[Hollywood2]

HERD CLAIM CONVINCING WIN IN OPENER


REGINA COUGARS 2
MANITOBA BISONS 6

Links:
|> [CIS Friday Round-Up] : [CW Friday Stories]
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of M Game Story] : [U of R Game Story]

The Bisons racked up a convincing, though at times lacklustre, win in game one of their quarter-final series against the Banjo-Cats. With the Jets hosting the Penguins, the crowd was the smallest I have ever seen. Even smaller than the crowds these teams drew to their pre-season series. My guess is there will be a much bigger audience for game two on Saturday.

The Bisons kicked the Kittens from pillar to post for most of the first 25 minutes en route to a 3-0 lead. Each of the Duval-Macaulay-Dittmer line scored a PP goal in that time (and in that order). Though the lead was nice, it killed any prospect for stimulating hockey. The Herd led on the shot clock 19-10 at the 1st intermission, and that was extended early in the 2nd period.

Once ahead 3-0 it was kitty-bar-the-door hockey. The Bisons rarely attempted to commit to offence. Troy Hunter scored a PP goal for the Cougars mid-way through the 2nd period. However, Del Cowan replied for the Bisons to make it 4-1 by intermission.

The Bisons played kill-the-clock for most of the 3rd period. However after 5 minutes Hunter notched his 2nd of the night to make it 4-2. Macaulay's empty-netter followed by Paul Ciarelli's cherry-on-top rounded out the scoring.

Although the Bisons gave up a record 37 shots on goal, Jesse Deckert had precious few difficult saves to make. On the other hand, Lucas Gore had loads of tough shots in the Kitten net.

Here's how they lined up:

Manitoba

Goal:
35 Deckert (1 Caligiuri)

Defence:
3 Mestery - 4 Schappert
22 Bestland - 2 Crowley
6 Melnychuk - 24 Bobbee

Forwards:
23 Dittmer - 19 Duval - 26 Macaulay
9 Lowry - 11 Henry - 21 Cowan
27 Feakes - 10 Rowinski - 29 Cain
18 Kelly - 25 Ciarelli - 16 Paradis

Scratches:
G: 34 Dubyk
D: 5 Christensen - 12 Sutherland - 20 Lockerby
F: 15 Scott - 17 Lauder

Regina

Goal:
35 Gore (30 Hayes)

Defence:
8 Friedel - 5 Reeve
7 Schneider - 18 Nielsen
24 Szucki - 2 Dech

Forwards:
20 Sawka - 14 Cuthbert - 17 Selinger
16 Nargang - 15 Murray - 19 King
25 Czerwonka - 12 Brennan - 9 Penny
13 Appleyard - 10 Henry - 22 Hunter

Scratches:
G: 1 Kilgore
D: 4 Sonntag
F: 11 Lange - 21 Hladun

OUT OF TOWN SCOREBOARD:


UBC THUNDERBIRDS 1
CALGARY DINOSAURS 3

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of C Game Story] : [UBC Preview Story]
|> [UBC Game Story]

The Bedrock Boys chalked up a convincing win of their own. UBC has been nipping at their heels the last two years. But on Friday night the Extinct Ones prevailed with style. The Tweety-Birds were outshot 16-3 in the 1st period, yet the Dinos held only a 1-0 lead on a goal from Brock "Milhouse" Nixon.

In the 2nd the Dinos pulled away with Nixon's 2nd a PP marker from Corey Banfield. UBC tried to make a 3rd period comeback, outshooting their hosts 13-5. But all they got was one goal, from Max Grassi.

In a bit of a surprise, the Dinos went with Dustin Butler in goal, whilst the British Californians answered with Jordan White.

In a scheduling note, Calgary has had to play games 1 and 2 of the series at their Max Bell Arena, rather than their usual digs at the Father David Bauer Arena.

