Bruins End Season With Loss to Weyburn

The CanElson Drilling Estevan Bruins regular season ended with some bad luck as they were defeated by the Weyburn Red Wings 4-2, the Bruins end their season with a .500 record (28-28-0-2) and lost the season series to Weyburn (5-3)

The Bruins opened up the scoring in the first period as Matthew Dochylo drove to the net drawing a penalty against the Red Wings, with the extra attacker on the ice Josh Jelinski found Tyler Paslawski in front of the net and Paslawski delivered his 11th goal of the season to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes of play.

In the second, Weyburn tied the game when Jesse Ross scored his 46th goal of the season for the Red Wings. The Bruins would regain the lead when Matt Brykaliuk found Tanner Froese along in front and Froese scored his 14th goal of the year to give the Bruins a 2-1 lead after two periods.

Weyburn responded in the third on the powerplay as Kyle Olenuik scored for the Red Wings on a loose scramble in front of the Bruins Tyler Ross to tie the game at 2-2. That's how the score remained until just over four minutes left when the Red Wing's Keegan Bruce attempted pass went off a Bruins skate and past Ross and the Red Wings grabbed the lead for good with a 3-2 lead. Miguel Pereria would add an empty netter to finish off the scoring.

After the game Bruins Head Coach Keith Cassidy noted that he was happy with the team's effort and was dissappointed that the Bruins lost because of a bad bounce. He pointed out the play of the Bruins AP's Connor Venne and Rhett Handley and said the Bruins future is looking bright.

With Tyler Ross starting for the second straight game on the weekend, it appears that Ross will get the start for Friday's game but he noted that no decision has been made as of yet. The total attendence for tonight's game was 2,115.

The Bruins will now open the Survivor Series on Friday against Notre Dame, you can catch the game on CJ1280 beginning at 7:20.

After the game I spoke with Bruins Head Coach Keith Cassidy about the game.

Bruins and Red Wing Notes

The Estevan Bruins will wrap up their regular season tonight when they host the Weyburn Red Wings at Spectra Place. (5:50 pregame on CJ1280 and discoverestevan.com.) Here's a few things to keep in mind for this evening's game.

-- A win by the Bruins would give them a record above .500. The Bruins have a record of 28-27-0-2. Last year the Bruins ended up with a record of 29-23-4-2.

-- The Bruins will be looking to even up the season series against Weyburn. The Red Wings lead the series 4-3 right now with the Bruins holding a 2-1 record against them at Spectra Place.

-- On Friday the Bruins called up a pair of Moose Jaw Generals (Dylan Johner and Darcy Deroose) and according to Bruins Director of Player Personnel Rick Oakes tweet this morning, the Bruins will be calling up a pair of Tisdale Trojans for tonight's game as local product Rhett Handley and Connor Venne will be in the lineup for the Bruins. Venne has 11 goals and 18 assists for the Trojans this season while Handley has 12 goals and 5 assists with 62 penalty minute.

-- Dylan Smith will win the scoring crown for the Bruins for the second time in his three year career with the Bruins. (Smith had 38 points in 45 games back in 2009-10) Smith has a chance to pick up 40 goals on the season with 37 goals coming into tonight's game. Calder Neufeld is second on the team with 34 goals.

-- The Bruins top two rookies in scoring will be out tonight as Taylor Reich will end his rookie campaign with 32 points in 49 games and Austin Yano will end off with 27 points. Tyler Kauk isn't too far behind with 23 points on the season.

-- The Bruins will be auctioning off  9 of their special jerseys today (pictured above) with the proceeds going to Hillcrest Early Learning Centre and Pure Energy Learning Centre.

-- That's it for now. Since I've interviewed all of the players for the intermissions this season, I'm going to have a little fun for today's game as I will be doing an interview with Dylan Smith and Calder Neufeld. Lucas Stubel will be joining me on color, fresh off Bienfait's 9-4 win Balcarres last night in their provincial series last night. So tune in pregame show once again at 5:50.

