It was nice that LeagueStat had this game available for live updates. The Banjo-Cats appear to have outplayed their ACAC opponents, outshooting them 42-18. Former Bison Terrence Delaronde scored twice for the Puddy-Tats. There were also a lot of 10 minute misconducts and double roughing penalties doled out. I guess it got a little chippy once the score was out of reach.
Note that the Canada West site has changed so that the urls for the subsections are all different from before. The new men's hockey link is in "bookmarks" below.
NEXT UP:
Sat 11 3:00 PM Saskatchewan v Portage College (at Regina) Sat 11 7:00 PM Manitoba @ Regina
Sat 11 7:00 PM Lethbridge @ Calgary Sun 12 3:00 PM Saskatchewan v Manitoba (at Regina)
Sun 12 7:00 PM Calgary @ Lethbridge
The Herd opened their pre-season with a narrow loss to the BanjoCats. Former Bison Terrence Delaronde scored two goals and added an assist for Regina. Of note, Jesse Deckert started in goal and split time with Joe Calgiuri. They only faced a combined 24 shots. The Bisons did enjoy a big lead in the shots on goal category (34-24, including 15-5 in the 2nd period). Dane Crowley and Riley Dudar scored for Mantoba.
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 8
PORTAGE COLLEGE VOYAGEURS 2
|> [NO LINKS]
All I have is the score from the U of R story on the Cougar-Bison game.
There were no links on this game, I got the score from the U of S results ticker and it was confirmed in a weekend wrap-up at South Campus Sports. The results mean that Regina wins the tournament (4 points), Manitoba gets 2nd over Sask (both at 2 points), and Portage College was 4th (0 points).
BTW, South Campus Sports also had their Bison Preview posted on the weekend.
CALGARY DINOS 2
LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS 3 (in a shoot-out)
|> [NO LINKS]
CIS Composite Schedule - pdf format has all non-conference and conference games for the whole CIS.
TBNewswatch Story - The story is about three grads of the SIJHL to crack the Thunderpuppies' lineup this year. The Bisons will play there after Christmas again.
Regina Leader-Post Story - This is a blurb on the weekend activity and adds nothing new, really.
GoBisons.ca - The only new thing is that the Brown-Gold game is not on the schedule now. Whether it is still on, I do not know. Also, LeagueStat now has the Bison Roster. At the same link you can also select other CW teams, UNB, and Portage College.
South Campus Sports has added a preview of the Lethbridge Pronghorns to go with their earlier previews of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Regina. Lethbridge also has a game at Mount Royal University added for Saturday at 7:30 p.m. local time.
GoDinos.com also previews their upcoming "battle with national heavyweights", namely the UNB Squirrels and the Evil Monkeys. The story is also at the C.W. site.
Trinity Western's hockey team plays in the BCIHL but apparently seek to change that, according to Mars' Hill Online. This year they are called "Spartans" and are a full-fledged varsity team. They were previously known as "Titans" and operated as a rec team.
Last edited by Hollywood3: 09-15-2010 at 12:36 PM.
Now, that is a one-sided scoreline. Calgary should have no excuses, having played Lethbridge twice on the weekend. Maybe the Squirrels have gathered their nuts after hitting the golf course earlier than expected. For those who may not remember, they were undefeated until very late in the season and then were swept 3-0 in the AUS semi-finals by a near-contender, namely St. Francis-Xavier. Particularly striking is Calgary's lack of offence for the final 2 periods. They had only 4 shots in the 2nd period, and 3 in the 3rd. UNB's 10 goals on 39 shots also raises eyebrows. Maybe they were all breakaways, but I doubt it.
Maybe Calgary needs to follow suit with their women's program, who have signed none other than Hayley Wickenheiser. The story is at the CIS Blog and the Globe & Mail. She's 32 and I guess she's going back to school. I checked the Bison ******' site and Calgary is not here until February 4th and 5th. Also, the Bison ****** signed a Team Canada U-22 player, Brigitte Lacquette.
OTHER NEWS:
The Brock Badgers have a training camp story in The St. Catharines Standard, which includes discussion of their trip to Manitoba on September 24th and 25th.