OUT EAST:



Links:
|> [AUS Playoff Schedule/Results Page]

Friday, February 15
Acadia 5 Moncton 2 (series tied 1-1)
St. F-X 4 UPEI 5 (ot) (UPEI wins 2-0)



Links:
|> [OUA LeagueStat Daily]
|> [TB Newswatch Story]

Thursday, February 14
UOIT 1 Western Ontario 8 (game 1)
Laurier 4 Guelph 3 (ot) (game 1)

Friday, February 15
Carleton 2 Queen's 1 (Carleton wins 2-0)
Toronto 4 Ottawa 0 (series tied 1-1)
York 2 Windsor 4 (Windsor wins 2-0)
Waterloo 4 Lakehead 2 (Waterloo wins 2-0)

UP NEXT:

Saturday, February 16
Regina at Manitoba (Manitoba leads 1-0): CanadaWest.tv
UBC at Calgary (Calgary leads 1-0)
Ryerson at UQTR (UQTR leads 1-0)
Nipissing at McGill (Nipissing leads 1-0)
Toronto at Ottawa (tied 1-1)
Western Ontario at UOIT (UWO leads 1-0)
Guelph at Laurier (Laurier leads 1-0)

[Hollywood2]

DITTMER'S FOUR GOALS KILL THE KITTIES


REGINA COUGARS 0
MANITOBA BISONS 5
(Manitoba wins series 2-0.)

Links:
|> [CIS Saturday Round-Up] : [CW Saturday Stories]
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of M Game Story] : [U of R Team Site]

The Bisons were, by far, the better team on Saturday night. Their 8 one-sided victories over the Banjo-Cats really make the one loss (last Saturday) stand out. A win there and the Bisons would be hosting a semi-final series next weekend.

While the Banjo-Cats exceeded everybody's expectations this year, going a respectable 13-12-3, it is clear that they went as far as they could have hoped. To put it bluntly, there are very few Kittens who could have even cracked the Bison line-up had they attended training camp. So 2012-13 has to be considered a success at the U of R.

The Bisons established dominance from every line from the opening whistle. Shift after shift produced a quality scoring chance. However, most were wasted when the Bisons failed to even hit the net. The 1st period shots were 12-7 for the Bisons. They could have doubled that total by hitting the net. The one chance which connected was a deft cross-crease pass from Ian Duval which landed the puck on Tyler Dittmer's stick to be buried behind Andrew Hayes.

The 2nd period followed the 1st period blueprint, but this time the Bisons scored twice. Dittmer converted another Duval pass before the fans had even settled in with their popcorn. Then Tyler Feakes whipped one in from the right side of the slot, on a pass from Duval.

Dittmer then scored twice more in the 3rd period. The 4-0 goal was the easiest goal ever. Jeremy Schappert passed from the left wing boards and hit a wide-open Dittmer no more than a few inches from the gaping net.

Here's how they lined up:

Manitoba

Goal:
35 Deckert (1 Caligiuri)

Defence:
3 Mestery - 4 Schappert
22 Bestland - 2 Crowley
6 Melnychuk - 24 Bobbee

Forwards:
23 Dittmer - 19 Duval - 26 Macaulay
9 Lowry - 11 Henry - 21 Cowan
27 Feakes - 10 Rowinski - 29 Cain
18 Kelly - 25 Ciarelli - 16 Paradis

Scratches:
G: 34 Dubyk
D: 5 Christensen - 12 Sutherland - 20 Lockerby
F: 15 Scott - 17 Lauder

Regina

Goal:
30 Hayes (35 Gore)

Defence:
8 Friedel - 18 Nielsen
14 Cuthbert - 5 Reeve
24 Szucki - 2 Dech

Forwards:
21 Hladun - 20 Sawka - 17 Selinger
16 Nargang - 15 Murray - 19 King
13 Appleyard - 10 Henry - 22 Hunter
25 Czerwonka - 12 Brennan - 9 Penny

Scratches:
G: 1 Kilgore
D: 4 Sonntag - 7 Schneider
F: 11 Lange

So next weekend the Bisons will visit Saskatown to face the Banjo-Mutts at the Rutherford, provided it is still standing by then.

OUT OF TOWN SCOREBOARD:


UBC THUNDERBIRDS 4
CALGARY DINOSAURS 2
(Series tied 1-1.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of C Game Story] : [UBC Game Story]

Three goals on 5 shots turned around game two for the Tweety-Birds and allowed them to tie the series and force game three on Sunday night.

Game two was to my surprise available on CanadaWest.tv, and game three on Sunday is also slated for broadcast. Puck drop is 6:00 MST, or 7:00 CST.

