoon. The ice was still shiny when the Bisons had a 2-0 lead. By the end of the 1st it was 5-0. A big 2nd period rally helped the 'Horns draw to within 5-3. But that was as good as it got. The stats did not paint a pretty picture. The Herd outshot their hosts 54-37.

The Bisons are now 5-1-0 in the new year, whilst Lethbridge is 0-6-0. When Santa Clause came down their chimneys, the 'Horns were 6 points ahead of the Herd. At the start of the weekend the teams were tied. But now the Bisons hold a 4 point lead with just 6 games left.

Here is the long list of goal-scorers:

1st
0:18 Man Stovin (4) A: DePape (9), Callis (4)
1:42 Man Lisoway (6) A: Hunter (3), B Bowles (8)
12:37 Man Callis (4) A: Hunter (4)
12:57 Man Lisoway (7) A: S Bowles (5), B Bowles (9)
15:03 Man DePape (10) A: Bresciani (8), B Bowles (10) (PP)

2nd
5:46 Leth Campbell (6) A: M Maxwell (18), Valentino (7) (PP)
9:15 Leth Merkley (5) A: Valentino (8), Campbell (10)
15:58 Leth Moser (2) A: Filbrandt (5)
17:16 Man Callis (5) A: Stovin (13), Spriggs (1)

3rd
0:56 Man Laurencelle (5) A: DePape (10), Augert (7) (PP)
15:24 Man Augert (10) A: Lisoway (7), Hunter (5)
19:55 Man S Bowles (4) A: B Bowles (11), Bilton (3)

Scratches:
3 S Christensen - 10 Dudar - 14 Nault
16 Paradis - 19 Friesen - 23 Schreyer
25 Merasty - 34 Sydora

So Warren Callis and Quintin Lisoway had 2 goals each, and Brad Bowles had 4 assists. The only line-up switch from Friday was that Callis came in for Dudar. Justin Augert and Jordan Depape both hit the 10-goal milestone, Augert for the first time. Byron Spriggs stopped 34 of 37 shots to claim the win, and also had his first assist of the season.

For Lethbridge, Damien Ketlo was tagged with the loss, stopping 7 of 11 shots in less than 13 minutes of play. Warren Shymko stopped 38 of 43 in his busy stint.

Next week the Bisons host the Dinos in the battle for 4th and 5th places, and the Hørny Ønes host UBC in the battle for 6th and 7th places.

OUT-OF-TOWN SCOREBOARD

MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS 4
REGINA COUGARS 3
(in overtime)

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofR] : [rp @CW] : [MRU]

The Banjocats would have really enjoyed a win. With less than 7 minutes left in the game they held a 3-1 lead. They took the lead with 3 goals on 7 shots in the 2nd period. That 3rd must have been a desperation bid to hang on. They were outshot by the Bluegars 11-2. Mitch Kilgore took the loss, stopping 32 of 36 shots. Colin Cooper picked up the win with 9 saves on 12 shots. To make matters worse, the winner was on a powerplay with just 9 seconds left in OT.

SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 2
U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS 4

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UBC*] : [rp @CW*] : [UofS*]

The T'irds really needed a win in this one to give their playoff hopes a boost. And they deserved this one. It was a tight defensive battle (shots 22-21 in favour of the Mutts). Three unanswered 3rd period goals turned a deficit into a win. So long, 7-game winning streak! The win earns the T'irds a playoff showdown in Lethbridge next week.

CALGARY DINOSAURS 3
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 0

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofA] : [rp @CW] : [UofC]

To put this simply: Steven Stanford stole one for Bedrock U. He led the way with a 45 save shutout. Meanwhile, the Evil Monkeys started Luke Siemens, who gave up 2 goals on 4 shots in barely 10 minutes before getting the shoe. To say that the Dinos nursed the lead in the 3rd period is a serious understatement. They were outshot 22-3, the final shot being their empty-net goal. If Bedrock U wants to use Stanford next weekend in Manitoba they will likely need to hook him up to an IV. BTW, this was the Monkeys' first home shutout loss in 21 years.

STANDINGS

OUT EAST

AUS

Jan 21 Acadia 1 New Brunswick 2 (ot)
Jan 21 St. F.X. 3 Moncton 2
Jan 21 Saint Mary's 0 U.P.E.I. 2

OUA

Jan 21 Laurentian 2 Lakehead 5
Jan 21 Nipissing 2 McGill 5
Jan 21 Ottawa 6 Concordia 3
Jan 21 Queen's 5 Brock 0
Jan 21 U.O.I.T. 1 York 2
Jan 21 Waterloo 4 Guelph 3
Jan 21 Western Ontario 2 Toronto 5
Jan 21 Windsor 1 Ryerson 9

Non-conference
Jan 21 R.M.C. 3 U.S. Military (NCAA) 5 ∞ [Army S&R]

NEXT UP

Jan 25 Saint Mary's at Dalhousie
Jan 25 St. F.X. at Acadia
Jan 25 Moncton at U.P.E.I.
Jan 25 Concordia at U.Q.T.R.

