Weekly Stats Update!

Weyburn Red Wings

Top 5 Scorers:

1. Preston Shupe (8-17-25)

2. Torrey Lindsay (11-12-23)

3. Josh Bray (10-9-19)

4. Brayden Nargang (9-8-17)

5. Stephen Simms (5-12-17)

SJHL Top 10 Scorers:

1. Reid MacLeod FF (22-19-41)

2. Pierre-Luc Boucher FF (11-23-34)

3. Dennis Kubat FF (14-18-32)

4. Clint Olson Melf (12-17-29)

5. Jordie Johnston LR(14-14-28)

6. Taylor Watt Melf(12-16-28) (pictured)

7. Rylan Schwartz - ND(11-16-27)

8. Dion Campbell - Melv (14-12-26)

9. Laurent Benjamin - Hum (10-16-26)

10. Ryan Sawka - Kin (9-17-26)

Top 5 Defenseman Scoring:

1. Brady Gordon - Melf (5-15-20)

2. Tanner Vandesype - ND (7-11-18)

3. Stephen Simms - Wey (5-12-17)

4. Russ Nielsen - Hum (5-11-16)

5. Kyle Haines - Wey (1-15-16)

Top 5 Rookie Scoring:

1. Rylan Schwartz - ND (11-16-27)

2. Travis Janke - ND (8-11-19)

3. Luke Johnson - Wey (7-9-16)

4. David Lawrence - LR (5-7-12)

5. Michael Young - FF (2-10-12)

Top 5 Penalty Minutes:

1. Eric Calibaba - Wey (100 PIM)

2. Cam Oliphant - Melf (91 PIM)

3. Barrett Penner - FF (90 PIM)

4. Michael Seib - Wey (84 PIM)

5. Scott Day - FF (73 PIM)

Top 5 GAA:

1. Taylor Nelson - Hum (1.50)

2. Kyle Cantlon - Melv (2.06)

3. AJ Whiffen - Wey (2.12)

4. Ilia Ejov - Melf (2.26)

5. Lynden Sammartino - York (2.55)

Top 5 Save %:

1. Taylor Nelson - Hum (.935)

2. Kyle Cantlon - Melv (.931)

3. AJ Whiffen - Wey (.927)

4. Jonathan Jobin - LR (.920)

5. Lynden Sammartino - York (.917)

- Brad M.

Weekly Power Rankings!

It is time again for my weekly power rankings. I apologize for the lack of coverage this weekend but I did not have access to a computer for most of the weekend so everything should be back to normal this week.

This week, The Estevan Bruins are on the slide while the Kindersley Klippers and La Ronge Ice Wolves are going in the right direction.

1. Humboldt Broncos (16-3-0-0) LW: 1

The Broncos won both of their games this week, a 6-0 shallacking of the Estevan Bruins and a 4-3 win over Weyburn in a game which saw them short-handed for most of the third period. Taylor Nelson and Andrew Bodnarchuk each got a start on the weekend and both played well. I saw Humboldt play for the first time this season and it is easy to see why they have the record they do. Good team speed, puck possession, solid defense and good goaltending are all ingredients for a championship club. This week the Broncos play a couple of home games as they host Flin Flon on Tuesday and La Ronge on Sunday.

2. Yorkton Terriers (12-7-1-2) LW:2

The Terriers are one of the hottest teams in the SJHL right now. The Terriers are now only two points out of first in the Sherwood, granted Melville does have two games in hand. Lynden Sammartino has been next to unbeatable as of late and is playing his best hockey of the season to date. The Terriers won a pair of divisional games this week over Estevan and Weyburn to move into sole possession of second in the Sherwood. Yorkton heads out on a northern road trip on the November long weekend as they will play in Flin Flon, Melfort and Nipawin.

3. Melville Millionaires (14-5-1-0) LW: 3

The Millionaires are in a bit of a mini-slump at the moment. They did manage a win over the league cellar dwellars from the Battlefords but were shutout by the Notre Dame Hounds and defeated rather convincingly by Kindersley. Kyle Cantlon has been a workhorse since returning from illness as he has started every game for the Mils since that time. Dion Campbell continues to pad his offensive stats and Derek Edwards has been stellar on the Millionaires blue line. It is a fairly light week of Melville as their only game is a Saturday night home contest versus Weyburn.

4. Melfort Mustangs (12-7-0-1) LW: 4

The Mustangs are similar to the Terriers in the sense they have been hot as a firecracker as of late. Taylor Watt averages well over two points a game and linemates Clint Olson and Matt Hill are also putting up huge numbers. Brady Gordon was recently named the SJHL defenseman of the month for October. Gordon leads all SJHL defenseman in points. Ilia Ejob and Jesse Trach have provided solid goaltending as of late. I think if the Mustangs can keep Watt healthy and add a couple more depth players, they have a good shot as a contender this year. Ejov's addition was paramount in the Mustangs turnaround. The Mustangs play three home games this week as they welcome La Ronge, Nipawin and Yorkton.