Bruins Beat Wings 6-3

The CanElson Drilling Estevan Bruins final game on the road was one of their finest performances as they picked up a 6-3 win over Weyburn.

The Bruins opened the scoring in the first as Matt Brykaliuk and Cole Olson scored within a minute of each other as the Bruins lead 2-0 early. The Bruins would go on a powerplay later in the first period, which ended up the Bruins giving up their 9th shorthanded goal of the season as Miguel Pereira scored for the Red Wings. But the Bruins would strike back later on the powerplay as Calder Neufeld replied with his 34th goal of the season and the Bruins lead 3-1 after the first.

In the second period after Weyburn cut the lead to 3-2, the Bruins blueline responded with a pair of goals as Dominic Perrault and Tyler Poskus scored for Estevan as the Bruins lead 5-2 after two periods. Perrault had a strong game last night as he was a physical force all night as he played the body and continued to be more aggressive offensively as well. Perrault was paired with Tyler Kauk last night and the pair was dominant all night for the Bruins at both ends of the ice and it will be interesting to see if they're paired together in the playoffs.

It was a tale of two tales in the third period, with the opening ten minutes featuring great back an forth action and very few whistles. Weyburn scored to make the score 5-3 before they ran into penalty troubles, giving the Bruins four powerplay opportunities and AP Darcy Deroose from the Moose Jaw Generals of the Sask AAA Midget league scored his first SJHL goal late in the third. Deroose and Dylan Johner didn't look out of place in their debuts, Johner picked up an assist for his first SJHL point.

Tyler Ross picked up the win with 29 saves in the win for the Bruins. The Bruins will close out the regular season tomorrow night when they host the Red Wings and you can catch the game on CJ1280 beginning at 7:20.

After the game last night I spoked with Bruins Head Coach Keith Cassidy.

Jay Onrait and Don Narcisse Guest Speakers for EMF Dinner

Estevan Minor Football wanted to make this year's fundraising dinner a huge success and I would say mission accomplished with the announcement that TSN's Jay Onrait and Rider legend Don Narcisse will be the guest speakers.

 Here is the official release from Estevan Minor Football.

One thrilled Estevan with his wit and humor during TSN’s Kraft Celebration Tour last summer. The other thrilled Saskatchewan Roughrider fans during a career spanning 13 years. 

Together, they’re coming to Estevan as part of Penta Completions Estevan Minor Football and the Estevan Elecs latest fundraising venture.

The Estevan Football Family is pleased to announce TSN SportsCentre host Jay Onrait and CFL Hall of Famer Don Narcisse as the guest speakers for it’s annual fundraising dinner. The event is set for April 14 at the Estevan Curling Rink.

Returning to emcee the event is Michael Ball, known to many for his role in CKRM’s Roughrider radio coverage.

Onrait co-hosts the 1 a.m. ET weekday edition of SportsCentre alongside Dan O’Toole. Viewers can also catch the duo each morning as that broadcast repeats on a loop until 1 p.m. ET the following day. Onrait was the host of Olympic Morning on CTV for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and will be part of the coverage for this summer’s Olympic Games in London, England.

But we remember Onrait for what he brought to Estevan last August during TSN’s Kraft Celebration Tour. The singing and dancing on-stage that energized the crowd and made that day’s edition of SportsCentre one local sports fans will never forget.

“Estevan Minor Football is continually blessed with the support we have received from our city, community, province, and now from all over,” says EMF president Steve McLellan.

“Being named a stop on the Kraft Celebration Tour 2011 allowed our wonderful community and program to be showcased to the entire country. Hosting Jay and Dan, as well as the rest of the Celebration tour gang was definitely a highlight of 2011. Anyone that attended, or watched the Kraft Celebration Tour stop on TV was treated to a great party and memory that hopefully we can build on April 14. Jay Onrait is a truthfully great guy, with an amazing sense of humor that I am sure will be on display once more in Estevan,” McLellan stated.