Jordan White has started both games in goal for UBC. After Dustin Butler was somewhat of a surprise starter in game one, the Bedrock Boys went back to Jacob Deserres in game two.

OUT EAST:



Links:
|> [OUA LeagueStat Daily]

Saturday, February 16
Ryerson 3 UQTR 7 (UQTR wins 2-0)
Nipissing 1 McGill 4 (series tied 1-1)
Toronto 2 Ottawa 3 (ot) (Ottawa wins 2-1)
Western Ontario 5 UOIT 2 (W.Ont. wins 2-0)
Guelph 3 Laurier 2 (series tied 1-1)

UP NEXT:

Note: all series playing on Sunday are tied 1-1.

Sunday, February 17
UBC at Calgary : CanadaWest.tv
Moncton at Acadia
Nipissing at McGill
Laurier at Guelph

Semi-final match-ups:

Alberta v Calgary/UBC winner
Saskatchewan v Manitoba
Western Ontario v Waterloo
Windsor v Guelph/Laurier winner
UQTR v Ottawa or Nipissing
Carleton v McGill or Ottawa
New Brunswick v UPEI or Moncton
Saint Mary's v Acadia or UPEI

[Hollywood2]

There were a couple of new stories I found from Examiner.com, a Calgary site. For those in Calgary, tonight's game goes at 7:00 MST and the series shifts back to the Dinos' usual digs at the Father David Bauer Arena. For everybody else, the game is on-line at CanadaWest.tv.

Since the winner of this series will face Alberta, there has been no impediment to setting the semi-final schedule. And the CWUAA has done just that:



Friday, February 22, 2013 - 7:00 MST - CanadaWest.tv
Saturday, February 23, 2013 - 6:00 MST - CanadaWest.tv
Sunday, February 24, 2013 - 6:00 MST - CanadaWest.tv



Friday, February 22, 2013 - 7:00 CST
Saturday, February 23, 2013 - 7:00 CST
Sunday, February 24, 2013 - 7:00 CST

I suspect that the games from the Rutherdump Arena will be shown on CanadaWest.tv, since they have done so in each of the past few years. Of course, with the Rutherdump one always has to be concerned about the roof caving in. For the Bisons, the place is contoured perfectly for a big physical team. Hopefully, they can still fit cameras into the place.

Links:
|> [On-line video: CanadaWest.tv]
|> [Examiner.com: Dinos beat Thunderbirds 3-1 Friday night]
|> [Examiner.com: Thunderbirds force game three in CIS men's hockey action Sunday]
|> [CIS Playoff schedule/results/links]
|> [CW schedule/results/links]
|> [OUA schedule/results/links]
|> [AUS Playoff schedule/results/links]

[Hollywood2]

SEMI-FINALS ARE SET

With the Bisons having booked their ticket to the semi-final round, all we have on Game Three Sunday is a round-up from the four game threes played in four different provinces.

All of the games were on-line, and I was able to see at least a bit of each. It was actually a bit of a treat.

OUT OF TOWN SCOREBOARD:


UBC THUNDERBIRDS 1
CALGARY DINOSAURS 4
(Calgary wins series 2-1.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of C Game Story] : [UBC Game Story]

UBC came out to play what was a key game for their program. They are the CW's #5 program, up against the #4 program to whom they lost a quarter-final series last season. Instead of coming up with a big effort they absolutely crapped the bed.

UBC was outshot 13-1 in the 1st period but were still tied 0-0. Problem was they had a 5 minute major to kill to start the 2nd period. The Bedrock Boys scored and that was that. UBC managed only 8 (yes, single digit) shots in the whole game.

Due to a loading problem with the CanadaWest.tv feed I missed Calgary's first two goals. What I did see emphasized just how bad UBC was. An unfortunate end to the season for them.

OUT EAST:


MONCTON AIGLES BLEUS 3
ACADIA AXEMEN 4
(in overtime)
(Acadia wins series 2-1.)

Links:
|> [AUS Boxscore] : [CIS Boxscore]

After game one was a bit of a disaster for the Cajuns, they rallied for the win. They were outshooting the Aigles 34-11 after two periods, but only led 2-1 on the scoreboard. Moncton turned things around in a wild 3rd period where the shots were 17-17. The Cajuns finally won in OT, and the shots were 68-39.


