2023 Road to the Memorial Cup: WHL Round 3 preview
For the first time in WHL Playoffs history, the remaining four clubs all surpassed 100 points during the regular season.
Winnipeg’s 115 points this year led the CHL while Saskatoon hit the 100-point mark for just the fifth time in franchise history. Seattle’s 111 points were the most in team history while Kamloops’ 105 were their highest since 1994-95.
All in all, it leaves the best four clubs in the WHL fighting for the Ed Chynoweth Cup. Seattle and Kamloops cruised through the first two rounds with back-to-back sweeps while Saskatoon have needed a Game 7 in both rounds. The ICE swept Round 1 but needed six games to eliminate Moose Jaw in the second round.
Eastern Conference
(1) Winnipeg vs. (3) Saskatoon
After the ICE found themselves behind 2-1 in their series against Moose Jaw, Zack Ostapchuk (OTT) had the overtime winner in Game 4 before a pair of victories, that was emphasized with an 8-2 win in Game 6, sealed the deal for Winnipeg. Conor Geekie tallied a team-high 11 points (five goals) that was punctuated with a Game 5 hat-trick while Matthew Savoie (BUF) recorded nine points. The ICE were also encouraged by the return of top 2023 NHL Draft prospect Zach Benson who had been out of the lineup since March 10.
Savoie’s 18 points are the seventh most in the WHL this postseason and lead the ICE while Ben Zloty has 15 assists, a WHL high through two rounds. Geekie and Connor McClennon have also played at a better than point-per-game pace through two rounds. In goal, Daniel Hauser has recorded a 2.85 GAA as Winnipeg continues its quest for a first WHL title.
Saskatoon have been the masters of survival thus far. After a Game 7 win over Regina in Round 1, the Blades repeated the feat in the second round in the most dramatic fashion as they erased a 3-0 series deficit to defeat Red Deer. In all, the Blades are a perfect 5-0 in elimination games this postseason as they seek their first WHL title in their 57-year history.
Trevor Wong and Egor Sidorov each had nine points in the series against the Rebels while the latter led the team with four goals. Captain Aiden De La Gorgendiere chipped in with eight points while Ethan Chadwick and Austin Elliott each had a pair of wins each in goal with the latter being between the pipes in Game’s 6 and 7.
Sidorov and Wong’s 19 points are tied fifth in the WHL this postseason while De La Gorgendiere’s 15 points are tied for the second most among blueliners.
Season series: Winnipeg won series 4-2-0
Schedule:
Game 1 — April 28 — SAS @ WPG — 5:05pm ET / 5:05pm PT
Game 2 — April 29 — SAS @ WPG — 5:05pm ET / 3:05pm PT
Game 3 — May 2 — WPG @ SAS — 9pm ET / 6pm PT
Game 4 — May 3 — WPG @ SAS — 9pm ET / 6pm PT
Game 5* — May 5 — SAS @ WPG — 8:05pm ET / 6:05pm PT
Game 6* — May 7 — WPG @ SAS — 6pm ET / 3pm PT
Game 7* — May 9 — SAS @ WPG — 8:05pm ET / 6:05pm PT
*if necessary
Western Conference
(1) Seattle vs. (2) Kamloops
It will be a rematch of last year’s seven-game thriller in the Western Conference Championship as Seattle and Kamloops meet again.
After a first round sweep of Kelowna, the T-Birds dominated Prince George over four games as they outscored the Cougars 25-5 to reach Round 3 for the second straight year. Thomas Milic conceded just once in each of the first three games and owned a .947 save percentage and 1.25 GAA in the series. Offensively, Brad Lambert (WPG) dominated with 14 points (12 assists), that included a five-point (1G, 4A) outing in Game 3, while Jared Davidson (MTL) and Dylan Guenther (ARI) each registered eight points.
Guenther’s 10 postseason goals are part of a four-way tie for the WHL lead while Lambert’s 16 points are a team best. Milic’s 1.13 GAA and .953 save percentage are the second best in the CHL.
This time round, Kamloops will be looking for a different result after a Game 7 loss a year ago. The hosts of the 2023 Memorial Cup presented by Kia, the Blazers made light work of Vancouver in Round 1 before they took down Portland in four games in the second round.
Kamloops scored 24 goals in the series that was highlighted by a 10-goal showing in Game 4 where Olen Zellweger (ANA) had seven points (3G, 4A) and Matthew Seminoff (DAL) a hat-trick. Zellweger’s 13 points in the series led Kamloops while Logan Stankoven (DAL) had 12 points that included a five-point (2G, 3A) effort in Game 2. Dylan Ernst recorded a 29-save shutout in Game 2 and notched a .912 save percentage throughout the series.
The Blazers have scored an astonishing 48 goals through its eight games that sees Stankoven and Zellweger tied for the WHL postseason scoring lead with 21 points. Caeden Bankier (MIN) and Seminoff have also reached double-digit points in the playoffs while Ernst owns a 1.80 GAA.
Season series: Series tied 2-2-0
Schedule:
Game 1 — April 29 — SAS @ WPG — 9:05pm ET / 6:05pm PT
Game 2 — April 30 — SAS @ WPG — 8:05pm ET / 5:05pm PT
Game 3 — May 2 — WPG @ SAS — 10pm ET / 7pm PT
Game 4 — May 4 — WPG @ SAS — 10pm ET / 7pm PT
Game 5* — May 7 — SAS @ WPG — 9:05pm ET / 6:05pm PT
Game 6* — May 8 — WPG @ SAS — 10pm ET / 7pm PT
Game 7* — May 9 — SAS @ WPG — 10:05pm ET / 7:05pm PT
*if necessary