WHL Saskatoon Blades

Blades Travel To The Crushed Can

Published on October 31, 2009 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Saskatoon Blades News Release


The Saskatoon Blades travel to Moose Jaw tonight to take on the Warriors in a battle of two teams at the top of the WHL's East Division. Game time is 7:00 pm.

Head-to-Head

This is the first meeting of the season between the two hockey clubs. The Blades took the season series last year 6 games to 2.

Saskatoon Blades

The Blades won their ninth game out of the last ten with a 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings last night. Derek Hulak (Saskatoon, SK) and Walker Wintoneak (Flin Flon, MB) both had a goal and two assists, Gaelan Patterson (Saskatoon, SK) had a goal and an assist, while Darian Dziurzynski (Lloydminster, AB) and Curtis Hamilton (Kelowna, BC) added singles. Steven Stanford (Calgary, AB) was victorious in goal after a 24-save performance.

Hulak is tops on the Blades' scoring list with 9 goals and 18 assists for 27 points on the season. The overage forward sits third in the WHL scoring race, three points back of the leader. Wintoneak has 9 goals and 13 assists for 22 points, second on the team, and has moved into a tie for tenth in scoring in the WHL. Patterson has 7 goals and 10 assists for 17 points and is third in scoring on the team. Rearguard Stefan Elliott (North Vancouver, BC) leads the Blades' defensemen in scoring and currently is tied for sixth in scoring among WHL defenseman on the season with 6 goals and 9 assists for 15 points.

Hulak and Wintoneak continue to share the lead in goals on the team with nine each.

Randy McNaught (Nanaimo, BC), who remains out of the Blades' lineup tonight while serving the fourth game of a five game suspension, is the team and league leader in penalty minutes with 70. Dziurzynski has moved up to second on the team and second in the league with 62 penalty minutes.

Between the pipes, Adam Morrison (White Rock, BC) comes into tonight with a 7-3-0-2 record with a 2.46 goals against average (4th in the WHL), and a.914 save percentage (4th in the WHL). The Philadelphia Flyers draft pick is expected to get the start tonight. Stanford sports a 4-2-0-0 record on the season with a 2.38 goals against average (2nd in the WHL) and a.902 save percentage.

The Blades' power play is converting at a 14.3% rate this season, good enough for 19th in the Western Hockey League. The penalty killing unit is 2nd overall in the WHL in killing off 88.0% of shorthanded situations.

Moose Jaw Warriors

The Warriors last played also one night ago, beating the division rival Swift Current Broncos 7-3.

The Warriors are in led in scoring by overage forward Jason Bast, who has 14 goals and 8 assists for 22 points on the season and sits in a tie for tenth in WHL scoring. Defenseman Travis Hamonic is second with 7 goals and 14 assists for 21 points, good enough for the lead amongst WHL defensemen on the season.

Bast also leads the Warriors in goals scored on the season with 14 which is the second most in the WHL this season.

The Warriors feature the goaltending tandem of Jeff Bosch and Brandon Glover between the pipes. Bosch has an 8-3-0-0 record on the season with a 3.12 goals against average and a.882 save percentage. Glover has a 3-2-0-0 record with a 3.75 goals against average and a.886 save percentage.

Dylan McIlrath and Ryan Stanton share the team lead in penalty minutes with 35 on the season.

The Warriors have the 2nd ranked power play in the WHL, with a conversion rate of 28.2%. The penalty kill unit is ranked 20th in the WHL, killing off 74.7% of shorthanded chances.

Tonight's game can be heard live with Les Lazaruk on 92.9 The Bull. The game is also available for purchase on WHL WebTV.

Check out the Saskatoon Blades Statistics

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Western Hockey League Stories from October 31, 2009


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