PUCK TO DROP ON PLAYOFFS
Pats, Broncos set to face off
Introductions won’t be necessary when the Regina Pats and Swift Current Broncos face off in the opening round of the WHL playoffs.
The East Division rivals got to know each other pretty well over their six-game season series, including a home-and-home set on the final weekend of the schedule.
Regina skated to a 3-2 overtime win on Friday night at the Brandt Centre, followed by a 3-2 OT loss Saturday night in Swift Current.
With their first-round matchup already set in stone, the Pats chose to rest goaltender Max Paddock and captain Sam Steel on Saturday for a meaningless season finale. Centre Cameron Hebig and blue-liners Josh Mahura and Libor Hajek also sat out with minor ailments while the Broncos scratched captain Glenn Gawdin.
It was an understandable precaution after both teams sent a clear message 24 hours earlier that they weren’t saving all their bullets for the playoffs. The end result was a physical two-game set that threatened to get nasty at times, perhaps setting the tone for what’s to come when they open a best-ofseven series Friday in Swift Current.
“I thought both teams played really hard for the most part,” said Pats head coach/GM John Paddock. “It was good pace and good atmosphere. It’s similar to what you’ll see (in the playoffs) — only probably a little bit faster, a little bit more intense, a little bit more physical.”
None of that came as a surprise to the Pats, who had no intention of going through the motions. More of the same is expected when the teams renew acquaintances in the first round.
“We feel like that’s one of our keys to success is playing physical, playing as a team and taking it to them,” defenceman Brady Pouteau said after Friday ’s contest. “That’s the way playoff hockey is. We’re pretty much playing playoff hockey right now.”
The Pats — regarded as more of a finesse team — added some size and sandpaper to the lineup this season by acquiring Pouteau, Cale Fleury and Aaron Hyman on the back end, plus the likes of Scott Mahovlich, Jesse Gabrielle and Austin Pratt up front.
Their roster from top to bottom is older and deeper than the one that captured the WHL’s regularseason title last season before losing in the league final to the Seattle Thunderbirds.
Are they better? Time will tell. Like Regina, the Broncos made some splashy moves before the trade deadline. They also made some under-the-radar pickups that included stay-at-home defenceman Josh Anderson and gritty forwards Tanner Nagel and Andrew Fyten.
None of those players were in the fold last season when Regina and Swift Current went the distance in a second-round clash. The Pats were favoured in that series, but Swift Current had them on the ropes with a 3-1 lead before losing three straight.
This time, the roles are reversed. Swift Current is the odds-on favourite courtesy of the WHL’s second-best record (48-17-5-2), finishing 16 points ahead of the Pats (40-25-6-1).
However, Regina saved its best for last, posting a league-best record of 11-1-1 in the final 13 games.
The Broncos had lost a seasonhigh four straight before Saturday ’s victory, which gave them five wins in six tries versus Regina.
“They’re a really good team,” Paddock said.
“(Coach and director of player personnel) Manny (Viveiros) has done a great job. He does a great job coaching them and he did a great job of adding pieces to enhance their team.
“They have lots of scoring. Their power play was unbelievable during the course of the season. If we’re going to do some of the things we did with stick penalties the last two games, we’re not going to win. We have to address that. We just won’t play guys who are going to take dumb penalties.”
The Broncos also have a familiar face between the pipes after acquiring Stuart Skinner from the Lethbridge Hurricanes. Skinner was outstanding in last year’s Eastern Conference final against the Pats, who ultimately knocked Lethbridge out of the playoffs for the second straight year.
“He’s obviously a good goalie,” Paddock said.
“He’s playing behind a real good team. They’re a deep team throughout (the lineup). That makes it more of a challenge.”
We feel like that’s one of our keys to success is playing physical, playing as a team and taking it to them. That’s the way playoff hockey is.