Game 7 Game Notes

Stats, tendencies, first goals, third period leads, home ice... none of it has meant a thing in this SJHL Sherwood Conference Final.

Here's a quick summary of the series so far.

Game 1 - Yorkton 3 @ Kindersley 4 (OT)
Maybe the most "normal" game of the series. Teams traded goals all night, Yorkton never led, and Kindersley led 4 times, with Kevin Clark scoring on a short-handed 2-on-1 in overtime. (Klippers led series 1-0)

Game 2 - Yorkton 7 @ Kindersley 4
The only one of the first six games decided by more than one goal, but even this one was close. The Terriers got up 3-1, but Kindersley scored twice within 29 seconds of the second period to tie it, but before the period was up, the Terriers sniped three quick ones in a space of 2:09. (Series tied 1-1)

Game 3 - Kindersley 2 @ Yorkton 3
Where it REALLY started getting exciting. This marked the start of 4 straight one-goal games. Kindersley scored first, and lost. The Terriers scored on three consecutive second period powerplays 4:18 apart. At the midway point of the series, the Terrier PP was clicking at over 50%. (Terriers led series 2-1)

Game 4 - Kindersley 3 @ Yorkton 2
Another close, but wild one. One of the unsung heroes of the series, Riley Down opened the scoring for Kindersley, but the Terriers took the lead back. However, the see-saw continued, and the Klippers tied it, and then won it, when Jordan Hoffman went straight ahead on an offensive zone faceoff, was untouched, and scored with 1:10 left. (Series tied 2-2)

Game 5 - Yorkton 4 @ Kindersley 3 (OT)
Yorkton didn't lead until Troy Smukowich scored 5:24 into overtime, his league-leading 12th of the playoffs. Kindersley scored the first TWO goals, and lost. They went ahead 3-2 with 4:03 left, but Ryan Griffiths forced overtime with 39 seconds left. (Terriers lead series 3-2)

Game 6 - Kindersley 3 @ Yorkton 2
The shoe was on the other foot this time. Yorkton came out of the gates playing like they wanted to wrap it up at home, got out to a quick 2-0 lead, but once it became 2-0 Terriers, the Klippers instantly became the more urgent team, and kept it up for the rest of the night. The Terriers were fortunate to still have their 2-0 lead after two periods, but Andrew Dommett cut the lead in half less than 5 minutes in, Riley Down tied it, and then, with 22 seconds left, there was a faceoff in the the Klipper zone, and some how, some way, they ended up with a 3-on-1, and Tanner Exner kept, shot, and scored with 4 seconds remaining to force a 7th game. (Series tied 3-3)

If former Klipper Voice Darren Dupont's reading, he'll remember what I'm about to say like it was yesterday. Exner's late goal brought back memories of the 2007-08 Sherwood Conference Final between Melville and Kindersley. The Mils won Game 1 on home ice, and the two teams went to overtime the next night at the Stadium. 8.1 seconds left in the first overtime... faceoff in the Klipper zone. Looked like double overtime was coming, unless the Mils won the draw back and got a quick shot off. BUT... the Klippers won the draw, sent it up the left wing boards to Brett Leedahl (whose younger brother Kurt is a current KK defenseman), who absolutely flew down the wall, cut in, and slid one backhand five-hole on Mils' goalie Joe Rodwell with under a second left. The buzzer actually sounded, but the puck was clearly in before. That gave the Klippers home ice, Melville got it back though, getting a split in Kindersley during the week, but Kindersley had (another) late third period comeback and ended up winning by two with an empty netter in Melville in Game 5. I think I recall current Klipper Steven Turner scoring one (or maybe it was tipped) from the point, to either tie it, or get it within one. Kindersley took a 3-2 series lead home for Game 6, and won in double overtime, advanced to the final, and NEARLY knocked off the eventual RBC Champion Humboldt Bronocs, falling in 7 games, but not before taking 2-0 and 3-1 series leads. I'll be sure to bring that Leedahl goal up with Larry Wintoneak on the Pre Game Show and ask him what he has against GX94's teams and why the Klippers keep breaking their hearts! Still a chance for the Terriers to change that this year though.

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Before Game 6, Wintoneak said on our Pre Game Show, "Lucky for us, momentum ends when the game ends." That's exactly the approach the Terriers have to take into Game 7. Sure, they were sulking when they left the ice on Sunday, when 20 minutes earlier it looked like pretty good odds they'd be joining La Ronge in the final. But I'm quite sure they won't be sulking when the puck drops to start Game 7.

Terrier Coach Trent Cassan said the morning after Game 6, "We started the playoffs over a month ago, February 26th in Melville, and I don't think anyone other than the 25 guys in our locker room expected we'd still be playing today. And if someone told us that day that in a month, we'd be playing in Game 7 with a chance to go to the league final, there's not one of the players or one of us coaches who wouldn't have taken it."

