SATURDAY SPORTS PAGE: PATS HARVEST WHEATIES, CFL SEMIFINAL SATURDAY

REGINA – Sam Oremba and Borya Valis each scored twice as the Regina Pats whipped the visiting Brandon Wheat Kings 6-1 in Western Hockey League action Friday night at the Brandt Centre.

Zane Rowan and Parker Berge also scored for the Pat (9-7-1-0), who led 3-0 after the first period and 6-0 heading into the third. Berge chipped in with two assists for the Pats.

Quinn Mantel scored a third-period goal for the Wheat Kings (7-7-3-1), who outshot the Pats 34-21 in an East Division battle.

Elsewhere in the DUB:

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OIL KINGS 7 WARRIORS 5

EDMONTON, Alta. – Skyler Bruce scored three goals as the Edmonton Oil Kings knocked off the visiting Moose Jaw Warriors 7-5.

Cole Miller, Marc Lajoie, Rilen Kovacevic and Marshall Finnie also scored the Oil Kings (5-9-0-1).

Brayden Yager scored twice for the East Division-leading Warriors (10-7-0-0), while Martin Rysavy, Pavel McKenzie and Jagger Firkus netted singles.

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SILVERTIPS 6 HITMEN 4

CALGARY, Alta. – Austin Roest and Carter Bear each scored twice as the visiting Everett Silvertips defeated the Calgary Hitmen 6-4.

Eric Jamieson and Jesse Heslop also scored for the Silvertips (9-5-1-0).

Carter Yakemchuk scored twice for the Hitmen (6-8-2-0), while Sean Tschigerl and Tyson Greenway netted singles.

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HURRICANES 4 TIGERS 3

MEDICINE HAT, Alta. – Tyson Zimmer scored at 1:30 of overtime to give the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes a 4-3 win over the Medicine Hat Tigers.

Brayden Edwards, Leo Braillard and Noah Chadwick also scored for the Hurricanes (9-6-2-0) in a battle of Central Division leaders.

Reid Andresen, Tyler MacKenzie and Oasiz Wiesblatt scored for the Tigers (9-5-2-0).

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BLADES 5 COUGARS 3

SASKATOON, Sask. – Rowan Calvert scored a goal and added an assist as the Saskatoon Blades edged the visiting Prince George Cougars 5-3.

Misha Volotovskii, Tyler Parr, Charlie Wright and Egor Sidorov also scored for the Blades (10-5-0-0).

Viliam Kmec, Riley Heidt and Oren Shtrom scored for the B.C. Division-leading Cougars (11-5-0-0).

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BRONCOS 4 WINTERHAWKS 3 (SO)

SWIFT CURRENT, Sask. – Rylan Gould’s goal in the fifth round of a shootout gave the Swift Current Broncos a 4-3 victory over the visiting Portland Winterhawks.

Josh Filmon, Luke Mistelbacher and Brady Birnie scored in regulation time for the Broncos (8-7-1-0).

Josh Zakreski, Josh Davies and Nicholas Johnson scored for the U.S. Division-leading Winterhawks (9-4-0-1).

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WILD 3 GIANTS 2

WENATCHEE, Wash. – Rodzers Bukarts scored two goals, including the winner at 8:16 of the third period, as the Wenatchee Wild edged the visiting Vancouver Giants 3-2.

Conor Geekie also scored for the Wild (9-61-0).

Ty Halaburda and Aaron Obobaifo scored for the Giants (5-8-1-0), who were outshot 42-20.

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ROYALS 2 ROCKETS 1

KELOWNA, B.C. – The visiting Victoria Royals scored two second-period goals then hung on for a 2-1 victory over the Kelowna Rockets.

Tanner Scott and Logan Pickford scored for the Royals (8-6-0-1).

Andrew Cristall, with his 11th goal of the season, scored for the Rockets (7-7-1-0).

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BLAZERS 4 REBELS 3 (SO)

KAMLOOPS, B.C. – Max Sullivan’s goal in the ninth round of the shootout was the winner as the Kamloops Blazers defeated the visiting Red Deer Rebels 4-3.