NIPISSING LAKERS 2
MCGILL REDMEN 1
(Nipissing wins series 2-1.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

McGill joined Moncton as 2012 University Cup qualifiers to get the shoe in the quarter-final round. The game had a good pace but many players on both sides looked like Junior "B" calibre grads. The Nippers carried the play for the better part of the evening, outshooting the McGilligutties 37-28. McGill did pour it on late, to no avail.


LAURIER GOLDEN HAWKS 2
GUELPH GRYPHONS 3
(in overtime)
(Guelph wins series 2-1.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

I saw less of this one than the others. The game was quite slow-paced. Like the other games out east, the team with the edge in shots won in the end, In this case 41-24.

QUARTER FINAL RECAP:

Canada West
Byes: Alberta and Saskatchewan
Manitoba beat Regina 2-0
Calgary beat UBC 4-1

OUA - West
Western Ontario beat UOIT 2-0
Windsor beat York 2-0
Waterloo beat Lakehead 2-0
Guelph beat Laurier 2-1

OUA - East
UQTR beat Ryerson 2-0
Carleton beat Queen's 2-0
Nipissing beat McGill 2-1
Ottawa beat Toronto 2-1

AUS
Byes: New Brunswick and Saint Mary's
Acadia beat Moncton 2-1
UPEI beat St. F-X 2-0

UP NEXT:

Friday, February 22
Calgary at Alberta
Manitoba at Saskatchewan

OUA and AUS schedules are TBA.

[Hollywood2]

NEWS AND UPDATES


The U of R released their game story. It did not add much but there is this little ray of sunshine for the Banjo-Cats:

The Cougars made huge strides during the 2012-13 campaign under first-year head coach Todd Johnson, collecting 29 points in conference play after finishing with 13 points just a year ago. The team qualified for the postseason this year for the first time since 2009, and expects to return everyone to next season's roster with the exception of fifth-year defenceman Russ Nielsen and graduating fourth-year forward Ryan Sawka.

I also found links to some media stories. The Free Press just had a small blurb on the hockey team.

It seems the Kitties got some false hope from their 4-2 win last weekend. And d-man John Sonntag had quite an injury to his forearm. He was injured in a game against the Monkeys on February 1st.

Links:
|> [U of R Game Story]
|> Winnipeg Free Press: [All-Sport Preview]
|> Regina Leader-Post: [Regular Season Story] : [Preview Story]



Links:
|> [OUA LeagueStat Schedule]

Wednesday, February 20
UQTR at Nipissing
Ottawa at Carleton

Thursday, February 21
Waterloo at Western Ontario
Guelph at Windsor

Friday, February 22
Carleton at Ottawa

Saturday, February 23
Nipissing at UQTR
Western Ontario at Waterloo
Windsor at Guelph

Sunday, February 24
Waterloo at Western Ontario*
Guelph at Windsor*
Ottawa at Carleton*
Nipissing at UQTR*

[Hollywood2]

WEEKEND PREVIEW


MANITOBA BISONS (17-7-4, 2-0, 22-9-4-1, OHT35 #7)
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES (19-8-1, 21-9-2, OHT35 #6)

Friday, February 22nd, 7:00 p.m. CST @ Rutherford Arena, U of S
Saturday, February 23rd, 7:00 p.m. CST @ Rutherford Arena, U of S
Sunday, February 24th, 7:00 p.m. CST @ Rutherford Arena, U of S (if required)

Live Links:
|> [Live Stats Friday] : [Live Stats Saturday] : [Live Stats Sunday]
|> [Live Video (to be confirmed)]

Manitoba Links:
|> [U of M: Dittmer Athlete of the Week]
|> [LS Stats] : [LS Schedule/Results]
|> [Twitter] : [Facebook]
|> [Winnipeg Free Press: All Sport Preview]

Saskatchewan Links:
|> [U of S Preview Story]
|> [LS Stats] : [LS Schedule/Results]
|> [Twitter] : [Facebook]
|> [Saskatoon Star=Phoenix: Dave King Story]

Prior Games:
|> [Oct 12: Man 2-1] : [Oct 13: Sask 2-1]
|> [Jan 4: Man 4-2] : [Jan 5: Sask 3-2]
|> [Head-to-Head Stats]

