Welcome to the bubble: Blades about to hit the ice

Eager WHL players have been sidelined because of pandemic for almost a year

The Saskatoon Blades are about to awake from a pandemic-induced slumber that has lasted more than 350 days.

The Blades will enter the Western Hockey League's Eastern Division bubble in Regina on Saturday, along with six other teams, for a shortened 24-game season slated to start March 12.

At this point, any sheet of ice, short of pebbled curling sheets, would do for these idle hockey players. They'd make do with a slough or dugout. They're just eager to play again.

“Like I've said, I think our guys would have played a hub city idea at an ODR (outdoor rink) here in Saskatoon if they could,” Blades head coach Mitch Love said Wednesday.

“Our guys are chomping at the bit to get back.”

Blades captain Chase Wouters will play out his junior eligibility as one of the team's over-agers in Regina.

“It's a long time when you think back and it's been a year,” said Wouters, whose Blades last played a game on March 10, 2020. “It's crazy. But, you know, it'll be good. It won't be a shy level of guys being ready to play. It'll come quick, so if you're not ready, you'll fall behind pretty quickly, especially with only 24 games.

“The season will come at us fast.”

For Wouters, the season may be short but it still can be sweet.

“I'm really excited,” said Wouters, who is self-isolating in Saskatoon. “It's something we've been all looking forward to for over 11 months, the last time we were together as a team. We're really excited to just get back together, getting back to the daily routine of playing in the Western Hockey league. It'll be awesome. All the work that's going on right now is really appreciated by all the players, for sure.”

It's Hub City II for Love, who experienced the whole bubble scenario at the 2021 IIHF world junior hockey championship as part of Team Canada's coaching staff.

“It's unique, right?” said Love. “Ideally, I think everybody would have liked to have stayed in their own centres and played in their own buildings. There wouldn't have been any fans, and I think everyone understood that. But this gives us an opportunity to play hockey. It gives these kids a chance to showcase themselves and get back to the game that they love.”

The Blades will report to the Regina hub on Saturday. Each WHL team will be allowed to have 35 people in their bubble cohort. That includes players, coaching staff, management and training staff.

“It's incredibly exciting,” said Blades general manager Colin Priestner, who won't be part of the bubble but will be allowed to attend games, along with some NHL scouts and media.

“I can't wait to see the look on the players' faces when they first get there. It's going to be a bit of a grind to go through this whole process. I think euphoria at first, getting out of their homes which they've been in for so long, and getting them into a team atmosphere, which is something they've all been craving. I think the reality of all the work ahead will probably hit them shortly after.”

Priestner expects some sloppiness, by all teams, early on.

“Just from not playing a game for, I think, 368 days for our first game back from when we played our last game,” Priestner said. “We're not going to be expecting a perfect product in our first games. It's going to be a work in progress throughout, kind of getting everybody up to that game speed.”

It's something we've been all looking forward to for over 11 months, the last time we were together as a team.