CANUCKS CHAMPING AT THE BIT TO PLAY AT CENTENNIAL CUP
It's been some time since the Calgary Canucks hoisted the Inter Pipeline Cup as champions of the Alberta Junior Hockey League.
Three weeks, in fact, making for quite the break before Thursday's start to their national junior A championship pursuit at the Centennial Cup in Oakville, Ont.
“It's 22 days,” said Canucks star goaltender Julian Molinaro.
“Obviously it sucks not playing for this long. But it's been great for us, because we've been able to reassess everything and kind of get our rest and restart and refocus.”
Molinaro and company will need all of that and more to get through the gauntlet of the next 11 days on the shores of Lake Ontario.
With 10 teams, including nine league champions, attending the Canadian Junior Hockey League finale, it shapes up to be a rumble, all right.
So rest without rust is the goal for the Canucks in trying to claim their second Centennial Cup.
“I think we've managed the layoff well,” said Canucks general manager/head coach Brad Moran. “I can see the guys have ramped it up and that's what we want.
“We took our days off after the AJHL final, and then managed between rest and work and made sure we were pushing pretty hard for a week and then went with a little shorter and more intense practices the week after. We made sure our details are where we need them to be.”
The long run between games, however, is enough to make any team salty.
“I saw that earlier with the guys, especially one week when we did have some battles,” Moran said. “But we've been through with a two-week break between our last week of the season and the playoffs starting. So we're not too far off that, and I think they understand how we manage that and how we relax mentally but also how to get your focus when you come to the rink.”
Good thing, because the focus will have to come quick once they take the ice for the Centennial Cup.
The Canucks — unranked by the CJHL all season — start off against the Ontario Junior Hockey League champion Collingwood Blues, who owned the top ranking nationally for plenty of the campaign.
That opener against the favourites goes Thursday at Sixteen Mile Sports Complex (2 p.m., Hockeycanada.ca).
“I played a full season with Collingwood last year,” Molinaro said. “I'm still friends with the majority of the team. Their starting goalie (Noah Pak) is my best friend. So I know the team really well.
“The OJHL is a differently league completely, I'd say. I guess more skill, slower pace and not as physical. But Collingwood plays like an Alberta-style team — they're physical, they're quick, they're well-coached and they're a well-run franchise. We know that if we want to have a chance to beat them, we have to be on our A game.”
From there, it's three more round robin games in Group A action — Saturday against the Collège Français de Longueuil of the Quebec Junior Hockey League (2 p.m.), Monday challenging the Greater Sudbury Cubs of the Northern Ontario Junior A Hockey League (2 p.m.) and Tuesday versus the Central Canada Hockey League's Navan Grads (2 p.m.).
Group B consists of the Superior International Junior Hockey League's Sioux Lookout Bombers, the Maritime Junior Hockey League's Miramichi Timberwolves, the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League's Melfort Mustangs, the Manitoba Junior Hockey League's Winkler Flyers and the host Oakville Blades.
“We don't want to look too far ahead,” Moran said. “With oneoff games, we really want to focus on our game and then make the minor adjustments or tendencies we can find with our coaching staff. You look at the other team and try to present those adjustments and tendencies as simple and quick as we can after each game. I think we've done a good job of that. And we've tried to tailor our playoff prep so it's not too much detail — just these are the keys, here's the other team's tendencies.
“And guys took it in quite well during the playoffs. So we can stick to that model.”
And hopefully capture their first Centennial Cup since 1995.
“Nothing's gonna be easy,” said Canucks forward Ty Hipkin, who was saluted with the AJHL playoffs MVP award after he led the Calgary crew to a four-game sweep of the Whitecourt Wolverines in the best-of-seven final series.
That speedy triumph made the Canucks the first team in Canada to earn a ticket to the national championship.
“I think whether we went seven games and we finished closer to the start of the Centennial Cup or whether we took this break, it wouldn't matter,” added Hipkin, of High River. “But I think I'd rather take the break, because everyone gets beat up in playoffs, so we have a chance to get guys healthy and get our legs back. And I think we're really going to be flying going into the Centennial.
“There's no better feeling than winning the league. But our sights are set for the nationals and we're excited.”