Other Links:
|> [CIS Site] : [Playoff Schedule/Results/Links] : [University Cup]
|> [CW Weekend Preview] : [Schedule/Results/Links]
|> [LeagueStat Daily] : [CW Weekly Media Notes #17]
|> [Every Link Re: CIS Hockey]

Now, the playoffs get serious. It would be nice if the Herd was hosting this series. But if they have to play away, no better place for them than the Rutherdump Arena. Back in the day, the tiny rink was a big edge for the Banjo-Mutts. But now that the Bisons have more than their share of big recruits, this venue helps them. Provided, of course, that no chunks of roof break and land on them.

The Bisons have held the edge over the Mutts this year. Each team won twice. However, the Bisons outshot them every game. The Bison D was able to stifle the Mutts' forwards, who usually barely broke the 20 shot barrier each game. The most shots they had was 27 in game 4, when the Bisons had 40. Check out the "head-to-head" link for a plethora of interesting facts. There is one error. They claim the teams have met 14 times in the last 5 years. I believe they must have played 26 times in the regular season (4 times the last 2 seasons, 6 times the years before that).

In the overall standings, Sask was one point ahead. In offence the Bisons ranked 2nd with 105 goals while the Mutts were 3rd with 100. In defence, the Bisons were 3rd with 71 goals against and the Mutts were 4th with 82.

In all 4 games these teams played, the goaltenders were Jesse Deckert for the Bisons and Ryan Holfield for Sask. Expect that to continue.

As usual, the big weapon for the Bisons is the 1st line, Dittmer-Duval-Macaulay. They were 3 of the top 6 scorers in the CW and had the Banjo-Cats reeling last weekend. However, the other lines were also adept at applying pressure. When the Banjo Boys visited Manitoba they had very little pressure applied by their 2nd-4th lines. They just scrambled to get the puck out of their end then do a line change.

One has to consider what impact playing host to the University Cup is having on Sask. Some would say it takes away a bit of an edge. Others would say it helps to relax and just play the game without thinking of the consequences.

Final note: The CanadaWest.tv broadcast is not yet confirmed but I suspect it shall be. Keep checking!

ELSEWHERE:


CALGARY DINOSAURS (17-11-0, 2-1, 22-15-0, OHT35 #14)
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS (23-4-1, 34-4-1, OHT35 #1)

Links:
|> [Live Stats Thursday] : [Live Stats Friday] : [Live Stats Sunday]
|> [Live Video (all games)]
|> [U of A Preview Story] : [U of C Team Site]
|> [Head-to-Head Stats]

The Bedrock Boys have lost the last two CW finals. To make it 3 in a row they need a win over the Evil Monkeys. While they have a chance, I would say they are a longshot. The Dinos only beat the Monkeys once out of four games this year, and that was in a shootout.

Although it took the Dinos 3 games to eliminate UBC, they did dominate game 3. This makes me wonder if they are peaking at the right time, like last year. The Butler/Deserres rotation in goal has them 2nd in goals against. But the Monkeys are 1st, with the Mucha/Cyr rotation. Not to mention, the Monkeys are also 1st in goals scored.

IMO the Dinos chance is to lay the body on the little Monkeys and hope they run out of gas in game 3. They will also need stellar goaltending.

OUT EAST:

The weekend started early out east with three games Wednesday, and more coming on Thursday. Note that the AUS is playing best-of-five in the semi-finals while the OUA sticks to best-of-three.

Links:
|> [OUA LeagueStat Daily]
|> [AUS Playoff Schedule/Results Page]
|> [CIS Wednesday Round-up]


ACADIA AXEMEN 3
SAINT MARY'S HUSKIES 2
(in overtime)
(Acadia leads series 1-0.)

Links:
|> [AUS Boxscore] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [Game Story]

This series is a toss-up. Game one proved that theory. Expect lots of overtime in this match-up.


UQTR PATRIOTES 3
NIPISSING LAKERS 1
(UQTR leads series 1-0.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

Due to distance, game one was in Nipperland and games 2-3 will be in Trois-Rivieres. I would make UQTR heavy favourites to finish this one off.