Jan 26 Queen's at Ryerson
Jan 26 U.O.I.T. at Toronto

Jan 27 Alberta at Mount Royal
Jan 27 Calgary at Manitoba
Jan 27 Regina at Saskatchewan
Jan 27 U.B.C. at Lethbridge
Jan 27 Dalhousie at Acadia
Jan 27 Saint Mary's at St. F.X.
Jan 27 U.P.E.I. at New Brunswick
Jan 27 Brock at Windsor
Jan 27 Laurier at Carleton
Jan 27 McGill at Guelph
Jan 27 Ottawa at Western Ontario
Jan 27 Waterloo at R.M.C.
Jan 27 York at Lakehead

[US/CIS Schedule/Results]
[US/CIS Standings]

All CW games available at CanadaWest.tv.

* Indicates link not available at the time of posting.

 

[RED ARMY EAST]

CanadaWest

CanadaWest looks very competitive this year.
Saskatchewan looks to be in the drivers seat for home advantage and a first round bye.
The 2'nd bye is a toss up between Mount Royal and Alberta. MR has a 2 pt lead, but has Alberta and Calgary twice , before wrapping up the regular season.
Manitoba and UBC playing well right now and Lethbridge looks to be in over their head!
Alberta, despite having the injection of 3 high end recruits haven't been impressive so far in the second half. It looks as if they are still vulnerable between the pipes . Unlike the past, a spot at Nationals isn't a given in this conference right now.

 

[UNB Bruins Fan]

According to Dustin Nielsen...this is the 1st time since 1964 Alberta has been shutout in regular season home game.

 

[Rob]

I'm sure the standings will change but it is hard to believe that Alberta is in 3rd place. On paper they look like a juggernaut. Especially with the addition of Cole Sanford.

 

[Hollywood3]

Home Stretch

There are only 3 weekends left in the regular season. This chart has the skinny, in a nutshell.

# TEAM |

Points ​

|

J 27-28 ​

|

F 3 - 4 ​

|

F 10-11 ​

1 SASK. |

34​

|

º Reg​

|

∞ Man​

|

@ Leth​

|

2 MOUNT ROYAL |

31​

|

º Alta​

|

º Calg​

|

∞ UBC​

|

3 ALBERTA |

29​

|

º MRU​

|

∞ Leth​

|

@ Man​

|

4 CALGARY |

27​

|

@ Man​

|

º MRU​

|

@ Reg​

|

5 MANITOBA |

23​

|

∞ Calg​

|

@ Sask​

|

∞ Alta​

|

6 LETHBRIDGE |

19​

|

∞ UBC​

|

@ Alta​

|

∞ Sask​

|

7 UBC |

18​

|

@ Leth​

|

∞ Reg​

|

@ MRU​

|

8 REGINA |

8​

|

º Sask​

|

@ UBC​

|

∞ Calg​

|

∞ both games at home
º one game at home
@ both games away

 

[Drummer]

There are only 3 weekends left in the regular season. This chart has the skinny, in a nutshell.

# TEAM |

Points ​

|

J 27-28 ​

|

F 3 - 4 ​

|

F 10-11 ​

1 SASK. |

34​

|

º Reg​

|

∞ Man​

|

@ Leth​

|

2 MOUNT ROYAL |

31​

|

º Alta​

|

º Calg​

|

∞ UBC​

|

3 ALBERTA |

29​

|

º MRU​

|

∞ Leth​

|

@ Man​

|

4 CALGARY |

27​

|

@ Man​

|

º MRU​

|

@ Reg​

|

5 MANITOBA |

23​

|

∞ Calg​

|

@ Sask​

|

∞ Alta​

|

6 LETHBRIDGE |

19​

|

∞ UBC​

|

@ Alta​

|

∞ Sask​

|

7 UBC |

18​

|

@ Leth​

|

∞ Reg​

|

@ MRU​

|

8 REGINA |

8​

|

º Sask​

|

@ UBC​

|

∞ Calg​

|

∞ both games at home
º one game at home
@ both games away

USK looks to have the easiest schedule of the top 3 teams.
MRU has a tough schedule compared to ALB. This coming weekend will be big for them vs ALB.
MAN has the the toughest schedule having to play #4, #1 & #3 - wow, that's going to be a tough go. If there is a silver lining, they host CAL and ALB.

