Broncos eliminated from Memorial Cup
The Swift Current Broncos were eliminated from the 2018 Mastercard Memorial Cup with a 6-5 loss to the host Regina Pats on Wednesday to finish without a win in three attempts at the tournament.
Nick Henry scored three goals and Sam Steel added five assists to lead the Pats past the Broncos, who had eliminated them in the opening round of the WHL playoffs on April 2.
The Broncos looked down and out on numerous occasions but fought their back to make a game of it at every turn.
“It’s tough,” said Gawdin after the season-ending loss. “We were close. I think it showed a lot about our character of our team. We didn’t quit for a second. Just the way thing went in this game it was a lot of ups and downs, but I thought we stuck with it and we were that close.”
Both teams had early scoring chances and power play opportunities in the first period, but it was Nick Henry who opened the scoring 7:36 into the game with a power play one-timer from the face-off dot. The Broncos had a golden opportunity with 7:18 left when Andrew Fyten’s tip went off the post and then somehow stayed out of the open net.
The two teams combined for five goals during a wild second period as the Pats opened up a 4-2 lead with three goals of their own. The two teams scored five goals in only 7:06 in the second half of the period.
Cameron Hebig gave the Pats a 2-0 lead when he tipped home a puck from in tight on the powerplay. Glenn Gawdin replied with a bad angle goal for the Broncos, but Henry restored the two-goal lead with a shorthanded goal, the third the Broncos allowed in the tournament.
Beck Malenstyn knocked home a goal on the same power play, but Henry scored 1:03 later to restore the Pats two-goal lead while completing his hat trick.
Bryce Platt scored a goal on a two-on-one midway through the period to make it 5-2 Regina. Aleksi Heponiemi fired home a goal to get the Broncos within two goals with 5:38 left on the clock.
The Broncos pulled Stuart Skinner with 3:43 left on the clock and it paid off when Giorgio Estephan scored with 2:45 left.
The Broncos took a too many men penalty late while trying to get the extra attacker on and it was costly as Libor Hajek scored with 1:37 left on the clock.
The Broncos got a late power play and made it a one-goal game once again when Artyom Minulin scored to make the score 6-5.
“It was pretty hectic at the end. I think a couple flukey goals,” said overage forward Matteo Gennaro. “I think two desperate teams just trying to get pucks at the net, just trying to bang a few goals in. Credit to our team, we didn’t give up, fought right til the end, it just wasn’t enough tonight.”
Stuart Skinner took the loss with 23 saves, while Max Paddock made 23 saves in the win.
The Acadie-bathurst Titan eventually defeated the Pats 3-0 in the championship game to win their first Memorial Cup.
The Broncos season ended after 101 games played in the regular season, WHL playoffs, and Memorial Cup.
“It definitely does take a toll on the body,” said Gennaro. “We had a lot of guys who’ve played tonnes minutes and tonnes of games. You don’t want to make excuses or anything like that, but it definitely does have an affect on all the guys. I don’t think we were tired but it’s definitely been a long season. It’s been over 100 games from the start of the regular season throughout payoffs and now into this tournament. Yeah we played a lot of hockey.”
“I mean it’s a long grind to get to this point, 30 games, whatever it was, 29 games later in the playoffs. Little lapses here or there that we had throughout the tournament. Close at the end but not close enough,” added Colby Sissons.
The Broncos lost three onegoal games at the Memorial Cup, but it won’t erase the memories of a WHL championship for the Broncos.
“Playing in this tournament it’s definitely an honour,” said Sissons. “They say it’s one of the toughest trophies to win in sports for a reason. We definitely learned that the hard way. To play here was an honour. Nobody can take that championship away from us. We will always have it, but at the end of the day we fell a little short.”
The Broncos lost star forward Tyler Steenbergen to a concussion early in the second period of their opening game against the Titan.
“It was huge. He is a big part of our team, he has been all year,” said Gawdin. “His career, it speaks for itself. What he does on the ice, all over the ice, all aspects of the game. A tremendous player and goal scorer, probably the best in the league. So having a guy like that out of your line-up definitely hurts.”
“Our relentlessness and never giving up,” said Gawdin when asked what he was most proud about. “Facing two elimination games in the playoffs, playing two of our best games. Even tonight too, I thought we played pretty well. They got a couple bounces that obviously went in, but we didn’t quit. That’s just kind of the guys and the team that we have.”
“It’s been incredible,” added overage forward Matteo Gennaro. “I can’t really put it into words. We’ve gone through so much. It’s one of the closest teams I’ve ever been a part of. We all have such a good bond. Just a special group of guys. It’s been a great final year of junior for me.”
“To be honest with you guys, I’ve never had so much fun in my entire life,” added Skinner. “Going to Swift Current, getting the brothers that I have in that room, the family, all the laughs, all the smiles that I get going to the rink every single day. I’ve never been so happy in my entire life. The season might be over and might be saying goodbye to a few guys, but we’re always going to stay in contact and we’re going to be family for life now.”
The Broncos did have one final chance to salute their dedicated fans before they left the ice at the Brandt Centre.
“It was tough. It’s gonna be really tough to say goodbye to those fans for a little bit here. They’ve done so much for us and just the electricity that we get in the dressing room and out on the rink. They’ve supported us coming all the way down to Regina, coming all the way down to Moose Jaw, Lethbridge, all these different places, even Everett. Those are the fans you want,” said Skinner.
Gawdin skated in 384 games with the Broncos after being drafted fifth overall in 2012 and served as the team’s captain for the past two seasons.
“It’s meant a lot. I think it’s helped me develop as a player and a person. Being drafted at 14 and the transition of the organization, can’t say much better things. I think it shows. I don’t think many people would have thought Swift Current would win a league championship and I think we definitely put the city on the map this year,” he concluded.