OTTAWA GEEGEES 1
CARLETON RAVENS 3
(Carleton leads series 1-0.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [Ottawa Citizen Preview]

This cross-town derby match-up is drawing lots of attention. Carleton took game 1 with a sound win. I fully expect them to provide a stiff challenge to UQTR for the OUA East title.

UP NEXT:

Thursday, February 21
Acadia at Saint Mary's
UPEI at New Brunswick
Waterloo at Western Ontario
Guelph at Windsor

NEWS:

There were four sets of stories in the news this week. First, the CIS issued another top ten poll which was unchanged. Not surprising, since 4 teams had byes.

The Regina Leader-Post gave good coverage to the Banjo-Cats down the stretch. The story claims they are only losing two Kittens next year, Russ Nielson and Ryan Sawka.

The Canadian University Press found a couple of questionable stories. In one, Concordia claims to have a new computer program which gives their team an edge. Maybe they meant to say "... when we play Xbox ...." Hockey IntelliGym is "an online program which uses cognitive simulation technology to improve players’ performance in team sports". We'll see.

The other doozy was a typical feminist junk story common in university publications. The author cites bland stats to form the basis for a whine. "[F]rom all 54 universities included under the CIS roster, out of 480 head coaches, 408 of them were male." Well, duh! Ever think that men like sports way more than women do and therefore there would be a much larger pool of male candidates? Ever think that there exists a link between the low numbers of volunteer female coaches at all levels and the low numbers of paid female coaches at higher levels?

Links:
|> CIS Top Ten: [Press Release] - reposted at [Boxscore News] and [CW Site]
|> Cougar season recap: [Regina Leader-Post]
|> Concordia's technology: [The Concordian] - reposted at [CUP]
|> Women coaches: [The Carillon] - reposted at [CUP]

[Hollywood2]

UPDATED WEEKEND PREVIEW



The away teams for the CW semi-finals posted their preview stories on Thursday. And it was confirmed that CanadaWest.tv will carry the on-line video for the Manitoba-Saskatchewan series.

Links:
|> [U of M Preview Story]
|> [U of C Preview Story]
|> [Live Video (all games)]

OUT EAST:

The favourites racked up a grand slam on day 2 of the eastern playoffs.

Links:
|> [OUA LeagueStat Daily]
|> [AUS Playoff Schedule/Results Page]
|> [CIS Thursday Round-up (to be posted)]


ACADIA AXEMEN 2
SAINT MARY'S HUSKIES 4
(Series tied 1-1.)

Links:
|> [AUS Boxscore] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [Hockeyscene Game Story]

It figured that this series would be level after two games. The teams now play Saturday and Sunday at the home of the Cajuns.


UPEI PANTHERS 2
NEW BRUNSWICK VARSITY REDS 7
(UNB leads series 1-0.)

Links:
|> [AUS Boxscore] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [Hockeyscene Game Story]

Half-way through the game it was only 1-0 for the Squirrels. Then came the @** kicking. Game two goes Friday night in Fredericton. The teams will then take the weekend off (no need to rush a playoff series!) before shifting to the Island.


WATERLOO WARRIORS 1
WESTERN ONTARIO MUSTANGS 3
(UWO leads series 1-0.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

Napoleon met his Waterloo, but the Urban Cowboys have not. Waterloo scored the first goal 7 minutes into the 3rd period. There were only 3 penalties in the game. Game two goes Saturday in Waterloo.


GUELPH GRYPHONS 1
WINDSOR LANCERS 2
(Windsor leads series 1-0.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore

This is one of the closest match-ups, on paper, in the semi-final round. Windsor only had 22 shots on goal. Game two goes Saturday in Guelph.

UP NEXT:

Friday, February 22
Manitoba at Saskatchewan
Calgary at Alberta
UPEI at New Brunswick
Carleton at Ottawa

[Hollywood2]

BISONS HAVE WORST GAME IN DECADE ... AT LEAST


MANITOBA BISONS 1
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 7
(Sask leads series 1-0.)

Links:
|> [CIS Friday Round-Up] : [CW Friday Stories]
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of M Game Story and Stats] : [U of S Game Story]
|> [Saskatoon Star-Phoenix Game Story]

The Bisons picked a bad time to have their worst game of the decade, at least. I was unable to watch on-line because my son is in basketball playoffs this weekend. But I did see a tweet that Blair Macaulay was hurt. I would expect some fireworks at the Rutherdump in game 2 Saturday night, available on CanadaWest.tv.

