Trojans and Hounds win in Day One of Western Regionals

Over a year’s worth of preparation with the four-day event and the Trojans’ hockey club came into fruition on Thursday, April 4.

Jayden Wiens, Trojans forward, told northeastNOW him and the rest of his teammates were able to appreciate the opening ceremonies, packed crowds at the Tisdale RECplex, and the Trojans’ new uniforms just for the Western Regionals.

“It’s surreal,” Wiens said. “All the crowds are full, so you kind of go out there and enjoy it for 10 minutes, and then you start focusing for the game. It’s a small town with so much support. It’s good to see that from Tisdale.”

Darrell Mann, Trojans head coach, has been to a Western Regionals tournament before during his 15 seasons in Tisdale. Although even he was in awe during some moments of day one.

“I remember being in Regina one year and there was like 50 to 60 people at the games,” Mann said. “To see the rink full like this is huge for our players and the community. It doesn’t matter what event is put on in Tisdale, they support it.”

The Tisdale Trojans line up with the three other teams at the Telus Cup Western Regionals for the opening ceremonies (Aaron Schulze/northeastNOW Staff).

Trojans win first game

The Trojans’ game against the Thunder Bay Kings from Northern Ontario was their first game since losing to the Saskatoon Blazers in the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League (SMAAAHL) semifinals 18 days prior.

After the first period, the Trojans didn’t appear to show any signs of rust as they outshot the Kings 13-3 in a scoreless period.

Mann said the unbalanced shot total didn’t surprise him or the Trojans as they were confident and conditioned going into the game, although not all the shots were Grade A scoring chances.

“I thought they did a great job defensively,” he said. “They’re well coached and don’t run around in their own zone. Yeah, we had 13 shots, but only two or three quality ones.”

Despite all the Trojans’ work in the first and early in the second, the Kings struck first when forward Mason Bazaluk went wide and squeaked a puck into the net.

A little over two minutes later, the Trojans’ leading playoff scorer – Jayden Wiens – showed up once more for a big game.

“We’ve been practicing getting to the net and blocking the goalie from seeing the puck,” Wiens said. “I just went to the net, Zac Robins was on the point, he got a puck through that was kind of missing the net and I wanted to deflect the puck on net. It was good to see it go upstairs.”

Tanner Martin, Trojans goaltender, only had to make 14 saves against the Kings, but most of them being in a 1-1 tie. His best was a sprawling save which prevented the Kings from re-taking a lead.

Having faced only eight shots through two periods, Mann felt sorry for Martin as he wasn’t able to stay warmed up throughout the game.

“I know he would definitely like to see a lot more shots, he’ll definitely get that in the next couple of games,” Mann said. “He’s a pretty focused young man in net, made a couple of huge saves for us to keep it 1-1 and give us an opportunity to get that second goal.

“Marty is Marty. We know what we’re going to get from him every night.”

Tisdale Trojans goaltender Tanner Martin (right) gets a face full of snow for his efforts during one of his 14 saves against the Thunder Bay Kings. (Aaron Schulze/northeastNOW Staff)

The Kings were more offensively minded in the third period as both teams knew the next goal could potentially be the game winner.

With over seven minutes remaining in the third, Wiens did some more work behind the Kings net and fed the puck in front to Cade Hayes, the Trojans’ leading scorer and SMAAAHL First Team All Star.

After a few attempts, Hayes gave his team the lead, and Wiens and the rest of his teammates couldn’t hold in their excitement.

“I rushed over [to the boards] and jumped on him,” Wiens chuckled. “I was pretty happy.”

Forward Kalen Ukrainetz iced the puck into an empty net with 10 seconds left and the Trojans began their Western Regionals schedule with a 3-1 win over the Kings.

Wiens emphasized how crucial it was to begin the four-day tournament on a winning note.

“Not a lot of games here are going to be 6-1 or 7-1, they’re all going to be 2-1 or 3-2,” he said. “To hold that lead at the end ice the deal, it’s huge.”

