Sam Steel was named the Western Hockey League’s player of the month for September and October.
The Regina Pats star had 10 goals and 12 assists in 11 games as he and the Pats stormed out of the gates.
Steel is one of three Pats who have been selected to represent the WHL at the CIBC Canada-Russia Series when it opens in Prince George on Nov. 7 and continues in Edmonton the following night. Joining Steel is forward Austin Wagner and defenceman Connor Hobbs.
The East Division is well-represented on the WHL team. Prince Albert defenceman Brendan Guhle has been named along with Brandon defenceman Kale Clague, Brandon forward Nolan Patrick and Moose Jaw forward Brett Howden. The WHL will be coached by Moose Jaw bench boss Tim Hunter.
Four East Division players were added to the Russian roster this week as well.
Moose Jaw Warriors forward Nikita Popugaev will play for Russia along with his Warriors teammate Dmitry Zaitsev. Regina’s Sergey Zborovskiy and Swift Current’s Artem Minulin will join Zaitsev on the blue line.
Pats top national poll
The Regina Pats (11-0-3-0) moved into the top spot in the CHL’s weekly top-10 rankings on Wednesday morning. They didn’t rest on their laurels as they went out and beat the Kootenay Ice 10-2 at home.
That win came on the heels of a 6-3 win over the Seattle Thunderbirds who have won three of their four games on their trip through the division thus far.
The top six spots on the WHL’s plus-minus rankings are all held by Pats players. Chase Harrison has had a great start to the season. He has two goals, 15 assists and is a plus-27 after 14 games. Zborovskiy isn’t far behind him at plus-22.
Warriors stay hot
In the middle of last week, Moose Jaw Warriors head coach Tim Hunter said he expected captain Brett Howden to make a quick return from his lower-body injury. That hasn’t happened, but the Warriors (10-3-2-1) have stayed hot without him.
The Warriors have won three straight games and six of their last seven contests as they moved into second place in the division.
The Warriors opened the week with a 4-2 win over Saskatoon. They came from behind to beat Prince Albert 3-1 on the back of a 41-save performance from goalie Zach Sawchenko.
The next night they hit the road and rallied once more as they scored three unanswered goals to beat Brandon 3-2 in overtime.
The Warriors goal-scoring remains concentrated with their high-end players. They scored 10 goals in three games, but Popugaev, Noah Gregor and Jayden Halbgewachs each had a two-goal game this week. Tanner Jeannot also scored twice over those three games.
What a shot by Nikita Pop-Pop-Popugaev and the Warriors win 3-2 in OT. pic.twitter.com/HUvDxsjI3L
— Moose Jaw Warriors (@MJWARRIORS) November 3, 2016
Broncos plan memorial
The 30th anniversary of the Swift Current Broncos bus crash that claimed the lives of players Trent Kresse, Scott Kruger, Chris Mantyka, and Brent Ruff is coming up on Dec. 30. A memorial monument will be erected near the site of the crash.
The Broncos (9-5-2-1) had a tough week at home as they managed a single win out of three one-goal games.
Swift Current lost 2-1 to Seattle before beating Spokane 3-2 in overtime a night later. They finished with week with a 5-4 loss to Edmonton in overtime.
Tyler Steenbergen scored the overtime-winner against Spokane and scored twice against Edmonton in a losing cause. Steenbergen’s 12 goals gives him a share of the WHL lead with Steel, Michael Rasmussen from Tri-City and Kootenay’s Zak Zborosky.
Travis Child made 45 saves in the win over the Chiefs as he and Taz Burman continue to split the load in goal.
Logan Barlage, the fourth overall pick in last year’s bantam draft, made his WHL debut against Edmonton.
Very meaningful memorial will be erected here in the near future as the 30th anniversary of the Broncos bus crash approaches on Dec 30. ? pic.twitter.com/4HBK5GJHSq
— Candace Toma (@c_woodside) November 2, 2016
Kings stunned by Ice — twice
After winning four straight games to climb up the East Division standings, the Brandon Wheat Kings (6-6-3-0) lost four straight to sit right back at .500.
The Wheat Kings completed a four-game road trip by losing to the Kootenay Ice twice in three nights in Cranbrook.
The Ice beat the Wheat Kings 2-1 and then again 6-2 as the Ice stunned the defending champs and picked up two of the three wins they have so far this season.
Brandon returned home and a pair of Reid Duke goals staked them to a 2-0 lead before Moose Jaw rallied in a 3-2 overtime victory.
The Wheat Kings are tied with the Saskatoon Blades on 15 points. The teams own the two wild card playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.
Flodell backstops Blades to win
The Blades (7-8-1-0) snapped their four-game losing streak thanks to a 23-save shutout effort by Logan Flodell. The Blades made Josh Paterson’s goal stand up as they beat Prince Albert 1-0.
That win came on the heels of their 4-2 loss in Moose Jaw. The Blades then fell behind 3-0 to Seattle at home, before mounting a comeback that came up short in a 4-3 loss.
Paterson and Mason McCarty each scored twice this week for the Blades who were pleased to see 20-year-old left winger Ryan Graham made his season debut to their injury-depleted forward corps.
Raiders mired in slump
The story of the week for the Prince Albert Raiders (4-11-1-0) has been the story for the start of their season: their inability to score.
The Raiders lost four games this week, opening with a 4-2 loss to Spokane. They followed that being shutout 1-0 to the Blades and then took 42 shots in a 3-1 loss in Moose Jaw.
They took a 2-0 lead into the third period against Seattle only to watch as the T-Birds scored five unanswered goals for a 5-2 win.
The Raiders currently have the worst record in the WHL heading into the weekend. It’s no coincidence that the Raiders have the least productive attack in the league, having scored an average of 2.19 goals-per-game so far this season.
