Pats meet rival Broncos with win No. 1 on the line
The Regina Pats are a much different team than the one that played host to the 2018 Memorial Cup, but a few things remain the same.
That includes their dislike for the Swift Current Broncos.
“It has been a rivalry ever since I got into the league,” said Pats forward Nick Henry, who is in his third WHL season. “There are lots of players ( gone) from the last two years but, for the guys who’ve been here, this is a rivalry game against Swift Current. We’ve had two really good playoff series against them and the Memorial Cup. When you see Swift Current, it gives you a little extra. You really want to beat them.”
The Pats will visit Swift Current on Friday night in a battle of rebuilding teams, each one seeking its first win of the season. It’ll also be their first official meeting since Regina knocked the Broncos out of the 2018 Memorial Cup at the Brandt Centre.
The host Pats received an automatic berth in the tournament while the Broncos earned their way by winning the WHL championship. That included a first-round playoff victory over the Pats, who took Swift Current to the precipice in a tight seven-game series.
“Losing the first round to them hurt a lot,” said Pats defenceman Liam Schioler, whose team beat the Broncos in the second round of the 2017 playoffs before losing to the Seattle Thunderbirds in the league’s championship series.
“We felt we could have (won it all) last year. Watching Swift do it sucks. It was tough to watch knowing we were that close to beating them, but we were able to beat them in the Memorial Cup, so that helps a little bit.”
The Pats’ lineup on Friday is expected to include just nine players who were part of a 6-5 victory over Swift Current in the final roundrobin game of the Memorial Cup.
The Broncos’ roster includes just seven players who dressed in that contest. They also have a whole new coaching staff led by Dean Brockman, who was hired after Manny Viveiros left to join the Edmonton Oilers.
The Pats and Broncos both enter Friday’s contest with 0-4 records, so picking up the first win of the season takes precedence over settling any old scores.
“We have to get off this slide,” Henry said. “We have to play hard, every single guy out there. When you’re doing the right things ... good things are going to happen. Sometimes you’re not going to get the breaks. Just keep working hard and it’s going to come.”
They hope it comes Friday.
The alternative is to continue carrying the monkey on their backs heading into Saturday’s game against another East Division rival, the Brandon Wheat Kings (7 p.m., Brandt Centre).
“We have to know what it’s like to win because if you do it once you’re going to want to do it all the time,” Schioler said. “Losing four games, it’s something we have to work through. That’s going to be our challenge right now is staying positive. We’ve done a pretty good job of that. We just have to keep with it.”
All things considered, motivation won’t be a problem in Friday ’s contest.
“They’re still the defending champs,” Henry said of the Broncos. “Obviously it’s a different team but we want to go in there and have a good game. Hopefully we get the outcome we want.”