 

[Hollywood3]

Preview: Jan 27-28: Calgary at Bisons

DINOS COMING FROM THE TOWN OF BEDROCK

CALGARY DINOSAURS (13-8-1, 16-10-2, OHT35 #6)
MANITOBA BISONS (11-10-1, 18-12-1, OHT35 #12)

Friday, January 27th, 7:00 CST @ Wayne Fleming Arena
Saturday, January 28th, 1:00 CST @ Wayne Fleming Arena

Live Links:
• [Live Stats Friday] ∞ [Live Stats Saturday]
• [Video: CanadaWest.tv]
• [Audio: 101.5 UMFM.com]

Manitoba Links:
• [UofM Series Preview] ∞ [UM Recap]
• [LS Stats] ∞ [LS Schedule/Results]
• [Twitter] ∞ [Facebook]

Calgary Links:
• [UofC Team Site]
• [LS Stats] ∞ [LS Schedule/Results]
• [Twitter] ∞ [Facebook]

Prior Games:
Nov 4: UM 3 UC 4: [LeagueStat] ∞ [CW] ∞ [UofM]
Nov 5: UM 3 UC 2: [LeagueStat] ∞ [CW] ∞ [UofM]

Other Links:
• [All Links re USports Hockey]
• [USports Hockey Site] ∞ [Schedule/Links]
• [USports Standings] ∞ [USports Top 10] ∞ [Monday Roundups]
• [CW Site] ∞ [Schedule/Links]

The Bisons have been on the ascent, to the point where 4th place, and the right to host a playoff series, is somewhat feasible. They trail Bedrock U by 4 points, meaning the Herd could leave the weekend holding 4th via a tie-breaker.

Easier said than done. The series played in the Town of Bedrock saw the teams pick up 2 points, and score 6 goals, each. Last year the Bisons swept the season series (4-0-0). However the Dinos turned the tables in the playoffs, winning their quarter-final series 2 games to 1.

The two teams have 8 of their last 10 games played in common. In those games, the Bisons are 6-1-1 and the Dinos are 5-3-0. The Bisons are coming off an impressive sweep of Lethbridge, a team the Dinos also swept in a pair of one-goal games.

The last time these teams met, Elgin Pearce was the Dino to watch with 2 goals and 2 assists. He is also their leading scorer (12-8-20 in 22 games). Jordan Depape leads the Bisons with 10-10-20 in only 17 games. Overall, the Bisons have enjoyed consistent secondary scoring. They have 8 players in double digits in scoring, with 5 more getting close.

Goaltending will, of course, be an important factor in the series. The Dinos have utilized 3 goaltenders this year. Their top two rate 1st and 4th in conference save percentage. Rookie Matthew Greenfield leads with a record of 6-1-0, 1.69 GAA, and .940 S%. Veteran Steven Stanford (who stole their last game vs Alberta) is 7-5-1, 2.50 GAA, and .919 S%. Those numbers got a big boost last weekend.

Meanwhile, Byron Spriggs appears to be the Bison #1 now. His stats are 9-6-1, 2.70 GAA, and .917 GAA. One would expect he and Stanford to go head-to-head on Friday.

Both games can be seen on canadawest.tv and heard on 101.5 UMFM.com.

ELSEWHERE:

REGINA COUGARS (3-17-2, 3-23-2, OHT35 #31)
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES (16-4-2, 17-6-3, OHT35 #2)

Links:
• [UofS Preview]
• [UofR Preview]

The Battle of Banjoland is usually interesting because the winning team gets to use toothpaste, a rare treat in Sask, aka the 19th century. This Felines vs Canines battle has virtually no impact on the standings. The Banjomutts are sitting in 1st with a 3-point lead over 2nd place MRU. The Banjocats are mired in last place, a full 10 points out of 7th and 11 out of 6th. Since Lethbridge and UBC play each other, and one team must get 2 points each game, Regina is mathematically eliminated.

The Huskies' preview has an interesting fact: The Huskies have one loss against each team in the CW except for Regina.

U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS (8-12-2, 13-13-2, OHT35 #20)
LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS (8-11-3, 14-11-3, OHT35 #21)

Links:
• [UofL Preview]
• [UBC Team Site]

After last weekend, it is highly likely that this series will be the battle to decide 6th place and the final berth in the CW playoffs. When many homes still contained fallen pine needles and leftover noisemakers, it looked like Lethbridge could mount a challenge for a top-4 position in the CW. But how they have slipped. They are now just one point ahead of the T'irds, the CW's perpetual bubble team. One would suspect a hard fought series here.

ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS (14-7-1, 22-9-3, OHT35 #5)
MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS (15-6-1, 17-9-1, OHT35 #4)

Links:
• [MRU Preview] • [MRU Rankin Profile]
• [UofA Preview]

This home-and-home series could well determine 2nd place, which means a quarter-final bye and the right to host a semi-final series. So the stakes are high. The Evil Monkeys have been slipping despite some highly touted Christmas recruits. They bombarded Bedrock U last weekend in the Saturday game, yet lost. I think most non-Apes in Canada would like to see MRU take this. It seems that if Alberta could solve the goaltending issue they would have it aced. Imagine the Monkeys having to win a road series to qualify for nationals.

