WHL Saskatoon Blades

Game #1: Blades at Warriors

October 1, 2021 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Saskatoon Blades News Release


The wait is over.

Hockey officially returns to rinks across the Western Hockey League, including Mosaic Place in Moose Jaw, SK.

The Saskatoon Blades and Moose Jaw Warriors open the 2021-22 regular season, complete with fans in attendance - the first regular-season game allowing fans since March of 2020.

These two East Division rivals are opening a home-and-home series which will conclude tomorrow night at SaskTel Centre in the Blades home opener.

Who to Watch

Import forwards Egor Sidorov and Moritz Elias are expected to make their WHL season debuts this evening. The two 2004-born forwards skated on the same line in last Saturday's preseason game, which saw Moritz notch the insurance marker in a 2-0 win over Prince Albert.

Newly acquired forward Trevor Wong is also expected to make his Blades debut after being shipped out of Kelowna earlier this week. The former first-round selection was acquired by the Blades in a deal which sent Colton Dach to Rocket Territory.

Alternate captain Tristen Robins has returned to the Saskatoon Blades after spending the last 10 days with the San Jose Sharks. The pending WHL graduate will make the quick adjustment to junior hockey after lacing up with the big guns. A product of Clear Lake, MB, Robins piled up an impressive 23 points (10G-13A) in 16 games last season.

Tale of the Tape

There's no doubting both teams will come fully prepared and energized for tonight's contest, but reasons why stretch far beyond simply their return to play.

In the 2021 Hub Centre in Regina, Saskatoon won three out of four games, including a 5-4 overtime decision on April 26th to close out the season series.

The lone victory Moose Jaw had over Saskatoon handed the Blades their first regulation loss of the season, ending a 10-game point streak.

Saskatoon has only lost once in regulation to the Warriors over the last two seasons, chalking up an 8-1-1-0 record. They also hold a sizable advantage over the last five years with a 14-6-2-0 record.

COMPLETE GAME NOTES

Captain's Quarters

Veteran defender and former 1st round selection Aidan De La Gorgendiere is filling the shoes left by graduating captain Chase Wouters this season.

The Langley, BC native was given the "C" as captain earlier this week, and will make his captaincy debut in Moose Jaw on Friday night. De La Gorgendiere takes the "C" one year after serving as an alternate captain under Wouters, and is coming off an impressive 12-point (2G-10A) campaign in 16 games.

GAME #1 | Blades @ Warriors Oct 1st 2021, 18:07

Saskatoon Blades (0-0-0-0) @ Moose Jaw Warriors (0-0-0-0)

Date | Time Friday, October 1st | 7:00pm MT

Place Mosiac Place, Moose Jaw, SK

Video Stream WHL Live

Radio 600 CJWW Radio | Pre-Game Show w/ Les Lazaruk @ 6:30pm MT

Mobile App Apple | Android

What's Next Home Opener, presented by Merlin Ford Lincoln | Saturday, Oct. 2nd

Social Media @BladesHockey| Facebook | Instagram

Tonight

Check out the Saskatoon Blades Statistics



Western Hockey League Stories from October 1, 2021


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