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WHL Saskatoon Blades

Game Day Hub: Season Finale Pins Blades against Wheaties

April 28, 2021 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Saskatoon Blades News Release


Brandon Wheat Kings (18-3-2-0) @ Saskatoon Blades (15-5-2-1)

Date | Time Wednesday, April 28th | 4:00pm MT

Place Brandt Centre, Regina, SK

Video Stream WHL Live

Radio 98 COOL FM | Pre-Game Show w/ Les Lazaruk @ 3:45pm MT

Mobile App Apple | Android

What's Next Summer Hibernation

Social Media @BladesHockey| Facebook | Instagram

Save-On-Foods Game Day Preview

After more than two months in quarantine, living and playing out of a bubble environment in Regina's Hub Centre, the season finale is finally here.

Both team's fate has already been decided, with the Wheaties clinching the East Division pennant with a victory over the Regina Pats on Sunday, but Saskatoon remains committed to competing for pride and honour to close out 2021.

The crew enters Game 24 coming off a gritty 5-4 victory over Moose Jaw, with defenceman Rhett Rhinehart netting the overtime winner.

The win put the Blades two points back of the Winnipeg ICE for second in the East Division, and also snapped a four-game losing skid.

Meanwhile, Brandon's win over Regina extended their win-streak to seven games, having not lost since a 3-2 setback to the Blades on April 11th.

Tale of the Tape

This is the fourth and final meeting between the two clubs, with Saskatoon holding a 2-1-0-0 record against the Wheat Kings.

Their most recent contest favoured the Blue & Gold 3-2 on April 11th, which saw veteran netminder Nolan Maier earn the game's first star with 42 saves.

https://twitter.com/BladesHockey/status/1381458284733853700

Brandon's lone victory over Saskatoon came on April 4th by a 4-1 score, with the Blades besting the Wheaties 6-4 to open the season series on March 22nd.

Historically, neither team holds much of an advantage with Saskatoon boasting a 10-10-1-1 record against the Wheat Kings over the last five years.

Who to Watch

As is the case every year, several players are closing the curtain on their WHL careers at the conclusion of the season finale. Captain Chase Wouters, alternate captain Caiden Daley, and defenceman Wyatt McLeod will skate in the final games of their careers this afternoon.

Wouters, the team's first three-year captain in franchise history, is lacing up in his 280th career game, all of which with a Pacman logo on his chest. The Lloydminster, AB product has two points (1G-1A) in two games vs. Brandon this season, and is coming off scoring his 9th goal of the campaign against Moose Jaw on Monday.

Team-leading scorer Kyle Crnkovic was named Monday night's first star after picking up a season-high four points (2G-2A). The Chestermere, AB product has 31 points (10G-21A) in 23 games, putting him fourth in the league.

NHL Draft-eligible forward Colton Dach replicated Crnkovic's four-point effort with a goal and three assists on Monday, including setting up Rhett Rhinehart for the OT winner. It was Dach's fourth multi-point game of the season, and the goal also snapped a four-game scoring drought.

What's Up, Dach?

Power forward Colton Dach is taking a similar path as his older brother and former Blade, Kirby Dach, cracking the latest ranking put together by NHL Central Scouting.

https://twitter.com/BladesHockey/status/1386889935613878281

The Fort Saskatchewan, AB product has been ranked with a 'C' rating by NHL Central Scouting in the latest 'Players to Watch' list, indicating either a fourth-, fifth-, or sixth-round draft pick in 2021.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pound winger has the second-most goals scored on the team with nine, and sits fourth in overall team scoring with 18 points (9G-9A).

A two-goal performance from the 18-year-old would match his season total from the 2019-20 campaign.

Ecologik Game Day 50/50...

24 games mean 24 chances to win a hefty cash prize through our Ecologik Game Day 50/50!

Purchase your tickets online beginning 1 hour prior to puck drop for every Blades game during the 2021 season. Participants must be of legal age to purchase and live in the Saskatoon area to purchase. Tickets are:

1 for $10

10 for $20

30 for $30

You know the drill: winner takes half the pot and the other half goes towards the Saskatoon Blades Player Education Fund.

Need to Know Love winning as much as we do? Download the Blades official mobile app, powered by SaskTel, and try your hand at some of our in-app games!

You have the chance to win a Hockey Gives Blood prize pack if you correctly predict the player who scores our first goal! Or put your puzzle-solving skills to the test with our photo scramble, featuring a new player and photo every game day.

The Blades official app has so much more to offer, giving our fans a new, interactive way to engage with their favourite team this season. It's available to download on Apple and Android devices!

Check out the Saskatoon Blades Statistics



Western Hockey League Stories from April 28, 2021


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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