NEXT UP:
Thu 16 7:00 PM Concordia College @ Alberta
Fri 17 7:00 PM UNB @ Alberta
Fri 17 7:00 PM NAIT v Regina (at Saskatoon)
Sat 18 7:00 PM NAIT @ Saskatchewan
Sat 18 7:00 PM UNB @ Calgary
Sat 18 7:30 PM Lethbridge @ Mount Royal
Sun 19 6:00 PM Regina @ Saskatchewan
Sun 19 7:00 PM Alberta @ Calgary
CONCORDIA COLLEGE THUNDER 1
ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS 9
|> [U OF A STORY]
This game was not included on the LeagueStats page. All that is posted so far is the U of A link which has only the score as I post. This game was added due to the Greasers' rookies backing out and going to an NHL all-rookie event in Penticton. Concordia is an ACAC team
What is drawing more attention in Saudi Alberta is the upcoming clash with UNB. Evil Monkeys vs. Squirrels, the top 2 in Canada over the last few years. The U of A has a preview story, which is reproduced at the Canada West site. There is also a preview at The Gateway. The audio is supposed to be available at SSN.
OTHER NEWS:
The Calgary Dinos women's team continues to draw loads of attention due to signing of Hayley Wickenheiser. There is an official story from GoDinos.com and a CP story at The Winnipeg Free Press. The Winnipeg Sun also has a story on this from the perspective of the Bison ******.
The Manitoba Bisons have scrapped the Brown-Gold game originally scheduled for Friday night. The Bison Roster Page has also been updated. There are 26 players remaining (3 goaltenders, 9 defencemen, and 14 forwards). However, that page does not include #21 Del Cowan, who is listed at League Stat. Anyhow, here's how I have the roster:
Goal
34 Steve Christie
35 Jesse Deckert
new Joe Caligiuri
Defence
2 Chad Erb
3 Myles Rumsey
5 Dane Crowley
6 Patrick Flynn
15 Travis Mealy
20 Brandon Lockerby
new Jeremy Schappert
new Zachery Tully
new Brent Poplawski
Forwards
9 Greg Beller
10 Riley Dudar
11 Mike Hellyer
14 Joey Moggach
16 Jared Walker
17 Chris Benias
18 Ian Duval
19 Nolan Waker
21 Del Cowan
22 Troy Crowley
23 Tyler Dittmer
26 Blair Macaulay
29 Kyle Howarth
new Wes Pawluk
new Devin Himpe
NEXT UP:
Fri 17 UNB @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Fri 17 NAIT v Regina (at Saskatoon) 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 18 NAIT @ Saskatchewan 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 18 UNB @ Calgary 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 18 Lethbridge @ Mount Royal 8:30 pm CDT
Sun 19 Regina @ Saskatchewan 7:00 pm CDT
Sun 19 Alberta @ Calgary 8:00 pm CDT Fri 24 Brock @ Manitoba 7:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Calgary @ Saskatchewan 4:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Regina @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT Sat 25 Brock @ Manitoba 2:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Calgary @ Regina 4:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Saskatchewan @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT
Quote:
Originally Posted by dale 1919
bison ******! I love it! haha
hollywood is the game between U of A and UNB on the bears radio?
The linked story at The Gateway says it's on SSN.
Last edited by Hollywood3: 09-17-2010 at 12:53 PM.
Reason: LINKS AND ROSTER UPDATED
I was out watching the MJHL season opener on Friday night and so I missed the webcast of the Squirrels vs Evil Monkeys confrontation. Check the above CIS link for a video highlight package and then you, like I, will see that missing it was just as well.
The game was level at 1-1 after one period. But in the 2nd period the Evil Monkeys forgot about hockey, apparently focused on swinging from vines and throwing feces at one another. The Squirrels scored at 0:12, 1:31, 5:26, and 5:35.
Both game stories (the U of A story is reprinted at the CIS and CW sites) compliment UNB on their preparedness. That extra time in the off-season must have done them a world of good.
UNB will play in Calgary tonight, whilst Alberta will visit Calgary on Sunday night.
NAIT OOKS 1
REGINA COUGARS 5
|> [[NO LINKS]]
This was the opening game of the Huskie Alumni Classic Tournament. The only source of information on this game is the U of R's schedule page. The Puddy-Tats are now 3-0 in the pre-season. This is a 3-team tournament, which of course includes the host Sask Huskies.
I am adding a recap of this game from the OUA because Brock is in Winnipeg next weekend to play the Bisons. Also, they were retiring the number of Vince Scott, a deceased former team-mate. They had a huge crowd and it was apparently a very emotional night.
Brock really fell off last season. They started as a near-contender and wound up missing the playoffs. It will be interesting to see how they look next weekend. It seems they are going to be better than the team that limped home last February.