5. Kindersley Klippers (11-8-0-2) LW: 8

The Klippers have been hot as of late as they went 2-0-0-1 this past week and have crept back into the middle of the pack in the Sherwood conference. The Klippers were able to dispose of two good teams this week in Melfort and Melville while losing in a shootout to La Ronge. Ryan Sawka has been putting up a lot of points as of late while Brett Leedahl and Jonathan Redlick continue to contribute offensively. Rookie defenseman Justin Perreaux has been a great addition to the Klippers defense. The Klippers play a key three games in three night this week as they hit the road to battle division rivals Notre Dame, Weyburn and Estevan.

6. Flin Flon Bombers (11-7-0-1) LW: 6

The Bombers had a light week as there only game was a 4-1 home victory over the Nipawin Hawks. The Bombers were busy this past week though as they acquired Barrett Penner and Scott Day from the Battlefords North Stars in separate deals. The Bombers appear to be sending a message that they tend to be amongst the contenders this season. Calvin Bartel is back in the lineup and is splitting his playing time with Carsen Chubak. The Bombers will be tested this week as they have road games in Humboldt and La Ronge while hosting Yorkton on Friday.

7. La Ronge Ice Wolves (11-9-1-0) LW: 9

The Ice Wolves had a perfect 3-0 week and could have maybe jumped higher in the rankings. However the inconsistency of La Ronge has convinced me to keep them a bit lower in the rankings for now. Jordie Johnston and Jarrid Dowhay really found their games during the three game winning streak this week and are starting to produce as was expected from them. Brian Kaval continues to handle the goaltending duties while Jonathan Jobin is out of the lineup. The Ice Wolves have a busy week as they play 4 times. Road games in Nipawin and Melfort, a home game versus Flin Flon and a road game in Humboldt are on the agenda for La Ronge this week.

8. Weyburn Red Wings (11-8-1-2) LW: 7

The Red Wings drop a spot this week. A lot of this can be attributed to the power play woes, particularly against Humboldt. Preston Shupe continues to play well for the Wings. Rookie Rhett Bly had a great week as he even had a three point night against Humboldt. SJHL goaltender of the month AJ Whiffen has continually provided solid goaltending. The Wings played the last couple of games without Josh Bray in the lineup. Bray is nursing an injury but hopes to return Tuesday night. Speaking of Tuesday, the Wings will host the Battlefords Stars that night. Meanwhile, Kindersley will be in town on Friday and the Wings will hit the road to Melville on Saturday night.

9. Estevan Bruins (10-9-2-0) LW: 5

The Bruins have been struggling lately as they were embarrassed by both Yorkton and Humboldt this week. Guillaume Perusse and Karsten Felske have struggled lately which is uncharacteristic of both goaltenders. The Bruins are also having trouble scoring goals lately. Part of the reason may be that Payden Benning has missed the last four games due to injury. They will look to rebound this week as they host Battlefords and Kindersley.

10. Notre Dame Hounds (6-15-0-1) LW: 10

The Hounds split a pair of games this week as they lost in Weyburn but followed that up with a 3-0 shutout win over Melville. Mark Currie has been playing great for the Hounds. Rylan Schwartz, after a bit of a slow start, has quietly moved up amongst the SJHL scoring leaders. Tanner Vandesype has also picked up his offensive totals lately from the back end. The Hounds will host both Battlefords and Kindersley this week.

11. Nipawin Hawks (7-10-0-1) LW: 11

The Hawks continue to struggle and there are starting to be a lot of frustrated fans up in Nipawin. Torrie Dyck, Adam Schwark and Brent Ottmann have all saw their offensive numbers stall as of late. Head coach Dave Hyrsky has even moved Ottmann to defense for a few games. Regean Carriere, one of the Hawks leading scorers from a year ago, requested a trade closer to home and was recently dealt to the Winnipeg Saints of the MJHL. Derek Kleinsteuber, like many of his teammates, has had a tough go as of late and his goaltending numbers are on the decline. Antoine Desrosiers has also been brought in to help solidify the goaltending position. Desrosiers was brought in after being let go my the Notre Dame Hounds. The Hawks host the Ice Wolves and Terriers this week and hit the road to Melfort for a game.