Notre Dame Hounds forward Cam Recchi (red and white) seconds after his shorthanded goal put his team up for good against the Brandon Wheat Kings. (Aaron Schulze/northeastNOW Staff)

Saskatchewan shines

The Trojans weren’t the only Saskatchewan team playing on day one. The SMAAAHL champion Notre Dame Hounds began their schedule against the Manitoba Midget Hockey League champion Brandon Wheat Kings.

After the first period, the Wheat Kings showed the Saskatchewan audience what they’re capable of with quick skating and aggressive forechecks leading to multiple scoring chances and rushes.

It was during a power play where the Wheat Kings did their damage. Forward Rylan Thiessen had a wide-open side of the net and put home a Calder Anderson rebound for the first goal of the Western Regionals.

Devan Praught, Hounds head coach, explained the challenges of taking on a championship team from another province in a neutral site.

“It’s tough to get up,” Praught said. “You win the championship and now all of a sudden you’re starting back at block number one. For our guys, there’s a bit of a feeling out process.

“The last two playoff series we had, we lost game one. Our message was ‘we don’t have time for a feeling out process’ we’ve got to be ready to go and get after them right away.”

Although they couldn’t capitalize on a full five-on-three power play late in the first and early in the second, the Hounds built momentum up until they tied it up with over eight minutes left in the second. Jake Dale put back Keaton Sorensen’s rebound to make it a 1-1 game.

Sorensen struck again with over a minute to go in the second, as he skated down the left wing and wristed the puck past the Wheat Kings’ goaltender Dawson Green.

The Hounds led 2-1 after the second and outshot the Wheat Kings 16-5 in the period. Praught was proud of the way his team battled back.

“When you’re playing a team you don’t really know that well, you want to establish your game,” he said. “I thought coming later in the first period we started to do that. Give them credit for the way they responded, I thought that second period was one of the best periods we’ve played all year.”

The Wheat Kings opened the third period with plenty of clean shots towards Hounds goaltender Thomas Wardle, although he was able to keep his team ahead 2-1.

Notre Dame Hounds goaltender Thomas Wardle (second left) tracked the puck well throughout his team’s win against the Brandon Wheat Kings. (Aaron Schulze/northeastNOW Staff)

Jake Dale rewarded his goaltender by scoring his second goal of the game after being fed in front of the net by Kyle Bochek.

Shorthanded with 3:10 left in the third, Cam Recchi, the son of Hall of Famer Mark Recchi, skated down the right wing and fired it blocker side for a 4-1 lead.

Wheat Kings’ forward Calder Anderson answered back a minute and a half later, although the deficit was too large with not enough time as the Hounds won their first game of the Western Regionals.

Day Two preview

The Telus Cup Western Regionals standings after day one are:

T-1. Notre Dame Hounds (Sask.) 1-0-0 (2 points, 4 GF, 2 GA, +2 GD)

T-1. Tisdale Trojans (Host) 1-0-0 (2 points, 3 GF, 1 GA, +2 GD)

T-3. Brandon Wheat Kings (Mant.) 0-1-0 (0 points, 2 GF, 4 GA, -2 GD)

T-3. Thunder Bay Kings (Ont.) 0-1-0 (0 points, 1 GF, 3 GA, -2 GD)

The Wheat Kings and Kings will play against one another for the first time this season at 4:00 p.m., while the 7:30 p.m. matinee match-up at the RECplex will be a battle of Saskatchewan between the Trojans and Hounds.

The Trojans won the season series against the Hounds 3-1, but Notre Dame had the last laugh with a 5-0 shut out in the final game.

At this point in the season, Praught said no team can take the other lightly.

“Everyone here is a champion, so you’ve got to respect that,” he said. “Tisdale was the second-place team in our league, they could have easily been a champion themselves. They’ve got a great hockey club.

“It’s about respecting the game, respecting your opponent, and showing up ready to go.”

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aaron.schulze@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @SchulzePANow

by Aaron Schulze

Trojans and Hounds win in Day One of Western Regionals

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