Last (MON) night, I was listening on my SaskTel Max to Game 7 of the Moose Jaw Warriors and Calgary Hitmen, and you'll never guess what Warriors' Director of Hockey Operations Jeff Truitt had to say. "We're an 8th place team going up against the regular season champions, and if someone told us before the series that we'd be in Game 7 against the Calgary Hitmen, we would have taken it."

How 'bout that! Great hockey minds think alike!

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Eleven players could be playing their last Junior 'A hockey game tonight. Eight of them will be wearing Terrier Black & Orange, all of them forwards.

Cody Zubko, Troy Smukowich, Kevin Stringfellow, Jordan Menke, Adam Moar, Ryan Griffiths, Nick Dietrich, Kyle Miller.

As of yesterday, Miller was questionable for Game 7 due to injury, as was D Kelly Leismeister.

Kindersley also has a questionable 20 year old in F Kevin Clark, who's been out since the middle of Game 3 when Cody Zubko caught him with a hard check against the boards. Clark took the warmup before Game 6, but was a late scratch. Jordan Braid and Steven Turner are the only other 20 year olds on the team.

So if every 20 year old on the ice digs a little deeper, finds that extra gear, as they fight for their Junior Hockey lives, well, I like the Terriers' chances. Thing is though, the Klippers have a pile of 19, 18, and 17 year olds who've got every bit as much of a chance to win tonight. I shudder when I think of what those guys will do next year, and this experience is only making NEXT YEAR'S Klipper team better. They'll be expected to go deep in the playoffs, and the Dommett's, Duzan's and Thorimbert's will be able to say, 'been there, done that.'

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Other stats to take note of...

- Terrier D Blaine Tendler had a 5-game point streak end in game six (8 assists in 5 games), but he's still the leading Terrier point-getter in the series, with 8 points (all assists). Troy Smukowich and Cody Zubko each have 7.

- Three Terriers have been held pointless in the series. Two of them are their 'defense-first' D-pairing of Leismeister and Decker. The other is Torey Stott, who, until he had surgery over the Christmas break, led the Terriers in goals and points, and he led them in goals LAST YEAR as a rookie. It's not at all for a lack of effort... the puck's just not going in for him. His linemates Menke and Griffiths were also quiet at the start of the series, but now have 4 goals between them (Griffiths with 3). Torey's ready to bust out. Tonight perhaps???

- Yorkton's powerplay was 9/20 (45%) in Games 1 through 4, but they went 0/6 in Games 5 and 6. Still though, clicking at 32.1% in the series, 21.1% in the post season, in a playoff that's included an 0/22 stretch in the Weyburn series.

- Austin Bourhis is the only Terrier defenseman with a goal in the series. It came on the powerplay in Game 4. But again, Tendler leads the team with 8 points, Drew McDermott's tied for 5th on the team with 4 points (4a).

- Brent Struble leads the Terriers with 4 goals in the series. All of his post season goals have come in the Sherwood Conference Final.

- For Kindersley, no one has a point per game, but they're getting balance, and getting goals from depth players at key times. Think of their three game winners... Kevin Clark (OT) in Game 1, Jordan Hoffman with 1:10 left in Game 4, and Tanner Exner with :04 left in Game 6. Those three guys have 5 goals between them in the series, but they've all come up with huge goals when their club's needed one. Don't forget about Riley Down (2g, 2a, all in last 3 games), and Ryan Benn, who opened the scoring in Game 5. And make no mistake, Andrew Dommett's been bringin' it, leading the team with 4g and 5p in 6 games. He's also hit at least three posts/crossbars.

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I'll admit, when Exner scored late in Game 6, I was less than excited about going back to Eston. But now that the day is here, I'm actually pretty pumped! I think this is the 5th Game 7 I've called, and hopefully history doesn't repeat itself. In 2005-06, as Voice of the Dauphin Kings, Dauphin lost 3-0 on home ice to the OCN Blizzard in the Division Final. 2007-08 at GX, two Game 7 losses in back to back nights. Swan Valley fell 5-1 in Portage on Tuesday, then Wayway lost 6-3 to Dauphin at home on Wednesday. Last year, of course with covering both Yorkton and Melville... I can't really say the team I covered WON or LOST... since they played each

other. But in any case, Melville won that one 5-1.

I LOVE doing big games... they're so easy to get into, and I hope you enjoy it if you're unable to make the trip and are tuning in.

I honestly think this could be the "most listened to" game I've ever done. Game 7, it's over 5 hours from Yorkton, on a week night, so likely only a handful of die-hards will make it down. And, we're the ONLY place you can hear it, if you're one of the 600 people in what's sure to be a sold-out Eston Community Complex.

Pre Game Show at 7:15, all the action at 7:30 on GX94, 940 AM on your dial, or online at http://www.gx94radio.com/ .