Blades Reach 50 Wins to Cap off Historic Night
March 24, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Saskatoon Blades News Release
Saskatoon Blades celebrate win
(Saskatoon Blades)
50 IS OUR NUMBER: The Saskatoon Blades reached 50 wins in a season for the first time since the 2010-11 campaign, and the third tine in franchise history. The Bridge City Bunch achieved the milestone after a 5-0 win against the Prince Albert Raiders on Saturday at SaskTel Centre.
Captain Trevor Wong and Anaheim Ducks draft pick Egor Sidorov made history for the Blue and Gold in the final game of the regular season. Wong reached the 100-point plateau for the first time in his WHL career with a goal six seconds into the third period. The 20-year-old centre finished the game with two points (1G, 1A), and with 101 points (15G, 86A) in 68 games.
It came down to the wire, but Sidorov captured his 50th goal of the season with 34 seconds left in the game to make it 5-0. The Belarusian bandit ended the season with 88 points (50G, 38A) in 66 games, giving him 199 career points (113G, 86A) in 177 games as a Blade.
It was a perfect send end to the regular season as more than 13,000 Bridge City Faithful went home happy, the biggest crowd of the season for Saskatoon. Pending WHL graduates Wong, alternate captain Charlie Wright, and forward Easton Armstrong were all honoured following Saturday's game. Drafted 70th overall by the Blades in 2018, Wright caps off his regular season career with 256 games and 104 points (15G, 89A). Armstrong collected three points (1G, 2A) in Saturday's win to put him at 99 career points (60G, 39A) in 210 games.
Rookie netminder Evan Gardner collected his fourth shutout of the season with a 27-save performance. The NHL draft-eligible netminder finished the year with a 21-5-0-2 record, and leads all goalies in save-percentage (.927) and goals-against-average (1.91).
No team has ever finished as few powerplay goals against in a season as the Blades, who only allowed 29 this season. The previous record of 30 was held by the Everett Silvertips in 2003.
After finishing as the top team in the regular season, the Blades shift their sights to a deep run in the WHL postseason.
NEXT GAME: All eyes are on the Blades and Raiders Thursday at SaskTel Centre when they begin their first-round playoff series. Puck drop is slated for 7:00pm.
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