Thunder Talk: Febuary 3rd

Every Tuesday Keeny Trenton of CJVR/CK750 will be filling us in on the all the action in the NE SK Hockey scene.

If anyone tuned into the hockey action on CJVR and CK750, you heard a little of everything this weekend. On Friday and Saturday, you heard the Nipawin Hawks go to the Battlefords and Kindersley and pick up three of a possible four points. On Saturday and Sunday, you heard some Long Lake Hockey action, and on Sunday, you heard the Tisdale Trojans take on Beardy’s in Waldheim.

Melfort is two points up on the Hawks, but Nipawin has a game in hand. They play La Ronge tonight, and Melfort gets the Ice Wolves tomorrow. The Credit Union Cup has been to different SJHL centres and goes to Melfort Wednesday so fans will have a chance to see the cup at The Palace that night. This home and home between Melfort and Nipawin could very well determine who gets a bye to the semis, and who has to play in the survivor series. They’re in Nipawin Friday, and Melfort Saturday, so when you come to the rinks, be sure to have your radios with you as Darryl Skender will have the call both nights.

I called the game between the Lanigan Pirates and Drake Canucks Saturday, and that was a lot of fun. Lanigan ended up winning 6-3 and swept the season series (4 games), to clinch 3rd place. Some SJHL fans may remember names like Brett McRuvie, Mike Holmes, Evan Bryksa, and Scott Odelein just to name a few. Drake has guys like, Evan Folden, all who play with Lanigan. Evan Folden, Dave Spooner, Brad Toews, and Kevin Shmyr are some names on Drake. There’s lots of talent in the Long Lake League, and all teams in provincials are off to good starts, but that’s another topic for another time.

I was really excited to be able to call some more Tisdale Trojans hockey Sunday. They downed Beardy’s 6-4 to take their 5th in a row. Blake Voth was sensational in goal for the Trojans. In January, he had a 1.25GAA, and a .953SP. He started off February making 38 saves against a lethal Beardy’s offense. He’s listed by the Melfort Mustangs, and Head Coach Darrell Mann told me Voth committed to the team last week. Their balanced attack saw six different players’ score, with all four lines getting involved. Beardy’s has a really dangerous first line with Dylan Wruck, Dylan Smith, and Spencer Baht. Wruck and Baht are both in the top 5 in league scoring so keeping them in check most of the game was quite a challenge. Wruck did score twice in the span of 19 seconds, but at 16, he’s an unreal talent. Both he and Baht are listed with Humboldt, but Wruck signed with the Edmonton Oil Kings. Nipawin prospects, Tyler Paslawski, Spencer Lindsay, and Wilson Dumais looked great for Tisdale, while Beardy’s netminder Brandon Thiessen (Nipawin prospect) struggled for the Blackhawks.

I’m back on the road with Tisdale Thursday when they visit the Saskatoon Contacts. I love the SMAAAHL because I get to see the SJHL and WHL stars of tomorrow. Barry Archibald and Colin Ruether are two great coaches, and the players are fun to be around. It keeps me young. It’s a 7:45 start on CK750 Thursday so hope you can tune in.

And finally, to weigh in on the Thunder, I haven’t seen a game in quite some time, but what a run of 12 straight (and 13 of 14). A loss to the Royals like that could be exactly what the Dr. ordered. It’s a lesson of the attention to detail needed to beat teams like the Royals or Quakers. Tonight against Fort Knox, and Saturday against the Royals will really tell how the Thunder stack up against the league’s elite. It just goes to show that no matter how much of a roll you are on, you MUST keep up good habits. It should be interesting.

Until next time, see you at the rink.

Kenny