NEXT UP:
Sat 18 NAIT @ Saskatchewan 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 18 UNB @ Calgary 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 18 Lethbridge @ Mount Royal 8:30 pm CDT
Sun 19 Regina @ Saskatchewan 7:00 pm CDT
Sun 19 Alberta @ Calgary 8:00 pm CDT Fri 24 Brock @ Manitoba 7:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Calgary @ Saskatchewan 4:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Regina @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT Sat 25 Brock @ Manitoba 2:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Calgary @ Regina 4:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Saskatchewan @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT
These two teams combined were outscored 22-5 and outshot double 98-47 on home ice. Alberta will be better, as Thurston's has a lot of young players that will take time to learn the systems. Canadawest looks to be wide open this year and home ice advantage will be "critical" for Saskatchewan or Manitoba to end the Bears annual trip to the Nationals! A best of three final that would force the Bears to play entirely on enemy ice is what Sirant or Adolph needs! If this doesn't happen, then expect to see Alberta in Fredericton in March once again.
Canada West is definitely wide open!
On paper this is the weakest group of Alberta forwards since about 1995-96.
I don't mind the Bears defence and one of Kurtis Mucha or Linden Rowat will emerge as a #1.
Saskatchewan has added grit after adding scoring the last couple of years.
Regina got a couple of higher end scorers from the WHL.
Manitoba brought in some depth.
Calgary and UBC didn't really upgrade in my mind.
In 2006-07 the Bears had four freshman "D" and five rookie forwards and it showed in the CW Final against an older expereinced Saskatchewan team as the Huskies won in Edmonton.
Could see a simliar scenario this year.
Alberta has won nine of the last 10 Conference titles...and three of the last six University Cup's but I think we are seeing a changing of the gaurd.
On paper UNB, Saint Mary's and Acadia all have better teams.
UNB finished their trip with yet another thumping. Calgary falls to 0-2-2 in the pre-season. Calgary managed only 4 shots on goal in each period. One has to think that UNB is dead serious about winning a national title this year. However, one also has to ask if maybe they are peaking too soon.
NAIT OOKS 0
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 3
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All they had was the score at the U of S site on the "results" tab. Regina and Sask will play on Sunday for the tournament title. Sask is now 2-1 on the pre-season. NAIT will return to ACAC opposition.
LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS 1
MOUNT ROYAL COUGARS 0
|> [[NO LINKS]]
This result makes the ACAC 0-6 against the CW so far this exhibition season. Lethbridge had some hopes of a more offensive team this year but by the looks of it they still have to grind out the low scoring games. Other than shoot-outs, they have 5 goals in 3 games. But they are now 3-0. My only source was the schedule page at Mount Royal's site. On a side issue, Mount Royal became a University last year and there is always a thought that some ACAC schools might join the CW. So then there would be two teams called "Cougars". And if the Ottawa Rough Riders rejoin the CFL then Regina sports fans are in for a lot of duplicate nicknames.
NEXT UP:
Sun 19 Regina @ Saskatchewan 7:00 pm CDT
Sun 19 Alberta @ Calgary 8:00 pm CDT Fri 24 Brock @ Manitoba 7:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Calgary @ Saskatchewan 4:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Regina @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT Sat 25 Brock @ Manitoba 2:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Calgary @ Regina 4:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Saskatchewan @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT
I wouldn't suggest that UNB is peaking too soon ... rather that their off-season commitment to conditioning shows. And the fact they go into every game expecting to win - "confidence" if you are a UNB fan and "cockiness" for everyone else.
For the last few seasons as more and more V-Reds commit to staying in Fredericton over the summer and working out with strength and conditioning coach Ken Seaman, the team appears to have a jump on everyone in the preseason and early season. Gradually in the AUS the other teams play themselves into shape and the conditioning gap is greatly reduced by November. However, by then UNB is usually comfortably in first place with SMU and Acadia nipping at their heels.
Last edited by FreddtFoyle: 09-19-2010 at 11:55 AM.
Reason: added Seaman link
thanks for the history lesson Bob. Hey I thought Cyr was out for a while? he played versus UNB. They have three pretty good goalies. Who u think is going to emerge?
I guess these two were just happy they weren't playing UNB. Alberta is now 2-1 and Calgary is 0-3-2 on the pre-season. Calgary has scored just 8 goals in 5 games.