OUT EAST:

OUA

Jan 25 Concordia 2 U.Q.T.R. 5
Jan 25 Windsor 1 W. Ontario 3
Jan 26 U.O.I.T. at Toronto
Jan 27 Brock at Windsor
Jan 27 Laurier at Carleton
Jan 27 McGill at Guelph
Jan 27 Ottawa at W. Ontario
Jan 27 Queen's at Ryerson
Jan 27 Waterloo at R.M.C.
Jan 27 York at Lakehead
Jan 28 Concordia at Laurentian
Jan 28 McGill at W. Ontario
Jan 28 Laurier at R.M.C.
Jan 28 Ottawa at Guelph
Jan 28 Queen's at Toronto
Jan 28 U.O.I.T. at Ryerson
Jan 28 U.Q.T.R. at Nipissing
Jan 28 Waterloo at Carleton
Jan 28 York at Lakehead

AUS

Jan 25 Saint Mary's 5 Dalhousie 4
Jan 25 St. F.X. 5 Acadia 2
Jan 25 Moncton 5 U.P.E.I. 2
Jan 27 Dalhousie at Acadia
Jan 27 Saint Mary's at St. F.X.
Jan 27 U.P.E.I. at New Brunswick
Jan 28 Acadia at Saint Mary's
Jan 28 New Brunswick at Moncton

 

[Hollywood3]

Jan 27: Bisons Win, Close in on 4th

CALGARY DINOSAURS 3
MANITOBA BISONS 4

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary] : [Report] : [Text]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW] : [UofM]
Stories: [UofM] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofC]
Other: [UM Sports Preview] : [Stovin/Wasylak Haircuts for Cancer]

This was a big win for the Bisons. They are now just 2 points behind the 4th place Dinos. So a win on Saturday would ensure them the tiebreaker as we enter the home stretch. Here's who played:

MANITOBA

Goal
35 Spriggs (1 Paulic)

Defence
2 Henry - 6 Heinrich
5 L Christensen - 4 Bresciani
20 Johnston - 9 Hunter

Forwards
25 Merasty - 28 Stovin - 27 DePape
17 Callis - 13 Laurencelle - 24 Augert
26 Lisoway - 22 B Bowles - 15 S Bowles
8 Bilton - 21 Brooks - 29 Wasylak

Scratches
3 S Christensen (D) - 10 Dudar (F) - 12 Zajac (F)
14 Nault (F) - 16 Paradis (F) - 19 Friesen (D/F)
23 Schreyer (F) - 34 Sydora (G)

CALGARY

Goal
40 Stanford (1 Greenfield)

Defence
6 Dow - 7 Sherbinin
33 Hauf - 2 Gibb - 44 Busenius
5 Doucette (I never saw him play)

Forwards
17 Gordon - 39 Bowles - 12 Franson
8 Pearce - 42 Walchuk - 24 Harrison
13 Collins - 22 Cook - 21 Fisher
20 Gayle - 9 Kambeitz - 15 Dumonceaux

Scratches
4 Suchorab (D) - 10 Fisher (F) - 14 DeRoose (F)
16 Colasimone (F) - 19 Roberts (F) - 26 Maiolino (F)
35 Vollrath (G) - 41 Mowat (D)

And here's who scored:

1st
7:25 Man Brooks (1) A: Bilton (4)
9:11 Cal Kambeitz (3) A: Gordon (7), Franson (12) (PP)

2nd
4:28 Man Merasty (8) A: Stovin (14)
14:02 Man Henry (4) A: S Bowles (6), Lisoway (8)
17:55 Cal Walchuk (6) A: Pearce (9), Collins (13) (PP)

3rd
0:25 Man Bresciani (1) A: Merasty (11), Stovin (15)
18:28 Cal Franson (8) A: Busenius (7), Gibb (4) (SH)

The 1st period was dead even. Each team had 9 shots and 1 goal. Bedrock U held the edge early on, and the Bisons closed stronger. Brett Brooks, centering a 4th line that was quite effective, had his first goal of the season. The Dinos' goal came on a PP where Brett Stovin was basically penalized for hitting too hard.

The Bisons really won the game in the 2nd period. They doubled Calgary on the shot clock (16-8) and on the scoreboard (2-1). Bedrock U's goal was once again on the powerplay. At that point the Bisons had a 2-goal lead and were in a good position to salt it away.

Any hope the Dinos had that the late goal in the 2nd would provide a springboard to 3rd period success was dashed early. Bresciani's goal 25 seconds in was a point shot that eluded Steven Sanford. The 2-goal lead was thsi restored and the Bisons nursed that lead quite effectively.

Then Dylan Walchuk lost his marbles with just over 5 minutes left. He took a 2-minute penalty and then with his man down he delivered a cross-check to the head, and was rewarded with a 5-minute major and game misconduct. A subsequent delay of game with just over 2 minutes left allowed the Bisons to finish the game on the PP. Bedrock managed to score once. The Bisons narrowly missed a good chance and the puck came out to Bedrock and a quick claring pass set Cody Franson on a breakaway.