Harrison Brunicke, Ashton Ferster and Dylan Sydor scored in regulation time for the Blazers (4-10-2-0).

Kai Uchacz scored twice for the Rebels (5-7-0-2), while Samuel Drancak added a single.

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CHIEFS 3 THUNDERBIRDS 2 (OT)

SEATTLE, Wash. – Conner Roulette scored at 1:13 of overtime to give the visiting Spokane Chiefs a 3-2 win over the Seattle Thunderbirds.

Berkly Catton scored twice for the Chiefs (6-5-2-0), while Roulette chipped in with two assists.

Antonio Martorana and Kaleb Hartmann scored for the Thunderbirds (7-4-1-0).

It’s semifinal Saturday in the CFL. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats visit the Montreal Alouettes in the East Division semifinal, while the BC Lions host the Calgary Stampeders in the West semifinal. The East winner advances to play the defending Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts, while the West winner heads to Winnipeg to play the Blue Bombers.

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On the heels of one of the most exciting seasons of Canada West football, the 2023 playoffs are as wide open as they’ve ever been.

The quest for the Hardy Trophy begins Saturday. Nov. 4, with the Alberta Golden Bears hosting the Saskatchewan Huskies and the Manitoba Bisons visiting the UBC Thunderbirds in semi-final action. The winning teams will meet in the 86^th Hardy Cup on Nov. 11.

Anything can happen in a one-game win-or-go-home scenario, but that holds especially true in 2023, with the top three teams in the standings, UBC, Alberta and Saskatchewan, separated by just one game. Anybody can beat anybody on any given Saturday. To wit: UBC was unbeaten this season against the Golden Bears who were unbeaten against the Huskies who were unbeaten against UBC.

Then there’s the Bisons, who are most responsible for this season’s wild unpredictability, thanks to their miracle finish in Calgary last weekend to clinch the final playoff spot.

The Huskies are aiming to win their third straight title and 22^nd all-time, most among all teams. Saskatchewan beat UBC in the Hardy Cup last year and knocked off Manitoba to win the championship two years ago. The Bisons and T-Birds last won the Hardy Cup in 2014 and 2015, respectively.

(CanadaWest.org)

There are 15 games on Saturday’s NHL schedule with all seven Canadian teams in action. The Edmonton Oilers host the Nashville Predators; Winnipeg Jets visit the Arizona Coyotes; St. Louis Blues host the Montreal Canadiens; Toronto Maple Leafs entertain the Buffalo Sabres; Ottawa Senators host the Tampa Bay Lightning; Dallas Stars visit the Vancouver Canucks; and the Calgary Flames visit the Seattle Kraken.

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Sidney Crosby will hit a major milestone when his Pittsburgh Penguins play the San Jose Sharks at the SAP Center in California. Crosby will play in his 12-hundreth regular-season game in an arena where his Pens won the Stanley Cup, he lifted the Conn Smythe Trophy and won the NHL All-Star Game MVP award. Crosby has 1,512 points heading into tonight’s game.

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Brad Gushue’s team from St. John’s will be playing for gold today at the Pan Continental Curling Championships in Kelowna, B-C. Gushue’s foursome will face Jongduk Park’s team from South Korea. Last night, Kerri Einarson’s crew from Gimli, Manitoba lost the women’s bronze-medal final 8-7 in an extra end to Tabitha Peterson’s team from the U-S.

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Canada heads into Day 15 competition at the Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, looking to add to its 139-medal collection. Canada finished competition yesterday with 40 gold, 44 silver and 55 bronze medals. The U-S leads with 234 medals, including 100 gold, while Brazil is next with 164 medals, including 56 gold. Canada is third overall. Mexico, with 41 gold and 112 medals, is fourth.

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NASCAR insists that Sunday’s championship finale has plenty of pizzazz. The final four of Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney and William Byron are the youngest since the winner-take-all format began in 2019. Larson is the only previous Cup Series champion among the contenders. The drivers have acknowledged Sunday’s showdown in Phoenix lacks the hype of years past.

(Canadian Press)