REGINA COUGARS 0
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 4
|> [[NO LINKS]]
Once again, all they had was the score at the U of S site on the "results" tab. Both sides are now 3-1 in the pre-season. The win gives Sask their tournament title. Regina won their tournament the previous weekend.
The Badgers will be in town next Friday and Saturday to face the Bisons. This was the final of the RBC Steel Blade Tournament, hosted by Brock. The Badgers managed only 13 shots on goal, and only 3 in the 3rd period. The game featured a rare CIS fight, complete with an instigator call. Guelph previously beat Brock to start the round-robin, then each team beat Laurier to set up the final. FWIW, in last years Official Hollywood Top 34 (OHT34) Laurier was #13, Guelph was #18, and Brock was #30. However, Brock was #16 at one time before hitting the skids the last half of the season.
NEXT UP:
Fri 24 Brock @ Manitoba 7:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Calgary @ Saskatchewan 4:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Regina @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT Sat 25 Brock @ Manitoba 2:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Calgary @ Regina 4:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Saskatchewan @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT
Last edited by Hollywood3: 09-20-2010 at 01:17 PM.
The Badgers are in town to repay a visit the Bisons made to St. Catharine's last year, when the Bisons won by scores of 4-1 and 3-2.
I am anxious to see what the new Herd will look like this year. They are returning most of last year's line-up. On paper, their recruits on defence adequately replace (if not improve upon) the departed players. But I don't know if it will be easy to replace both top centres and former captains, Rick Wood and Calin Wild.
There is a pre-season story in The Manitoban. It says that Nick Cowan is back after two years away. He went to the Central League in 2008-09 and then played some senior hockey in 2009-10 so he's eligible to return now. So, is Del Cowan also going to be in the lineup? He's on the Bison LeagueStat roster but not on the GoBisons.ca roster.
Anyhow, based on what is said in the media so far, the Bison roster changes from 2009-10 are:
Deletions: Rick Wood (F), Calin Wild (F), Dave Brown (D), Kip Workman (D), Stephane Lenoski (D), Gavin McHale (G)
Additions: Nick Cowan (F), Del Cowan (F), Wes Pawluk (F), Devin Himpe (F), Dane Crowley (D), Jeremy Schappert (D), Zach Tully (D), Myles Rumsey (D), Joe Caliguiri (G)
OTHER NEWS:
Evan Daum at South Campus Sports has released the last three Canada West team previews, namely: Alberta, Calgary, and UBC. UBC lost the goaltender they had recruited to the pro ranks and have scrambled with a Junior "A" replacement. It seems many believe that Alberta and Calgary with both be down slightly from 2009-10. Time will tell, as always.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE:
Fri 24 Brock @ Manitoba 7:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Calgary @ Saskatchewan 4:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 Regina @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Fri 24 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT Sat 25 Brock @ Manitoba 2:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Calgary @ Regina 4:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 Saskatchewan @ Alberta 8:00 pm CDT
Sat 25 SAIT @ UBC 9:00 pm CDT
i think the journalist for the Manitoban messed up a bit and meant to or thought that Del Cowan was Nick Cowan. i don't think that Nick is back. it would be interesting if he was.
also, Devan Himpe is no longer with the team. Also deleted from last year was seldom used dman Stewart Thiessen.
i think the journalist for the Manitoban messed up a bit and meant to or thought that Del Cowan was Nick Cowan. i don't think that Nick is back. it would be interesting if he was.
also, Devan Himpe is no longer with the team. Also deleted from last year was seldom used dman Stewart Thiessen.
The mix-up on the Cowan boys may make sense, since it is the only story I have seen on Nick Cowan. I would have thought that the Bisons would have issued a press release for the return of Nick Cowan the way they did for Myles Rumsey.
Himpe being cut would not be a surprise. He was trying out after having played MJHL and MMJHL. I never saw him but few guys make it from the MMJHL. The last was former 3rd string goaltender Ben Lobb.
Stewart Thiessen was at one time highly touted but last year he was generally a healthy scratch. He played for the South Blues as an overager following a good WHL career.
It was nice to get back to the Max Bell Arena, even if it was just for exhibition hockey. The Bisons should really publicize these games. There was hardly anybody there. Even in their own promotional email they omitted exhibition hockey. And there was no weekend preview story at GoBisons.ca. Of note they did have a promo story on Wednesday's game against the Moose.
The Badgers were, sad to say, badly outclassed. They were smaller, slower, and less aggressive. The Bisons severely outshot the Oversized Rodents (35-13) and the score could have been much worse. Several times the Bisons skated through the slot like it was open for public skating. All-in-all, my impression was that Brock would be a distant last in the CW.
