Brothers, father face off for first-ever Darby Derby in Swift Current
Swift Current, Sask. – In the Western Hockey League’s smallest market, the community always comes together to celebrate their own- even if they’re wearing the opponent’s jersey.
On Saturday night, brothers and Portland Winterhawks players Hudson and Griffin Darby rolled into Swift Current’s InnovationPlex for their first WHL game in their hometown.
What’s more, their father, Broncos assistant coach Regan Darby, was on the opposite bench for the match.
“You look up on the Jumbotron and I think every time they showed the stands, I knew a person,” rookie defenceman Griffin recalled.
Every inch of that ice holds a memory for the trio, though this milestone match might take the cake.
“This might be the only time, possibly, to do this in Swift Current,” Regan said of Portland’s biennial East Division road trip. “So (it’s) definitely something cool to look back on. I know they wish the score was different, but regardless, it was pretty special to be able to do and I don’t think that happens too often.”
Hudson, 18, and Griffin, 16, shared a special connection with their hometown Broncos growing up.
Their father, who played three seasons in the WHL before turning professional, has run skills and development camps in Swift Current for years, and the family also billeted players like 2018 WHL Champion Noah King and former alternate captain Scott Feser.
The boys even hit the ice with the Broncos as the ‘seventh skater’ in their minor hockey days.
“Ever since we were little, we were all kind of just known as ‘the hockey family,'” Griffin recalled. “Anything that happens at the rink, we were there.
“We lived right beside the rink too, so we’re always walking down and up as kids- early morning practices, late nights and stuff like that.”
But their age gap was just big enough that they never suited up for the same team in minor hockey, save for a handful of games where Griffin joined Hudson for a handful of games with the Swift Current Legionnaires as an affiliate player with their dad serving as bench boss.
That changed when the Winterhawks called Griffin’s name with the 17th overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.
“I was probably more nervous than he was,” Hudson recalled. Their family and friends had packed into their living room to stream the draft. “Every pick that went by was more of a relief. And Portland, when it was their chance to pick… It was pretty stressful, but when they did call his name, it was pretty cool. When Portland was announcing it, the audio kicked out halfway through the pick and so we had no idea… Then it kicked back in and they said Griffin, so we all jumped up. It’s pretty special.”
“Even knowing that we had a chance before the draft that I could possibly go to Portland and looking back at it now it’s huge,” Griffin added. “It’s kind of the whole reason why I’m here right now.”
Thankfully, the unforgettable moment was caught on camera.
When you get drafted to the same team as your older brother 🥹
What a moment for Griffin and Hudson Darby! pic.twitter.com/1a3c1dwKxV
— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) May 11, 2023
“You think of brothers and that they might get sick of each other,” Regan added. “But they’re best friends. They love spending time together. They train together in the summers, they spend time at a lake together, they hang out together, they golf together. They do a lot of things together. They don’t seem to get sick of each other. As a parent, it’s nice to see and you know that they have such a great relationship.”
The following season saw Hudson break new ground for the brothers as he embarked on his rookie campaign south of the border.
A 6-foot-2, 182-pound winger, he potted nine goals (including two game-winners) and three assists in the regular season before helping the Winterhawks reach the 2024 WHL Championship Series, where the team had to settle for second against the Moose Jaw Warriors.
The sting of that loss hasn’t completely faded, but seven months later, he got some revenge in the Winterhawks and Warriors’ first meeting since the final on this Eastern road trip.
Hudson potted the insurance marker as the Winterhawks cruised to a 5-2 win.
“Before the game when everybody walked into the dressing room, we were all like, ‘Wow. We hate this place,'” Hudson said. “It kind of brought back so many memories that, you know, we weren’t proud of. To go in there and win this year was pretty cool.”
More than 2,400 fans piled into the InnovationPlex the next day, marking one of the most-attended games of the season.
The Darby Derby only trailed the home opener, the annual Slough Sharks game and January’s Minor Hockey Night, featuring Gavin McKenna and the Medicine Hat Tigers.
Even though the Broncos took a 10-1 win, the score isn’t what resonates with the Darbys.
Instead, they reflect on seeing family, friends, teachers, and even kids they’ve coached smiling in the stands and cheering them on.
“When you have so much family, so much support, after the game when you see everybody, it (the score) just gets washed,” Hudson said. “You see that they’re not really there to care about the result. They’re just happy to see you succeed and play on a big stage like that. We don’t get to come home a lot, so it’s pretty special when we get the chance to play at home and just see people in general. It’s a great support system.”
The Winterhawks wrapped up their East Division swing with a 4-2-0-0 record- including the all-important grudge match win in Moose Jaw- to sit third in the competitive U.S. Division.
(Story via WHL.ca)
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‘Where Are They From’ Presented by Born & Raised Construction
Hudson and Griffin Darby hail from Swift Current, Saskatchewan, the home of the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos. Both players were selected by Portland in the WHL Prospects Draft and Hudson claimed the Winterhawks Rookie of the Year honors during the 2023-24 season thanks to his steady production and energy. Former Winterhawk Ryan McCleary and his father Trent are both Swift Current natives, while former Prince Albert Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid calls the sixth-largest Saskatchewan city home. Did you know that NHL great and former Seattle Thunderbird Patrick Marleau has the most NHL points (1,197) from players who live in Swift Current? The next closest sits over 1,000 points behind.
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