Narcisse, inducted into the CFL Hall of Fame in 2010, signed with the Roughriders on Sept. 1, 1987. He is a four-time CFL all-star, five-time divisional all-star, and was the Roughriders most popular player in 1994, 1995 and 1998. Of course, he was also a member of that Roughriders magical team which won the Grey Cup in 1989. And who can forget his touchdown dance? And the glass cutter gloves?

“To host Don Narcisse, the best receiver ever in the storied history of the Saskatchewan Roughriders is truly an honor for the Estevan Football Family,” McLellan says.

“Growing up watching legends such as Don in the CFL, has had a huge influence on the passion of many of us involved with the Estevan Football Family. Witnessing the tremendous support Don has received during and after his CFL career in Saskatchewan, he is sure to be a very captivating personality on April 14.”

As for Ball, he did a bang-up job emceeing last year’s dinner that it was an easy decision to have him back. He’s clever, funny and great at ad-libbing. Ball is also the current play-by-play voice of the University of Regina Rams and is part of the morning show on The Wolf 104.9. McLellan expects nothing but laughs from Ball.

“If last year was any indication, Michael is a tremendous emcee, and will provide many laughs while hosting the event. I personally cannot wait to see the banter between Jay and Michael.”

“Michael is a huge fan of the Estevan Football Family, and is a great supporter of minor football in the province,” McLellan concluded.

Tickets for the dinner are available at Henders Drugs. Price per ticket is $50. If you’re interested in a corporate table, please call Val (421-9850 or 388-2994) or e-mail vpaulson@sasktel.net. You can also call Wanda (634-3147 evenings) or e-mail theharrons@sasktel.net. Only 500 tickets will be sold.

Hard Knocks Returns To Estevan

MMA returns to Estevan on Saturday, March 3 with Hard Knocks Fighting Championship at Spectra Place. The first card was a huge success and there's plenty of anticipation for the second card. Last week I caught up with CEO Ari Taub.

Tuesday This and That

The Estevan Bruins playoff fate was sealed on the weekend as they’re heading to the Survivor Series next weekend likely starting next Friday in Estevan. I’ll spend more time talking about that next week since that series is still 10 days away from beginning.

The SJHL twitter listed some possible candidates for Rookie of the year and the one Bruin mentioned was Austin Yano. I wonder if Yano if the top rookie for the Bruins this season so I’ll leave that question on the right hand side to gauge the interest of the readers. 

Taylor Reich is likely out for the Survivor Series and that’s going to be a huge loss for the Bruins. Reich is one of the top 18 year olds in the SJHL this season with his ability to play many roles for the Bruins. There’s a chance Reich will be back in the second round if the Bruins make it that far.

Just a reminder the Bruins will be wearing their special jerseys on Sunday and will be auctioning the jerseys of Josh Jelinski, Derek Whitehill, Dominic Perrault, Matthew Dochylo, Michael Hengen, Tanner Froese, Ben Johnstone, and Dylan Smith at the game, while the rest of the jerseys are currently being auctioned off online at estevanbruins.com. The bidding for those jerseys closes on Monday at 12:00. The Bruins will also unveil the brand new mascot on Sunday. 

Now for Some NHL and CFL thoughts of mine. 

 It just might be me, but isn’t the NHL trading deadline shaping up to be a very quiet one. I just can’t see the Blue Jackets trading Rick Nash until after the season, but if he goes anywhere at the deadline I would say LA. Just because they have the players to send to Columbus and since they’re sitting in 7^th in the West, you would think they would be more desperate than other teams like the Rangers or Philly. 

Even if the deadline is quiet on February 27, you can count me as one of those guys who will be spending the day watching TSN even if nothing happens. 