Jonah Wasylak delivered a highlight hit in the 3rd as well. He drove a Dino head first into the Bison bench. With the opponnt's feet dangling in the air he gave him a little push so he would be fully inside the bench area. The ref thought that to be unsportsmanlike conduct for some reason.

Byron Spriggs stopped 24 of 27 to notch the win. Steven Stanford stopped 31 of 35 in the loss.

Saturday's rematch starts at 1:00 p.m. and is available on-line at CanadaWest.tv and on radio at 101.5 UMFM.com.

OUT-OF-TOWN SCOREBOARD

REGINA COUGARS 2
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 10

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofS] : [rp @CW] : [UofR]

This was the most one-sided game of the season. Regina switched goaltenders at the start of each period. Dawson MacAuley played the 1st and 3rd and gave up 20 goals on 26 shots. Andy Desautels played the 2nd and stopped 12 of 16. For the Banjomutts, Logan McVeigh scored his 8th and 9th goals of the season, and Connor Gay had his 1st and 2nd. The Banjocats have to improve in the home leg of this series. They cannot possibly be any worse.

U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS 2
LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS 5

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Preview: [UBC Preview]
Stories: [UofL] : [rp @CW] : [UBC]

The Hørny Ønes must have gotten shipment of Viagra this week. And just in time. A 6 game losing streak moved them from challenging for home ice advantage to clinging to a playoff berth. This win gives them a 3 point lead over UBC. Saturday's rematch is therefore do-or-die for the T'irds. Garret Hughson stopped 27 of 29 shots to get the win. Derek Dun stopped 22 of 26 to take the loss.

ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 5
MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS 2

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Preview: [MRU Preview]
Stories: [MRU] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofA]

The Evil Monkeys came into the weekend in an unacustomed 3rd place and responded in fine fashion. The Bluegars had a 1-0 lead after the 1st. Saudi Alberta took the lead in a 2nd period where the teams went wild. MRU outshot Alberta 17-15 but Alberta outscored them 3-1. Brendan Burke did the job in the Monkey net with 16 saves in that period alone. Burke got the win with 27 saves, and Wyatt Hofflin had 28 saves in the loss. Each team has 31 points heading into Saturday's rematch.

OUT EAST

AUS

Jan 27 Dalhousie 2 Acadia 5
Jan 27 Saint Mary's 6 St. F.X. 2
Jan 27 U.P.E.I. 1 New Brunswick 7

OUA

Jan 26 U.O.I.T. 2 Toronto 4
Jan 27 Brock 4 Windsor 5
Jan 27 Laurier 4 Carleton 2
Jan 27 McGill 4 Guelph 2
Jan 27 Ottawa 5 W. Ontario 2
Jan 27 Queen's 0 Ryerson 4
Jan 27 Waterloo 3 R.M.C. 2 (so)
Jan 27 York 2 Lakehead 1 (ot)

[US/CIS Schedule/Results]
[US/CIS Standings]

All CW games available at CanadaWest.tv.

* Indicates link not available at the time of posting.

 

[UNB Bruins Fan]

Mount Royal = still not ready for prime time.

 

[Hollywood3]

Jan 28: Near Miracle!

CALGARY DINOSAURS 7
MANITOBA BISONS 6
(in overtime)

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary] : [Report] : [Text]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW] : [UofM]
Stories: [UofM] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofC]

This was the most unique game of this year, and perhaps any other year. After a bad 2nd period, the Bisons started the 3rd period trailing 5-2, but had a powerplay. They promptly gave up a shorthanded goal. Normally, that would get people thinking about hitting the exits. However, the Bisons stormed back to tie the game by the 12:30 mark and only some spectacular saves by Matthew Greenfield held the Dinos in the game.

But before I go on, allow me to set the stage. The Bisons made no line-up shuffles from Friday, but Calgary did.

MANITOBA

Goal
35 Spriggs (1 Paulic)

Defence
2 Henry - 6 Heinrich
5 L Christensen - 4 Bresciani
20 Johnston - 9 Hunter

Forwards
25 Merasty - 28 Stovin - 27 DePape
17 Callis - 13 Laurencelle - 24 Augert
26 Lisoway - 22 B Bowles - 15 S Bowles
8 Bilton - 21 Brooks - 29 Wasylak

Scratches
3 S Christensen (D) - 10 Dudar (F) - 12 Zajac (F)
14 Nault (F) - 16 Paradis (F) - 19 Friesen (D/F)
23 Schreyer (F) - 34 Sydora (G)

CALGARY

Goal
1 Greenfield (40 Stanford)

Defence
7 Sherbinin - 44 Busenius
5 Doucette - 6 Dow
33 Hauf - 2 Gibb

Forwards
13 Collins - 42 Walchuk - 8 Pearce
20 Gayle - 9 Kambeitz - 22 Cook
12 Franson - 39 Bowles - 15 Dumonceaux
17 Gordon - 21 Fisher - 4 Suchorab