The Mutts took a 4-0 1st period lead and outshot the Herd 16-5. In the end the Bisons rallied on the shot clock even though short-handed most of the game.

A big game one win does not give a team a game two edge. Just ask UNB and UPEI after you scroll down ....

OUT OF TOWN SCOREBOARD:


CALGARY DINOSAURS 0
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 4
(Alberta leads series 1-0.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of A Linescore and Story] : [reposted at U of C Site]

The Evil Monkeys enjoyed a solid win over the Bedrock Boys. My thought was that one of the first two games would be tight and if Calgary wins, attrition could decide the series in game three. The Dinos could still cling to that theory.

OUT EAST:

Links:
|> [OUA LeagueStat Daily]
|> [AUS Playoff Schedule/Results Page]


UPEI PANTHERS 4
NEW BRUNSWICK VARSITY REDS 2
(Series tied 1-1.)

Links:
|> [AUS Boxscore] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [Hockeyscene Game Story]

Amazingly, the Squirrels only had 20 shots on goal on home ice. The teams have the weekend off before hooking up in Green Gables Monday and Tuesday nights. This one illustrates the "different day, different teams" theory.


CARLETON RAVENS 3
OTTAWA GEEGEES 4
(Series tied 1-1.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

Cartoon U blew 2-0 and 3-1 leads en route to a loss and a 1-1 series tie. The deciding match goes Sunday at Carleton. Cross-town rivalries always have an element of unpredictability about them.

UP NEXT:

Saturday, February 23
Manitoba at Saskatchewan
Calgary at Alberta
Saint Mary's at Acadia
Nipissing at UQTR
Western Ontario at Waterloo
Windsor at Guelph

[Hollywood2]

BISONS SEND MANGY MUTTS TO THE DOG HOUSE


MANITOBA BISONS 4
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 1
(Series tied 1-1.)

Links:
|> [CIS Saturday Round-Up (to be posted)] : [CW Saturday Stories]
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of M Game Story and Stats] : [U of S Game Story]

But for good chunks of the first period when the on-line video was either buffering, frozen, or the link was lost, I was able sit back, relax, and enjoy watching the Bisons bounce back ably and even the series.

Jesse Deckert made 2 or 3 excellent saves, mostly on 2nd period power plays. However he was not exactly peppered with shots. The alignment on D was as per the last several games (Mestery-Schappert, Bestland-Crowley, and Melnychuk-Bobbee).

Blair Macaulay was scratched due to injury and Austin Lauder drew into the line-up as a replacement. Matthew Lowry stepped up to the #1 line with Ian Duval and Tyler Dittmer. The unit accounted for two goals. The 4th line (Kelly-Ciarelli-Paradis) seemed to be intact. The Feakes-Henry-Cain line was reunited at times, but I also saw Henry out there with Rowinski and Cowan, and possibly once with Lauder.

The 1st period was hard to watch, for technical reasons. Since there were no goals there were no goals to miss.

Ian Duval notched the only goal of the 2nd period. The official shots were 15-10 for the Mutts, which I thought seemed a little high for both sides. In any event, the Mutts' only real pressure came on the PP (they went 1-for-9 on the night).

The 3rd period saw the Bisons take control of the game. Dane Crowley scored early to make it 2-0 and that margin, plus the penalty killing, seemed to give the team confidence. When Zac Stebner and his bad 70s mullet cut the lead to 2-1, it took less than a minute for the Bisons to restore the two goal lead. James Henry added an empty-netter for good measure.

The rubber match goes Sunday at 7:00 CST and is available on-line at CanadaWest.tv.

OUT OF TOWN SCOREBOARD:


CALGARY DINOSAURS 0
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 2
(Alberta wins series 2-0.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of A Linescore and Story] : [reposted at Boxscore News]
|> [U of C Game Story] : [Edmonton Journal Game Story]

How do you win a series without goal? You don't. And that's why the Dinosaurs went extinct. The Evil Monkeys outshot them 12-4 in the 1st period and held a 1-0 lead. The Bedrock Boys battled back to outshoot the Monkeys 25-18 the rest of the night. Monkey netminder Kelly Mu-u-ucha could not be beat for the 2nd night in a row.

