Playoff Picture: Six clubs punch ticket to postseason
A half-dozen more teams have secured their spot in the 2020 Canadian Hockey League postseason.
Saskatoon Blades
The Saskatoon Blades are headed to the playoffs after Friday’s 2-1 overtime victory against the rival Regina Pats secured the club’s second consecutive postseason berth.
Sitting fourth place in the WHL’s East Division with a 32-24-2-3 showing and 69 points, the Blades are headlined by key talents including 2020 NHL Draft hopeful Tristen Robins who leads the squad in scoring with 68 points counting 31 goals and 37 assists across 60 appearances.
The Blades now look to build on last spring’s showing where the club pushed the eventual Ed Chynoweth Cup champion Prince Albert Raiders to six games in second-round action.
Kelowna Rockets
The 2020 Memorial Cup Presented by Kia host Kelowna Rockets will look to capture their fifth league title and second since 2015 this spring after the club locked up a playoff spot following Friday’s 6-0 win over the Seattle Thunderbirds.
Led by New Jersey Devils prospect Nolan Foote, the former first-round pick is one of four players on the Rockets roster who have heard their name called on draft day, a list that also includes fellow forwards Dillon Hamaliuk (San Jose Sharks) and Matthew Wedman (Florida Panthers), plus blue-liner Kaedan Korczak (Vegas Golden Knights). Up front, Kelowna also offers an intriguing talent in Czech-born Pavel Novak, a 2020 NHL Draft hopeful who leads the squad in scoring with 55 points through 53 contests. In all, the group has helped the Rockets hold down fourth place in the WHL’s B.C. Division, sporting a 28-27-3-3 record and 62 points.
This spring marks the 12th time in the past 13 years in which the Rockets have qualified for the postseason with the most recent appearance coming in 2018 that saw the club fall in a hard-battled four-game opening set versus the Tri-City Americans.
Guelph Storm
The defending J. Ross Robertson Cup champion Guelph Storm will return to the postseason after Friday’s 4-3 shootout win against the Oshawa Generals secured the team’s third straight trip to the playoffs.
Led by fourth-year forward Pavel Gogolev whose 94 points sit sixth in the OHL scoring race, other highlights of the Guelph roster include third-year centre and Montreal Canadiens prospect Cam Hillis as well as netminder Nico Daws, a World Junior gold medalist and the top-ranked North American goaltender for the upcoming NHL Draft. All three have played key roles in helping the Storm rank third place in the OHL’s Midwest Division with a 32-21-3-5 record and 72 points.
Mississauga Steelheads
The Mississauga Steelheads became the sixth club from the OHL’s Eastern Conference to punch their ticket to the playoffs after coming away with an 8-5 victory over the North Bay Battalion on Friday, improving the club to 27-28-4-1 and 59 points on the season.
Looking to build on last spring’s showing that saw the club exit in the first round following a four-game set versus the Sudbury Wolves, the Steelheads bring a trio of NHL drafted talents beginning with Florida Panthers prospect Cole Schwindt who leads the team in scoring with 70 points in 56 games, while the group also includes 18-year-old centre Keean Washkurak (St. Louis Blues) as well as promising rearguard Thomas Harley (Dallas Stars).
Baie-Comeau Drakkar
The Baie-Comeau Drakkar will return to the playoffs for the fourth year running after securing a spot following Friday’s 2-1 win over the Gatineau Olympiques.
Sitting third place in the QMJHL’s East Division with a 24-26-7-4 showing and 59 points, the Drakkar offer an intriguing lineup that begins with leading scorer and Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Nathan Legare, while the club has also seen promising returns from Latvian-born left-wing Raivis Ansons, the Drakkar’s second selection from the 2019 CHL Import Draft who is earmarked for the upcoming NHL Draft in Montreal.
This spring will see Baie-Comeau look to build on last year’s postseason result that saw the club fall in a hard-battled seven-game opening round versus the Moncton Wildcats.
Victoriaville Tigres
Rounding out the latest entrants from the QMJHL, the Victoriaville Tigres punched their ticket to the playoffs thanks to Friday’s 4-1 win over the defending Memorial Cup champion Rouyn-Noranda Huskies that improved the club to 25-28-5-4 on the season, good for 59 points and 13th place league wide.
Led by Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Mikhail Abramov who tops the charts with 75 points in only 62 appearances, the budding up-and-comer is one of two NHL drafted talents on the Tigres alongside Philadelphia Flyers prospect Egor Serdyuk who trails only Abramov for the team lead in scoring.
Returning to the playoffs for the third year running, Victoriaville aims to build on last spring that saw the club fall in a four-game second-round set versus the Huskies.
Playoff Picture Clinching Timeline
Feb. 2 – Ottawa 67’s (OHL)
Feb. 3 – Sherbrooke Phoenix (QMJHL)
Feb. 4 – Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
Feb. 11 – Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL)
Feb. 12 – Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL)
Feb. 13 – Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL), Rimouski Oceanic (QMJHL)
Feb. 14 – Everett Silvertips (WHL)
Feb. 15 – Cape Breton Eagles (QMJHL), Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
Feb. 16 – Peterborough Petes (OHL)
Feb. 17 – Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
Feb. 19 – Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
Feb. 20 – London Knights (OHL), Oshawa Generals (OHL)
Feb. 21 – Kitchener Rangers (OHL), Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL), Prince Albert Raiders (WHL
Feb. 22 – Calgary Hitmen (WHL)
Feb. 23 – Saginaw Spirit (OHL), Flint Firebirds (OHL)
Feb. 25 – Victoria Royals (WHL)
Feb. 26 – Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL), Vancouver Giants (WHL), Sudbury Wolves (OHL), Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL)
Feb. 28 – Charlottetown Islanders (QMJHL)
Feb. 29 – Winnipeg ICE (WHL)
Mar. 1 – Windsor Spitfires (OHL), Barrie Colts (OHL), Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (QMJHL), Saint John Sea Dogs (QMJHL)
Mar. 3 – Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL)
Mar. 4 – Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (QMJHL)
Mar. 6 – Saskatoon Blades (WHL), Kelowna Rockets (WHL), Guelph Storm (OHL), Mississauga Steelheads (OHL), Baie-Comeau Drakkar (QMJHL), Victoriaville Tigres (QMJHL)