WHL team is ‘average’ so far, says coach
Local squad among average teams in Eastern Conference, coach says
The Regina Pats’ numbers don’t lie, but they can be deceiving.
Regina is technically just one point behind the Swift Current Broncos in the Eastern Conference standings and two behind the first-place Moose Jaw Warriors.
However, Moose Jaw (11-4-0) and Swift Current (10-2-1) have much better records than the Pats (9-62), whose point total has been fattened by playing more games than any other team in the conference.
Now that the Brandon Wheat Kings (9-5-0) have cooled off after their hot start, the conference is highlighted by two clear front-runners, followed by several mediocre clubs hovering near the .500 mark.
“We’re three above (.500) but we fall in the same category,” said Pats head coach/GM John Paddock. “If you look at our conference, there are (two) teams that have significantly better records and everybody else is the same. There’s a lot of average teams in our conference and we’re included in it.”
That’s not a ringing endorsement for the 2018 Memorial Cup hosts, who are expected to be among the WHL’s elite this season.
Paddock admits his team is very much a work in progress after losing several top-end skaters from the club that won the WHL’s regular-season title last season.
Regina’s lineup is expected to look much different after the Jan. 10 trade deadline but, in the meantime, the team has to ensure that it doesn’t fall too far back.
“We need to play consistent,” said Paddock. “Sam (Steel) is going to get back (soon from injury) and I’m hopeful of (Nick) Henry in a relatively short time. Those things help but we need to play like we’ve played the last two games and find ways to win.”
The Pats finished 2-1-1 last week on their four-game trek through the Central Division, which might be the weakest division in the league.
Regina opened the trip with a convincing 6-3 win over the Kootenay Ice, but took a step back the next night with 2-0 loss to the Lethbridge Hurricanes. That was followed by a 4-3 overtime loss to the Red Deer Rebels and a 5-3 decision over the Edmonton Oil Kings.
“It’s always important to be on the plus side of .500 on the road,” noted Paddock. “The best part of it was that we’ve played two games in a row of 60 minutes. These two games are probably our most consistent games we’ve played backto-back all year.”
Regardless of the results, the Pats were relatively pleased with their trip as a whole.
However, after reviewing the video, Paddock wasn’t happy with the loss in Lethbridge despite outshooting the Hurricanes 36-24.
“Some games you’re not as bad as you thought you were and there are some games when you’re not as good as you thought you were,” he noted. “We didn’t do close to enough to win in Lethbridge. The other three games we were happy with how we played.”
Regina played its past 2 1/2 games without Steel, who might be ready to return Wednesday against the visiting Ice. The Pats’ captain is slated to take part in next week’s CIBC Canada-Russia Series and Paddock fully expects to lose him for about a month due to the upcoming world junior championship.