CFL free agency kicks off tomorrow and finally the Andy Fantuz saga should come to an end. I don’t think Fantuz is coming back, but I would have no problem if he came back. I think some team like Toronto and Hamilton is going to throw a lot of money at him. Weyburn’s Brendon LaBatte seems Rider bound judging the comments from the Bombers today. It’s a no brainer for the Riders to go after an All-Canadian offensive lineman with local ties. I would still like to see Tristan Jackson back for the Riders, he was one of the best Riders pickup in the offseason last season.

Broncos Beat Bruins 6-2. Bruins Heading to Survivor Series

The CanElson Drilling Estevan Bruins went toe to toe with the best team in the SJHL, the Humboldt Broncos but in the end the Bruins lost 6-2 as the Bruins will now officially in third place and will mee the Notre Dame Hounds in two weeks time.

The Bruins had some chances early in the first period as they created a few turnovers inside of the Broncos zone, but Matt Hrinkw shut the door on the Bruins including a big glove save on Tyler Paslawki.

The Broncos would get the only goal in the first period when Neil Landry's shot went off a leg in front and the Bruins trailed 1-0 after the first.

The Bruins had a glorious opportunity in the second period to tie the game with a power play that was followed up by four minute power play, but the Bruins were unable to score on the man advantage.

The Broncos came back with a pair of deflection goals that went past Steven Glass from Ryan Marshall and Andrew Herle.

The Bruins did respond with a goal from Dominic Perrault, but the Broncos responded shortly with a goal from Marshall again as they lead 4-1 after two periods.

The Broncos opened the scoring before Cole Olson scored his 16th goal of the season to make the final 6-2 in favor of Humboldt. Steven Glass made 49 saves in the loss as the Bruins fall to 27-27-0-1.

The Bruins will close the season with a home and home set with Weyburn this weekend as they start in Weyburn on Friday night. 

What a Night. Bruins Win 3-2 in a Shootout over Kindersley

First off thank you to the Dochylo's for the birthday cake. In case you're wondering it's a chocolate coffee style and was very delicious.

After the Bruins only registered 10 shots in their loss to Yorkton, the Bruins turned around and piled 59 shots on the Klipper's Justin McDonald in a 3-2 shootout win.

Calder Neufeld opened the scoring for the Bruins, but Austin McDonald would tie the game a few minutes later.

In the third period, the Klippers would get the lead as Justin Lund deflected a shot past the Bruins Tyler Ross with just over 6 minutes left. With the McDonald standing on his head for the Klippers, you couldn't blame the Bruins if they were starting to get frustrated and wonder if they were ever going to beat McDonald.

But at the 2:40 mark, Tanner Froese stole a pass from McDonald and snuck it past him to tie the game up.

In the shootout, Kindersley had a 1-0 edge before Froese would tie the shootout up with a deke to his backhand. After a Kindersley miss, Neufeld pulled off the same move he used in Battlefords last Friday, he skated straight ahead with plenty of speed, stopped at hash marks and buried top shelf past McDonald.

The Bruins faithful would go home happy as Ross would stop the Klippers Colby Daniels in the final round of the shootout, afterwards Ross celebrated the win by Tebowing.

It was a nice turnaround for the Bruins after a pair of losses, the Neufeld-Smith-Olson had so many chances to score last night. After being split apart for the most part these last few weeks it seems like the three are hitting their strides once again as we head to the playoffs after playing the full game together.

The line of Ben Johnstone-Tanner Froese-Dayton Picard had a really strong game for Estevan. Picard didn't look out of place in his second game with the Bruins (first one was Nov.15 in Notre Dame) Johnstone was hitting everything in a blue jersey last night and Froese scoring two clutch goals. The Bruins are going to need some secondary scoring from players like Froese and Johnstone if they are going to make any kind of playoff run and last night it was that line who stepped up for the Bruins. Plenty of local talent on that line as well with Carlyle (Johnstone) Stoughton (Picard) Estevan (Froese) represented.

Austin Yano left the game in the first period with an upper body, his status is up in the air as of right now.  