Scratches
10 Fisher (F) - 14 DeRoose (F) - 16 Colasimone (F)
19 Roberts (F) - 24 Harrison (F) - 26 Maiolino (F)
35 Vollrath (G) - 41 Mowat (D)

And here's who scored:

1st
4:20 Cal Collins (3) A: Sherbinin (4), Pearce (10)
17:15 Man Lisoway (8) A: Henry (6), Wasylak (2)
18:20 Man Stovin (5) A: DePape (11), Hunter (6)

2nd
0:49 Cal Walchuk (7) A: Pearce (11), Sherbinin (5)
6:48 Cal Dow (4) A: Doucette (7), Gordon (8) (PP)
10:41 Cal Gordon (5) A: Dow (12), Doucette (8) (PP)
17:29 Cal Fisher (4) A: Gordon (9), Suchorab (1)

3rd
1:09 Cal Pearce (13) A: Walchuk (13) (SH)
3:46 Man B Bowles (2) A: S Bowles (7), Lisoway (9)
5:20 Man DePape (11) A: Callis (5), Stovin (16)
6:47 Man Heinrich (1) A: Henry (7), Stovin (17)
12:30 Man Bilton (2) A: None

1st OT
No Scoring

2nd OT
1:12 Cal Franson (9) A: P Bowles (4), Busenius (8)

Byron Spriggs again started in the Bison goal. It is tough to play Friday night and be sharp again Saturday at 1:00 p.m. He made 24 saves on 31 shots. That won't get the job done. The problem was the 2nd period, where he gave up 4 goals on 13 shots. In contrast, Greenfield stopped 46 of 52 shots. In the 3rd period the Bisons outshot Bedrock U 21-2.

The weekend results leave the Bisons 3 points behind 4th place Bedrock U and 3 points ahead of 6th place Lethbridge. It seems safe to say that we should expect the Bisons to face Bedrock U in the quarter-finals once again, with the winner likely to meet Sask in the semi-finals. The Bisons are currently 3-1-2 against those teams with Sask coming up next week.

OUT-OF-TOWN SCOREBOARD

SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 5
REGINA COUGARS 2

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofR] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofS]

This was worst vs first and it showed. The Banjomutts outshot the Banjocats 46-16, yet it was only a 3-2 hockey game with 3 minutes to go. Logan McVeigh had a hat-trick for the Mutts. Jordon Cooke again started and finished both games for the Mutts. Mitch Kilgore went the distance for the Kittens.

U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS 7
LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS 8
(in overtime)

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofL] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UBC]

When I left the Wayne Fleming Arena after the Bison game, I was fairly certain that I would have witnessed the highest scoring game of the night. Then I saw this scoreline. This was quite crazy. The Hørny Ønes held a 6-2 lead in the 2nd period. However, UBC cut that lead to 6-4 by the end of the period. UBC also scored at 18:48 and 19:47 of the 3rd period to force OT. UBC is now 4 points behind in the race for the 6th and final playoff berth.

MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS 3
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 5

Links:
LeagueStat: [Summary]
Boxscores: [US/CIS] : [CW]
Stories: [UofA] : [rp @CW] : [rp @UofA]

The Bluegars came close but in the end a challemge at a top 2 berth is beyond them. While this was a tight game, put away with a late winner and empty-netter, it serves as the latest example of MRU coming up short. Brendan Burke stopped 31 of 34 shots to get the win. Colin Cooper stopped 31 of 35 to take the loss.

STANDINGS

OUT EAST

AUS

Jan 28 Acadia 4 Saint Mary's 3
Jan 28 New Brunswick 6 Moncton 3
Jan 28 Concordia 9 Laurentian 1

OUA

Jan 28 McGill 4 W. Ontario 5 (so)
Jan 28 Laurier 4 R.M.C. 3
Jan 28 Ottawa 3 Guelph 4
Jan 28 Queen's 2 Toronto 1
Jan 28 U.O.I.T. 3 Ryerson 6
Jan 28 U.Q.T.R. 2 Nipissing 3 (so)
Jan 28 Waterloo 3 Carleton 2 (so)
Jan 28 York 3 Lakehead 2

UP NEXT

Feb 01 Moncton at Saint Mary's
Feb 01 Windsor at W. Ontario
Feb 02 Mount Royal at Calgary
Feb 02 Carleton at Ottawa
Feb 02 Lakehead at Ryerson
Feb 02 Queen's at R.M.C.

