By JONATHAN HUNTINGTON
SASKATOON – It’s like sitting at the lake on a windy day and watching the waves crash into shore.
The Saskatoon Blazers just keep coming with relentless waves of pressure in the post-season. Following the same gameplan from Round 1, the Blazers grabbed the opening game of their semi-final series with the Moose Jaw Winmar Warriors on Tuesday night with a 3-1 road victory.
Constant forechecking and physical play led to the Blazers breaking a 1-1 tie midway through the third period with Kash Ringdal scoring his second of the game at 9:55 into the final frame. Solid defence and an empty-netter by Shaan Basran put the game away.
“We wanted to establish a forecheck and we wanted to put pressure on puck recovery,” said Blazers head coach Troy Walkington. “I thought we got away from that in period two but in the first (period) and third (period) we executed much better.”
The best-of-five series shifts to Rod Hamm Arena on Thursday night for a pivotal Game 2 for both teams.
“We attempt not to get too high or too low with good and bad results. Play the right way and the game will look after itself,” added Walkington.
FINISH LINES: Led by two goals from Malaki Martin, the Regina Pat Canadians rolled to a 5-2 home win Tuesday against the Estevan Innovex Bears in the opener of the other semi-final series. Missing star forward Maddox Schultz didn’t matter for the #1 ranked U18AAA team in the nation, as the Pat Cs continue to show their depth. Like the Blazers, the Pat Cs have yet to lose in the post-season. Game 2 moves to Estevan on Friday.