The Bruins are back at it tonight when they meet the Humboldt Broncos, if the Bruins would get a win tonight, they would win the season series with the RBC Cup hosts. You can catch the game on CJ1280 and discoverestevan.com beginning at 7:20.

Just below I'm posting the final four shooters from last night's shootout.

Bruins Host Klippers Tonight

The Estevan Bruins will be looking to get back to their winning ways when they host the Kindersley Klippers tonight at Spectra Place, the Bruins have lost their last two games including a 5-2 loss to Kindersley last Saturday.

The Bruins hopes of finishing third in the conference were all but wiped away on Wednesday when they were shut out by the Yorkton Terriers 3-0. The one bright spot for the Bruins in the loss was Steven Glass who made 40 saves in the loss. If any team is expected to make a run in the post season they need a hot goalie and ever since Glass returned from his knee injury last week he has regained his form from early in December when he stole back to back games on the road in Yorkton and Melville. Glass numbers may not be among in the top ten in the SJHL but there should be no doubt that Glass is among the elite goaltenders in the SJHL and he has the ability to steal a series for the Bruins down the road.

With the Bruins likely headed for the Survivor Series against the Notre Dame Hounds in two weeks time,  the biggest thing for the Bruins is to head into the series playing good hockey. The Bruins have shown flashes of the play throughout the last month but now it's time for the Bruins to turn the corner and put together a string of solid games together.

The Bruins were without Austin Yano, Taylor Reich and Eric Baldwin on Wednesday and out of those three players I would expect that Yano would have the best shot of getting back into the lineup since he was out with an illness. Reich was going to see a specialist on his shoulder yesterday while Baldwin still has a nagging ankle injury.

The Bruins have gone 3-1-1 against the Klippers this season and will be looking to regain the scoring ability they showed against the Klippers on Jan.20 when they scored 6 goals in the first period on their way to a 8-1 win over Kindersley.

You can catch the game on CJ1280 and discoverestevan.com beginning at 7:20 with the pregame show. Former Bruin, Lucas Stubel will be joining me in the booth tonight. And just a reminder the remainder of the Bruins games will be on air for the rest of the season.

Bruins Weekly Winners

Last week the Bruins embarked on a three game road trip through Kindersley and Battlefords. The Bruins opened the road trip with 4-0 win in Kindersley on Thursday before a 7-6 shootout loss in Battlefords on Friday and they wrapped a the trip with a 5-2 loss against Kindersley on Saturday.

Player of the Week

Matthew Dochylo 

This was a toss up between Calder Neufeld and Dochylo, but last weekend Dochylo played some of his best hockey since being acquired by the Bruins last season. Dochylo scored a pair of goals in Kindersley, and added another pair in Battlefords. Dochylo continues to be dominant in the corners, and it's becoming very difficult for opposing d-men to knock him off the puck. Dochylo formed great chemistry with Josh Jelinski and Tyler Paslawski and the trio will likely be a big factor for the Bruins during their playoff run.

Defenceman and Rookie of the Week

Tyler Kauk

It was a big week for Kauk as he was named defenceman of the week in the SJHL. Kauk picked up 6 assists last week with four of them coming  in Battlefords. Kauk has been a heavy hitter all season and lately we’ve seen Kauk show more confidence by rushing the puck more into the opponent’s end. Kauk’s offensive numbers are continuing to pile up if he continues this current trend.

Unsung Hero of the Week

Steven Glass

After being sidelined with a knee injury that almost required surgery, Glass came back into the Bruins lineup and shut out the Klippers last Thursday. While Glass did give up 6 goals in the loss to Battlefords, he did battle back in the shootout as he stopped 7 out of 9 shots in the shootout, and against a team like Battlefords, I think that’s impressive.

The Bruins will host Yorkton tonight, and then entertain the Klippers on Friday followed by the Humboldt Broncos coming to town on Saturday night.