Feb 03 Manitoba at Saskatchewan
Feb 03 Lethbridge at Alberta
Feb 03 Calgary at Mount Royal
Feb 03 Regina at U.B.C.
Feb 03 U.P.E.I. at Dalhousie
Feb 03 New Brunswick at St. F.X.
Feb 03 Brock at Nipissing
Feb 03 Lakehead at Waterloo
Feb 03 Guelph at U.Q.T.R.
Feb 03 Laurier at Toronto
Feb 03 W. Ontario at Concordia
Feb 03 York at Laurentian

[US/CIS Schedule/Results]
[US/CIS Standings]

All CW games available at CanadaWest.tv.

* Indicates link not available at the time of posting.

 

[Hollywood3]

Universiade

This event was supposed to begin on Monday. I have since found out that three games in fact were played Saturday. That's odd. Normally there are not two days between opening games in every pool.

Here's the synopsis:

Group A
Kazakhstan
Czech Republic
Sweden
China

Group B
Canada
Slovakia
U.S.A.
Great Britain

Group C
Russia
Latvia
Japan
South Korea

The top 8 of the 12 then advance to the quarter-finals.

RESULTS

January 28th
Kazakhstan 22 China 0
Slovakia 9 Great Britain 0
Japan 3 Latvia 4

NEXT UP

January 30th
Sweden v Czech Republic
U.S.A. v Canada
South Korea v Russia

There are then 3 games per day through February 3rd. The schedules are at the links. Wikipedia is oddly the best one.

Links:
• [Wikipedia]
• [FISU hockey schedule]
• [FISU hockey news]
• [U Sports International]
• [Almaty 2017 Site]
• [Schedule in pdf]

 

[Hollywood3]

Jan 30: Universiade

The OUA's version of Team Canada got off to the expected start against the ACHA's version of Team U.S.A.

RESULTS

January 30th
Sweden 0 Czech Republic 5
U.S.A. 0 Canada 6 : [U-S] : [Summary]
South Korea 0 Russia 14

NEXT UP

January 31st
Kazakhstan v Sweden
Slovakia v U.S.A.
Japan v South Korea

February 1st
Czech Republic v China
Canada v Great Britain
Russia v Latvia

Links:
• [Wikipedia]
• [FISU hockey schedule]
• [FISU hockey news]
• [U Sports International]
• [Almaty 2017 Site]
• [Schedule in pdf]

 

[Hollywood3]

Jan 31: Universiade

The 1st day of the 2nd round of games was played on Tuesday. Team Canada had a day off.

RESULTS

January 31st
Kazakhstan 5 Sweden 0
Slovakia 4 U.S.A. 1
Japan 5 South Korea 2

NEXT UP

February 1st
Czech Republic v China
Canada v Great Britain
Russia v Latvia

February 2nd
Great Britain v U.S.A.
Latvia v South Korea
China v Sweden

Links:
• [Wikipedia]
• [FISU hockey schedule]
• [FISU hockey news]
• [U Sports International]
• [Almaty 2017 Site]
• [Schedule in pdf]

 

[Hollywood3]

Feb 1: Universiade

RESULTS

February 1st
Czech Republic 15 China 0
Canada 14 Great Britain 0: [USports] : [Summary] : [PDF]
Russia 7 Latvia 1

The 2nd round of games is over and the OUA boys showed those tea-drinking, crumpet-eating sissy-boys how to play hockey. There have been a lot of shut-outs this year and very one-sided games. The shots today were 74-9. So Canada could have played without a goalie and won by 5 goals.

NEXT UP

February 2nd
Great Britain v U.S.A.
Latvia v South Korea
China v Sweden

February 3rd
Canada v Slovakia
Russia v Japan
Czech Republic v Kazakhstan

End of round-robin.

STANDINGS

Pool A

Pool B

Pool C

Links:
• [Wikipedia]
• [FISU hockey schedule]
• [FISU hockey news]
• [U Sports International]
• [Almaty 2017 Site]
• [Schedule in pdf]
• [Live Streaming]

 

[Hollywood3]

Preview: Feb 3-4: Bisons at Saskatchewan

BISONS RUNNING BACK TO SASKATOWN

MANITOBA BISONS (12-10-2, 19-12-2, OHT35 #12)
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES (18-4-2, 19-6-3, OHT35 #2)

Friday, February 3rd, 7:00 CST @ Rutherdump
Saturday, February 4th, 7:00 CST @ Rutherdump

Live Links:
• [Live Stats Friday] ∞ [Live Stats Saturday]
• [Video: CanadaWest.tv]

Manitoba Links:
• [UofM Team Site] ∞ [UM Recap]
• [LS Stats] ∞ [LS Schedule/Results]
• [Twitter] ∞ [Facebook]

Saskatchewan Links:
• [UofS Team Site]
• [LS Stats] ∞ [LS Schedule/Results]
• [Twitter] ∞ [Facebook]

Prior Games:
Nov 25: US 2 UM 1: [LeagueStat] ∞ [CW] ∞ [UofM]
Nov 26: US 2 UM 5: [LeagueStat] ∞ [CW] ∞ [UofM]

Other Links:
• [All Links re USports Hockey]
• [USports Hockey Site] ∞ [Schedule/Links]
• [USports Standings] ∞ [USports Top 10] ∞ [Monday Roundups]
• [CW Site] ∞ [Schedule/Links]

There are only two weekends left in the regular season, one away and one at home. The Bisons seem to be tucked into 5th place, 3 points behind 4th and 3 points ahead of 6th. Meanwhile, Sask has a 5 point lead in the race for 1st. Movement in either direction is not real likely for either team.