So the CW final will be in Edmontown next weekend, with Saudi Alberta hosting the winner of Manitoba-Saskatchewan.

OUT EAST:

Links:
|> [OUA LeagueStat Daily]
|> [AUS Playoff Schedule/Results Page]


SAINT MARY'S HUSKIES 3
ACADIA AXEMEN 2
(SMU leads series 2-1.)

Links:
|> [AUS Boxscore] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [Hockeyscene Game Story]

Yet another tight game in a series which is tough to call. Game 4 goes Sunday.


NIPISSING LAKERS 3
UQTR PATRIOTES 8
(UQTR wins series 2-0.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore (to be posted)]

This whipping really makes the McGilligutties look bad. UQTR really lucked out, facing Ryerson and Nipissing on their way to a division final.


WATERLOO WARRIORS 4
WESTERN ONTARIO MUSTANGS 3
(Series tied 1-1.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

Waterloo was outshot 47-24 but still beat the Urban Cowboys. Game 3 goes Sunday.


WINDSOR LANCERS 1
GUELPH GRYPHONS 0
(Windsor wins series 2-0.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

The scores could not have been closer (even the shots were even at 31-31), but in the end a sweep is a sweep. Windsor was on the edge between the A level and the B level all year, and now they have a ticket to the OUA West final. Guelph lost their starting goaltender late in the season, but after surrendering 3 goals in 2 games in the series, they surely cannot blame goaltending.

UP NEXT:

Sunday, February 24
Manitoba at Saskatchewan [CanadaWest.tv]
Saint Mary's at Acadia [AUStv.ca]
Waterloo at Western Ontario
Ottawa at Carleton [SSNCanada.ca]

NOTE: AS AT MY SUNDAY MORNING UPDATE THERE IS NO ON-LINE VIDEO LINK FOR THE URBAN COWBOYS V WARRIORS GAME.

[Hollywood2]

BISONS ELIMINATED


MANITOBA BISONS 1
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 4
(Sask wins series 2-1.)

Links:
|> [CIS Sunday Round-Up] : [CW Sunday Story]
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [U of M Game Story and Stats] : [U of S Game Story]

On Sunday night I was struggling with a flu bug and wound up dozing off so as to miss the ending. While the Bisons didn't play terribly they never really got it together in this series. Still, it was even at one win each and they were playing a sudden-death game for all the marbles. The Bisons were unable to mount any sustained pressure in the 1st period, but did force the play in the 2nd. However, in both periods they gave up one goal. The Banjo-Mutts scored twice early in the 3rd to salt it away. Jesse Deckert's save percentage on the weekend was not sterling. They could have used some keys tops to preserve their ability to mount a rally.

OUT OF TOWN SCOREBOARD:

OUT EAST:

Links:
|> [OUA LeagueStat Daily]
|> [AUS Playoff Schedule/Results Page]


SAINT MARY'S HUSKIES 1
ACADIA AXEMEN 0
(SMU wins series 3-1.)

Links:
|> [AUS Boxscore] : [CIS Boxscore]
|> [AUS Recap]

So, SMU will be at the U-Cup. As expected, this was a tight series. Oddly, UNB and UPEI have as many as three games left in their series.


WATERLOO WARRIORS 5
WESTERN ONTARIO MUSTANGS 3
(Waterloo wins series 2-1.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

The Urban Cowboys enjoyed a season beating up on 98 pound weaklings. So a playoff loss was not completely unexpected. Still, one would think they would have beaten a B level side like Waterloo. They did outshoot them (again), by 38-26 this time.


OTTAWA GEEGEES 0
CARLETON RAVENS 6
(Carleton wins series 2-1.)

Links:
|> [LS Summary] : [CIS Boxscore]

And in the end the Geegees sucked. Cartoon U can now become the first Ontario team to win the OUA East since Ottawa in 2004, and the time before that was Guelph in 1997.

UP NEXT:

Monday, February 25
New Brunswick at UPEI

Tuesday, February 26
New Brunswick at UPEI

Conference/Division Finals TBD