GAME 3 PREVIEW | Blades, Wheat Kings clash to keep undefeated starts alive
WHL REGULAR SEASON | GAME 3 | Saskatoon Blades (2-0-0-0) vs Brandon Wheat Kings (3-0-0-0)
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Time to run it back in our house!
Get down to SaskTel Centre tonight as the Saskatoon Blades (2-0-0-0) look to remain undefeated when they host the Brandon Wheat Kings (3-0-0-0) at 7:00pm. The Blades opened the 2024-25 WHL season with a home-and-home series sweep last weekend against the Swift Current Broncos. After a 4-1 victory on the road at Innovation IPlex Sept. 20, the Blades stormed back from a 3-1 deficit in the first period with eight unanswered goals, beating the Broncos 9-3 in front of a home crowd of 8000+.
Special teams have balanced out for the Blue and Gold to start the season. The Blades’ powerplay sits at 33.3% after cashing in on 2-of-6 attempts, while allowing three powerplay goals on five Swift Current man-advantages last weekend. Penalty killing has been a strength for the Blades in recent years, holding a top-ten penalty kill percentage in the league for the past seven seasons. Last year’s penalty kill saw the most success, finishing top of the league at 86.1%.
The Bridge City Bunch head into tonight’s tilt against Brandon on a full week of rest. The visitors went to war last night up the road at the Art Hauser Centre against the Prince Albert Raiders, beating them 4-1. NHL draft-eligible forward Roger McQueen continued his torrent start to the year with his fifth goal in three games. The 6-foot-5 Saskatoon product is tied for the lead in WHL points with seven
Saskatoon has a chance to collect two more points before heading on the road Wednesday to take on the Calgary Hitmen at the Scotiabank Saddledome, followed by another game against the Broncos at Innovation IPlex on Friday. The Blades next home game is Saturday, Oct. 5 when they welcome exceptional status defenceman Landon Dupont and the Everett Silvertips to town.
Who to Watch
Rookie forwards Cooper Williams and Colten Worthington, along with second-year winger William James scored their first career WHL goals at Saskatoon’s home opener. Williams opened the scoring early in the first period, finishing the night with three points (1G, 2A) in just his second career game. Worthington scored the Blades ninth and final tally of the night late in the third on a powerplay, giving him one goal through the first two games of the season. Both players competed for the 2024 Telus Cup last spring. Worthington and the Brandon Wheat Kings U18 AAA team captured silver, while Williams and the Calgary Buffaloes U18 AAA squad took home bronze. James’ first career WHL goal came in the dying seconds of the opening 20 minutes to cut the Blades deficit to 3-2. The 6-foot winger has one goal through two games and leads the Blades at +7.
17-year-old blueliner Brayden Klimpke was named the game’s first star in last weekend’s 9-3 victory against the Broncos. The first-year blueliner scored the game-winning goal in the second period and finished the contest +5 with two goals and one assist. Klimpke spent 15 games up with the Blades last season due to injury woes on the backend, putting up one goal and two assists with a +4 rating.
Newly obtained defenceman Cameron Sytsma is expected to make his Blades debut tonight. The 2006-born defender was acquired by Saskatoon on Tuesday from the Everett Silvertips in exchange for a 2025 sixth-round pick. The Surrey, BC native was drafted by the Silvertips in the sixth round (131 overall) of the 2021 WHL Prospects Draft. In 101 career WHL games, the left-handed shot has collected ten assists, 38 penalty minutes. Sytsma’s best season came last year when the 5-foot-11 defender notched eight assists and a +16 rating in 45 games.
Game day 50/50
Our game day 50/50 is live! You can skip the line at the game and purchase your ticket online from anywhere in Saskatchewan. Give yourself a chance to walk home with some serious cash!
Store special
Post-game autographs