One disappointment was that the Badgers new jerseys do not have the cool Badger logo. They instead have a stylized B on an oval. On the other hand, we did get to see the newly modified Bison brown away jersey, which looks chocolaty! It would be a nice jersey to have. I don't know if they are for sale anywhere.
The Bisons are now 2-1 on the pre-season. Brock is 1-3.
It would appear that Devin Himpe (F) and Brent Poplawski (D) have been cut. It would also appear that the return of Nick Cowan was erroneously reported by The Manitoban.
Brock Badgers
Goal:
Bent, Jory (played 29:09)
Defence:
Christmas - Smeltzer
Tolles - Pell
A Geldart
(only 5 d-men were used, with Christmas and Smeltzer doubling up)
Forwards:
Dickson - Gignac - Mullin
Zamec or Flynn - Dooley - Allen
Schwark - Brochu - Stajan
Schram - K Geldart - Abercrombie
(they had 13 forwards)
For both sides the constant parade to the penalty box forced much line juggling. I could have done with fewer calls. IMO, the frequent calls did more to contribute to late-game chippiness than to prevent it.
The Erb-Crowley defence pairing was very good. They were physical and could get the puck back and move it up very quickly. And the Duval-Walker-Hellyer line had the Badgers running in circles. They scored 13 seconds into the game and added 3 more as a line.
The rematch goes Saturday at 2:00 pm, unfortunately clashing with the Bison homecoming football game.
This was UBC's first game of the pre-season. SAIT (from the ACAC) started last weekend with a loss to Mpunt Royal. It was good that UBC got the game posted on LeagueStat. For those wondering about their goaltending, Jordan White went the distance and Gordon Graham was his backup. The shots were 36-16 for the Tweety-Birds. The Safes get their rematch Saturday.
SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 6
CALGARY DINOS 4
|> [[NO LINKS]]
In a disappointing oversight, the U of A is not posting their tournament results on LeagueStat. My only source on this result was from the U of C schedule page. Calgary has now surrendered 26 goals in 4 games and are 0-4 on the pre-season. Sask is now 4-1, their only loss being at hands of the Bisons!
The U of A had the score and nothing more as I posted. The Evil Monkeys are now 3-1 and the Puddy-Tats fall to 3-2.
NEWS AND NOTES:
First, Kip Workman has signed a pro contract with the Colorado Eagles, alongside Dave Brown.
Second, the Bisons v Moose game will now start at 7:30 pm. The game is now previewed at GoBisons.ca and MooseHockey.com. I took in the Blues MJHL home opener at the Iceplex and it was quite nice. The only downside is that the bench seating has no backs. The Moose Training Camp is just underway with the first load of players coming down from Vancouver.
It was nice to get back to the Max Bell Arena, even if it was just for exhibition hockey. The Bisons should really publicize these games. There was hardly anybody there. Even in their own promotional email they omitted exhibition hockey. And there was no weekend preview story at GoBisons.ca. Of note they did have a promo story on Wednesday's game against the Moose.
The Badgers were, sad to say, badly outclassed. They were smaller, slower, and less aggressive. The Bisons severely outshot the Oversized Rodents (35-13) and the score could have been much worse. Several times the Bisons skated through the slot like it was open for public skating. All-in-all, my impression was that Brock would be a distant last in the CW.
Not really a big surprise that Manitoba thumped them. Last year they came 9th and dead last in the OUA West and 16th out of 19 teams in the OUA overall. In their last game Guelph outshot them 35-13 and outscored them 5-1. Brock this season will likely end up near the bottom in the OUA West again this year.
Looking forward to seeing your Bison at the Ralph in a week to take on the Fighting Sioux of North Dakota. They always put up a good fight regardless of having the lesser talent and on the wrong end of the scoreboard. This years Sioux team is stacked and it may get ugly but with the Bison ya never know because they always play hard.
In a case of very poor scheduling (for the second year running, I might add) the Bisons scheduled the second half of their home pre-season series opposite the homecoming football game. I was one of the fans who took in the football game (the Bisons lost to the Dinos 26-25, BTW). Fortunately, the Bisons had the good sense to provide live updates through LeagueStat.
Since football started at 1:00 and hockey started at 2:00 I had thought I could scoot over and catch the end of the hockey game. However, when I saw that it was 7-0 with only 6 minutes left I never bothered.