12. Battlefords North Stars (2-17-1-1) LW: 12

The Stars went 0 for 3 this week as they lost games to Melfort, Melville and La Ronge. The Stars have become even younger as of late as they have dealt veterans Barrett Penner, Scott Day, Cory Demko and Trent Lizee in separate deals. The Stars have welcomed Joel Budd to the lineup as well as Shawn McNulty and Kirk Moore who were acquired from Flin Flon. Ryan Kerpan had a good start versus La Ronge on Saturday night and the Stars will need to continue to get strong goaltending from both he and Adrien Lemay if they hope to find a way to win again. The Stars embark on a three game soutern road trip on Tuesday as they will play in Weyburn, Notre Dame and Estevan.

Do you agree with my rankings? Leave a comment and let me know.

- Brad M.

Terriers finally take a bite out of the Red Wings

The Wings fought back to tie the game up in the third period after the Terriers scored three goals in the second, but it still wasn't enough as the Terriers picked up their first win over the Red Wings in five tries this season.

Preston Shupe opened the scoring in the first period with the assists going to Krukowski and Lindsay while the Terriers countered with three goals in the second from Greg Coburn, Evan Neibrandt and Kyle Block.

The third period really showed what the Red Wings were made of as Torrey Lindsay scored early in the period to give the Wings a chance. Then it was time for some late game heroics as the Red Wings were a man down with under a minute to go but still managed to get a goal from Scott Doody to tie it up and send it to overtime.

Kyle Block scored the winning goal in the shootout as Torrey Lindsay couldn't put his chance past Lynden Sammartino who made 35 saves on 38 shots during the night (20 of those coming in the first period). Weyburn's AJ Whiffen made 32 saves on 35 shots during the night.

- Troy K

Inept Power Play cost Wings! - Updated

The Weyburn Red Wings were given all the opportunity in the third period by referee Curtis Funk but unfortunatly could not take advantage of a number of power play opportunities and fell 4-3 to the Itech conference leading Humboldt Broncos. The Broncos jumped up to a 3-0 lead after a period of play before the Wings fought back to tie only to have Humboldt's Matt Kirzinger score the winner with just under three minutes to play. Steven Schroeder, Dane Lindskog and Tory Allan also scored for Humboldt. Jordan Schindel added two assists while Laurent Benjamin, Brady Wacker, Lindskog, Russ Nielsen and Justin Stoski all had single helpers. Rhett Bly had two goals and an assist to lead the way for the Red Wings. Luke Johnson also added a goal and an assist. Brayden Nargang, Kyle Haines, Ian Lazar and Mick Pawlyshyn all added assists. Andrew Bodnarchuk got the start for the Broncos, giving Taylor Nelson a night off, and he made 30 saves. SJHL goaltender of the month AJ Whiffen made 21 saves in the Weyburn goal. It is not very often that I say the officiating was terrible when the Red Wings were the beneficiaries but that is the way it was tonight. I certainly understand why Dean Brockman, Humboldt's head coach, was upset as he walked off the ice. The Broncos improved to 16-3-0-0 with the win while the Wings fall to 11-8-1-1.

In Kindersley, the Klippers were hosting the La Ronge Ice Wolves with La Ronge coming out with a 4-3 shootout victory. Jordie Johnston had all three La Ronge goals in regulation as the perennial all star is having another good season. Jarrid Dowhay added two assists for the Ice Wolves. Calvin Fiddler picked up the shootout winner. Brett Leedahl, Jayde Dunser and Kalib Thunderchief scored for the Klippers. Brian Kaval picked up the win for La Ronge as he made 40 saves. Randy Willis got the start for the Klippers and stopped 36 of 39 shots faced, including an unbelievable 12 shots in the 5 minute overtime frame. The Ice Wolves grab a share of third place in the Itech as they improve to 10-9-1-0. The Klippers are now 10-8-0-2 and are tied with the Estevan Bruins for fourth in the Sherwood.

The Battlefords North Stars had some new faces in the lineup but the results were not much different as they were downed 5-2 by the visiting Melville Millionaires. Dion Campbell had two goals and an assist to pace the Millionaires. Brad Johnston added a goal and an assist while Matt Kinnunen and Daniel Hope also scored for Melville. Kale Dolinski had three assists for the Mils who also got a pair of assists from Derek Edwards. Makstr Lacoursiere had a goal and an assist for the Stars. Nickolaus Dvorak also scored for the Stars. Kyle Cantlon stopped 24 of 26 shots for the win. Adrien Lemay made 31 saves in the Battlefords goal. The Millionaires get some breathing room atop the Sherwood Conference standings as they improve to 14-4-1-0. The Stars fall to 2-16-1-1.

