NEUGSIE’S AROUND THE SJHL

By: Jamie Neugebauer
Voice of the ND Hounds

Regular Season Is Happening…Right?: Word around town is that the regular season does have approval to start Nov. 6 with 150 fans max. in every building. This is certain to the point that it will happen unless SaskHealth shuts it down; so it seems pretty certain? Staying positive in the Covid world means cautious optimism, at best.
Feel For The Fans: I do feel for the fans that won’t be able/allowed to come to the games. A few teams are in a bit of a bind, since many sold far more than 150 season tickets, so what they’re going to do with that situation, I have no clue. Until then, make sure you tune in to HockeyTV and/or your local radio station! We have a great group of broadcasters in this league, I can tell you that much for sure.
Matchups To Watch: So regular season hockey, here we go! Can’t wait! Lots of great matchups to kick us off. The headliner has to be Yorkton vs. Humboldt, as two of the prospective top teams in the league battle for early season supremacy. Terriers boss Matt Hehr has gone with as many WHLers as he can conceivably have, while Scott Barney, his Broncos’ counterpart, has a great roster, but is committed to not using Major Junior kids who plan to head back in mid-December. The battle of those two camps will play out in Yorkton Friday, and Humboldt Saturday. One northern matchup I’ll really be interested to see is Nipawin-La Ronge. These two teams will have two different, but similar-sized chips on their respective shoulders. Kevin Kaminski’s Ice Wolves lost a ton of experience, not the least of which was perhaps last year’s top second-half defenceman James Philpott, who departed for the NAHL, as well as all-stars Daylon Mannon and Kyle Ford. Nipawin retains the services of captain Jake Tremblay, his excellent running mate Michael Makarenko, and Jack Lenchyshyn, who will be one of the league’s best defenders this time around. That all said, it was a down year for Doug Johnson’s Hawks a year ago by their lofty standards; so how will they bounce back? Check out all the matchups right here: https://www.sjhl.ca/stats/schedule and tweet me the contests you’re most interested in (@Neugsie)!
La Ronge Adds A Potential Star: With the possible exception of fellow Prince Albert Raider and 2021 NHL Draft prospect Landon Kosior, it’s hard to imagine there was a finer defenceman in Saskatchewan U18 hockey two years ago than the Saskatoon Blazers’ Nolan Allan. Allan, now 17, was so complete, played seven games as a call-up that year for P.A., and was a huge factor in the Blazers’ run to the provincial final that season. Now he’ll suit up for the Ice Wolves only until mid-December, but I am so excited to see what he’ll do in a bigger role where guys like Montreal Canadiens’ first rounder Kaiden Guhle, and Las Vegas Golden Knights’ prospect Zack Hayes aren’t blocking him. On the SJ at Noon show this week (more on that later), I talked about Allan as THE WHLer in the SJ I am most looking forward to seeing this year, since I am someone who absolutely loves the NHL Draft.
Perfect Fit In Humboldt: Humboldt nabbed a perfect fit for their roster, and culture in acquiring big winger Jarrett Penner from the West Kelowna Warriors of the BCHL this past week. Penner had two strong years for the Notre Dame Hounds Junior A before heading west this off-season, and will look to bring his knack for doing the dirty work, scoring the greasy blue-paint goals, and taking hits to make plays to a group of Broncos already loaded with dynamic individuals. I can tell you Jarrett is an awesome kid from an awesome family, and he’s thrilled to be there, so enjoy him Humboldt fans. I’ll be cheering for him big-time against 10 teams in the league.
ND’s Diamond In The Rough: Speaking of ND, what a diamond in the rough Brett Pilkington found in Jaryd Sych, the big, smooth-skating defenceman from nearby Riceton, SK. The former Argos U18 man had solid numbers a year ago, but there was no guarantee heading into this year that he would be a regular Junior A player. He came into camp after an awesome off-season in the gym, and on the ice, and kept working from Day 1. Absolute found gold. Not too many 6’3 kids at this level can skate like he does. Wonderful young man too.
Battlefords On The Way: I texted Battlefords North Stars head coach Brayden Klimosko after he picked up former Saskatoon Blazers captain, and Weyburn Red Wing Riley Little from the Wayway Wolverines of the Manitoba League, saying that it was a sneaky good pickup. I really liked Little in U18. They have since acquired Sam Witt from the nearby Kindersley Klippers for a pick, so reinforcements are on the way. There’s no way around the fact that it was a tough start to the pre-season for the still defending champs, losing all but Timon Prexler from their Top 6 defence-group, and getting thumped a few times by their blood rivals in Kindersley. But all that being said, Brayden told me he was thrilled with his club’s improvement from the beginning to the end of pre-season, so let’s see what Klimosko does with that roster.
Rookie Of The Year?: Would love to hear your way too early pick for SJHL Rookie of the Year! Leave it in the comments below, or tweet it at me! I don’t want to hear WHLers, obviously! Couple options I can think of are Cole Duperreault in Flin Flon, Kevin Anderson in Notre Dame, Connor McGrath in Weyburn, and Caelan Fitzpatrick in Estevan! It’s usually a forward.
Show Up, And Running!: Rory McGouran, the Voice of the Humboldt Broncos, and I kicked off our SJ at Noon show on Facebook Live this past Monday at noon! Other than a few audio issues, we think it went outstandingly well! Tanner Goetz and Munz Media are running it, and everything they do turns to absolute gold, while Logan Fraser and the league are completely behind it, so we’re excited. Would love to hear what you all thought if you were able to check it out! Also, please tune in on Facebook Live next Monday, same time, same channel!
This Weekend: I’ll be in Weyburn Saturday, and home in Wilcox Monday as the Hounds and Red Wings kick off the regular season on Hounds Hockey Radio (both games) and HockeyTV (Monday). Very interested to see the Notre Dame crew all together as Brett didn’t ice his full-strength squad once the whole pre-season. Rich Pilon’s Wings feel like they are also vastly improved, and gave as good as they got against Estevan in the pre-season, so it should be a fascinating tilt. I expect both teams will have brand new faces in the line-up Game 1, so make sure you tune in or come out, if you can!