Hockey Huskies break away
By Darren Zary of The StarPhoenix
dzary@sp.canwest.com
Huskies 2, T-Birds 0 The University of Saskatchewan hockey Huskies wanted to get the rust out of their game. A shower of rust particles fell to the ice after a high-flying puck shook an upper steel beam at the aging Rutherford Rink; not what the Dogs had in mind. Yet, it seemed to do the trick. The Huskies scored a pair of goals late in the third period for a 2-0 win Friday over the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds. .
Saskatchewan has a 6-4 record in Canada West conference men’s hockey. UBC slipped to 4-5. Garett (Soaps) Soparlo, a healthy scratch at times this season, netted the winner with 5:54 remaining. Soparlo connected following a 3-on-1 break with Alekcei McAvoy and Jason Wagar. “It kind of came out of nowhere,” said Soparlo, a third-year Dog. “We were going every shift, jamming every shift. Wagar got a good shot on net. I was just crashing the net and I got my stick on it.” For Soparlo, it was about making the best out of limited opportunities. Both he and McAvoy have been fighting for ice time because of an influx of new talent up front. “I’ve been out of the lineup a little bit, so I had a lot of energy tonight to let out,” Soparlo said. Captain Brent Twordik added a power-play goal with 4:09 left as insurance. Saskatchewan was 1- for-13 with the extra man. UBC was 0-for-7. The Dogs outshot the T-birds 38-21. Jeff Harvey, who was particularly sharp early, got the shutout. It was nearly a Seinfeld-like Festivus at the other end. Gerry Festa was busy and also spectacular in net for B.C., making 36 saves. “I told our guys after the second period it was going to be an ugly goal that wins it,” said UBC coach Milan Dragicevic. “Whether it was kicked in or not, whatever. They went to the net. They got a rebound and scored. That was it. “It was a pretty even game (otherwise).” The teams meet again tonight at the Dog House. Game time is 7 p.m. “We’ve been preaching it’s a team game,” said U of S coach Dave Adolph. “Sometimes teams have to make some sacrifices to be successful. “That’s a very good UBC team. It was 0-0 game going into the third period. Both teams were in a situation where they could have won it. We got a break and then got a power-play goal. “This league is too close to have individuals make individual plays.”
DOG TALES: Festa played 13 games for the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades over the course of two seasons . . . Huskies equipment manager Brent McCorkell assisted the T-Birds by sharpening the skates of roughly half the UBC squad prior to the game . . . The Huskies were without D Stephen Mann, D Greg Park, F Trent Adamus and F Brett Parker, all out with injuries.