Neither of these teams have yet posted a preview story. Sask usually puts together a nice pdf package.

The Bisons outplayed the Banjomutts in the first series. Sask won the first game in OT and the Bisons won the finale 5-2. It was probably the roughest weekend of the season for the Mutts. Over the last 5 years, the Mutts hold a 10-8 lead in head-to-head games.

The teams also appear to be on a collison course in the playoffs. Unless something odd happens, it will be Calgary-Manitoba in the quarter-finals with the winner playing Sask in the semi-finals.

The Bisons now have 11 players in double-digits points, and 2 more defencemen at 9. Sask has 10, and 1. Both teams have done well in the GF category. Sask is 2nd and the Bisons 4th (92-85). The big difference is in GA where Sask is 1st at 49 and Manitoba is 4th at 78, more than 1 goal/game difference. Even last week against Regina, Sask started Jordon Cooke both games in goal.Backup Daniel Wapple has only 129 minutes so far, and 62 of those were against the Bisons. Cooke's stats are incredible: 17-3-1, 1.84 GAA, .931 S%. Byron Spriggs has become the Bison starter. His numbers are respectable but not at all as good as Cooke's: 10-6-2, 2.94 GAA, .908 S%.

Both games can be seen on canadawest.tv.

ELSEWHERE:

LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS (10-11-3, 16-11-3, OHT35 #18)
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS (16-7-1, 24-9-3, OHT35 #3)

Links:
• [UofA Preview] : [UofA Game Day]
• [UofL Preview]

Both of these teams enjoyed sweeps last weekend against their chief neighbour in the standings. The Monkeys lead MRU by 2 points and the Hørny Ønes are 4 points up on UBC. Have the Apes finally found their way? Whenever they have looked on the verge of moving into contender status they have slipped back.

CALGARY DINOSAURS (14-9-1, 16-10-2, OHT35 #7)
MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS (15-8-1, 17-11-1, OHT35 #5)

Links:
• [UofC Crowchild Ticket] : [UofC #UCalgary50 series]
• [MRU Preview]

This series is Thursday-Friday because Thursday is the annual Crowchild Classic game at the Saddledome. According to the story, tickets are going fast. After suffering a bad fall against the Monkeys, one has to question of MRU can take the next big step. They have been in this position before. Bedrock U is within 2 points.

REGINA COUGARS (3-19-2, 3-25-2, OHT35 #33)
U.B.C. THUNDERBIRDS (8-13-3, 13-14-3, OHT35 #20)

Links:
• [UBC Preview]
• [UofR Preview]

UBC is down to the faint hope clause. Their season hit the skids in the 1st semester when they were swept by Regina. They need to return the favour here and then on Sunday go to church and pray.

OUT EAST:

OUA

Feb 02 Carleton at Ottawa
Feb 02 Lakehead at Ryerson
Feb 02 Queen's at R.M.C.
Feb 03 Brock at Nipissing
Feb 03 Guelph at U.Q.T.R.
Feb 03 Lakehead at Waterloo
Feb 03 Laurier at Toronto
Feb 03 W. Ontario at Concordia
Feb 03 York at Laurentian
Feb 04 Brock at Laurentian
Feb 04 Carleton at McGill
Feb 04 Guelph at Concordia
Feb 04 Lakehead at Waterloo
Feb 04 Queen's at U.O.I.T.
Feb 04 Ryerson at Laurier
Feb 04 W. Ontario at U.Q.T.R.
Feb 04 York at Nipissing

AUS

Feb 01 Moncton 2 Saint Mary's 4
Feb 03 New Brunswick at St. F.X.
Feb 03 U.P.E.I. at Dalhousie
Feb 04 Moncton at Acadia
Feb 04 New Brunswick at Dalhousie
Feb 04 U.P.E.I. at St. F.X.

 

[Hollywood3]

Feb 2: Universiade

RESULTS

February 2nd
Great Britain 1 U.S.A. 10
Latvia 6 South Korea 2
China 0 Sweden 15

If I am correct, Sweden beats out USA for the last quarter-final berth because the Yanks "only" won by 9 and Sweden crushed hapless China. We'll see.

NEXT UP

February 3rd
Canada v Slovakia
Russia v Japan
Czech Republic v Kazakhstan

End of round-robin.

Links:
• [Wikipedia]
• [FISU hockey schedule]
• [FISU hockey news]
• [U Sports International]
• [Almaty 2017 Site]
• [Schedule in pdf]
• [Live Streaming]