In Nipawin, two teams going in different directions met up with the red hot Melfort Mustangs coming into town and defeating the slumping Nipawin Hawks 4-2. Matt Hill had a goal and two assists to lead the Mustangs. Taylor Watt, Riley Clark and Ryan Gareau also scored for Melfort while Brady Gordon added two assists. Jordan Bourgonje scored both Nipawin goals. Jesse Trach gave Ilia Ejov the night off and he stopped 26 of the 28 Nipawin shots he faced. Derek Kleinsteuber made 26 saves in the losing effort for the Hawks. The Mustangs improve to 12-7-0-1 and now have points in their last six games. The Hawks fall to 7-9-0-1 and have to be a frustrated crew right now.

Tonight's Three Stars:

* Jordie Johnston - La Ronge Ice Wolves (hat trick)
** Dion Campbell - Melville Millionaires (2 goals, assist, game winner)
*** Rhett Bly - Weyburn Red Wings ( 2 goals, assists, best game as a Wing so far for the rookie.)

Other SJHL News:

- The Nipawin Hawks have traded defenseman Russell Billett to the Swan Valley Stampeders of the MJHL to complete a previous deal.

- Long time Estevan Bruins president Andy Schroeder has announced his resignation from the club after a lenghthy term in the big chair. Best of luck to Schroeder and thanks to him for all his contributions to the SJHL. Rob Frame will replace him as Bruins President.

Saturday in the SJHL:
Weyburn @ Yorkton
Melville @ Kindersley
La Ronge @ Battlefords
Nipawin @ Flin Flon

- Brad M.

SJHL Transaction Updates

The Battlefords North Stars made a couple of deals today as they continue to move out veterans to give some younger players a chance to play.

The Stars have moved left winger Scott Day to the Flin Flon Bombers for future considerations. Day had three goals and two assists in 15 games for the Stars this season.

The Stars were not done there as they have moved defenseman Cory Demko and forward Trent Lizee to the North Bay Skyhawks of the NOJHL. Demko and Lizee each had a goal and three assists this season for the Stars. The Stars will receive future considerations (also known as cash in most cases) from North Bay.

On the fines front, Nipawin coaches Dave Hyrsky and Dwight Kulchysky have each been fined $200 for there actions in a recent game.

- Brad M.

Broncos Blitz Bruins!

The Humboldt Broncos did not look like the team that made the long bus trip to Estevan tonight as they shutout the slumping Bruins 6-0. Matthew Kirzinger scored twice for the Broncos, his second goal on a penalty shot. Steven Schroeder, Russell Nielsen, Scott Schroeder, and Dane Lindskog also scored for Humboldt. Taylor Nelson picked up his third shutout of the season to get the win for the Broncos. Karsten Felske went the distance for the Bruins in allowing all six Bronco goals. The Broncos are the first SJHL team to reach 30 points as they improve to 15-3-0-0. The Bruins slide continues as they fall to 10-9-2-0. Humboldt is right back at it tomorrow night when they face the Red Wings at the Colosseum. Elsewhere on Friday night the La Ronge Ice Wolves travel to Kindersley to battle the Klippers, Melville heads to North Battleford to take on the new-look Stars and the Melfort Mustangs are in Nipawin to battle the Hawks as the Itech Conference rivals renew acquaintances.

Tonight's Three Stars:

* Matt Kirzinger - Humboldt Broncos
** Taylor Nelson - Humboldt Broncos
*** Bruins fans who were able to sit through the entire 60 minutes of this game.

- Brad M.

Red Wing Radio and Online Broadcasts!

Many people have been asking me over the last few days how the online broadcasting will work this year. I would like to thank Tanya Brown from AM1190 with providing me the following information:

The first broadcast is this Saturday night, November 3, when the Wings are in Yorkton to face the Terriers. Kevin Smith will return for his second season as play by play man and Wayne Lazar will be beginning his first season as color commentator on Red Wing broadcasts.

On-line streaming of the game will be available on discoverweyburn.com. You just have to go to the my community link and then scroll to Weyburn Red Wings. From there the directions are self explanatory. For local residents the games of course available as always on AM1190 radio. The broadcasts typically start about five minutes before puck drop.

The full broadcast schedule can be found on www.weyburnredwings.ca or www.discoverweyburn.com.

*** UPDATE ***

I have added a link on this site.

- Brad M.

Rumball Interview

Here is the Red WIng's GM Ron Rumball interview with Mike Stackhouse. If you haven't listened to it yet, you can do so here just by clicking the play button. Enjoy.

- Troy K

That's how we roll!

While I was at work a had a photo op at the Family Place here and I noticed Luke Johnson's car outside covered in shaving cream (I think).

At least he scraped the gunk off of the driver side window so he could see out of it. I noticed a few more Red Wing vehicles got the Halloween special last night too but I had to get a picture of Luke's ride since it was still a mess this morning.

Those crazy kids.

- Troy K