Now, the Bisons have not offered any game stories on either game. But they have been hyping the game against the Moose prospects on Wednesday. That is not a bad thing. But the Moose have their own promotional team. If the Bisons applied those resources to the series with Brock, and played on Saturday evening, they could have had at least a regular season kind of crowd. The team made the top 4 at nationals last year and pushed the Evil Monkeys hard for the CW title. They have recruited well (yet again) and seem to have a perennial near-contender on the national scene. All they have to do is work on the off-ice stuff and then the team can draw the public attention they deserve.
Now on to hockey.
Of note from the stats is the fact that d-men Myles Rumsey and Brandon Lockerby were once again scratched. (Are they hurt?) However, the forwards scratched on Friday (Riley Dudar and Kyle Howarth) both dressed (in place of Tyler Dittmer and Troy Crowley) and contributed goals. Steve Christie (not dressed Friday) went the distance in goal.
There were not as many penalty calls as there were on Friday. But the Bisons did go 5-for-8 on the PP (wow!). Mike Hellyer and Jeremy Schappert had two goals each for the Herd. Other singles came from Jered Walker and Wes Pawluk. Oddly, the final two goals of the game were shorthanded. I am sure the Bisons would have liked a shutout for Christie with less than 5 minutes to go when the Badgers scored.
It seems that the roster has now been finalized. It is posted at LeagueStat and GoBisons.ca. They have 3 goaltenders, 8 d-men, and 14 forwards.
The Bisons are now 3-1 on the pre-season whilst Brock falls to 1-4. The three remaining pre-season games will all be stiff challenges for the Bisons. The Moose could have a high quality line-up available, depending on what happens with the Canuckleheads. And UND and St. Cloud State are both highly rated teams this year. The USA Today poll has St. Cloud State at #5 and UND at #7. And the College Hockey News has UND at #2 and St. Cloud at #6.
While there will be no dancing in the streets after this sweep, there should be some level of relief in the UBC camp. The pundits are not high on the Thunderchickens, largely from their goaltending situation. I see that Graeme Gordon and Jordan White split duties in this one.
UBC is 2-0 in the pre-season and their only remaining games are against three top-20 NCAA teams and a double-header against the Victoria Salmon Kings.
REGINA COUGARS 3
CALGARY DINOS 5
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This was the consolation game in the U of A Brick Invitational Tournament in Edmonton. The game was not updated on LeagueStat (grrrrrrr, I'll save the rant). Now, it is hard to call a pre-season game a "must-win" but for Calgary I think it was. They were 0-4-2 in the pre-season and open the regular season next weekend against the Evil Monkeys, a traditional nemesis. A little boost of confidence never hurts in such a situation.
Regina started hot, with 3 straight wins. They are now 3-3 in the pre-season. They, too, start the regular season next weekend, when they face their traditional nemesis from Sask.
You might have guessed that this was the championship game in the U of A Brick Invitational Tournament in Edmonton. Notwithstanding that lofty status, it was also not updated on LeagueStat (grrrrrrr). Since these two have finished 1-2 in the regular season for what seems an eternity, this game carried a little bit of territory-marking. The Evil Monkeys finish the pre-season at 4-1, and the Banjo-Mutts very similar at 4-2.
NEXT UP:
There will be a mix of conference and non-conference games the next while. The league has a funny start this year. So here's what's up the next 2 weeks:
October
Fri 1 Saskatchewan @ Regina
Fri 1 Calgary @ Alberta
Sat 2 UBC @ Nebraska-Omaha x Sat 2 Manitoba @ St. Cloud State x
Sat 2 Lethbridge at Colorado College x
Sat 2 Saskatchewan @ Regina
Sat 2 Calgary @ Alberta
Sun 3 UBC @ Minnesota x Sun 3 Manitoba @ North Dakota x
Sun 3 Lethbridge at Denver x
Mon 4 UBC @ Minnesota State Mankato x
Mon 4 Lethbridge at U.S. Air Force Academy x Fri 8 Regina @ Manitoba | 8:00 pm at Max Bell
Sat 9 Regina @ Manitoba | 7:00 pm at Max Bell
Sat 9 UBC @ Victoria Salmon Kings x
Sun 10 UBC @ Victoria Salmon Kings x
MINI-UPDATE 
Trinity Western's hockey team plays in the 
The Brock Badgers have a training camp story in 
Evan Daum at South Campus Sports has released the last three Canada West team previews, namely: 
First, a rant. 
Now on to hockey.
