Former Winterhawks, Royals goaltender Farkas named WHL Grad of the Month for January
Calgary, Alta.- Mount Royal Cougars goaltender Shane Farkas has ridden a perfect month to Canada West WHL Grad of the Month honours for January.
The second-year Sports and Recreation Management student went 6-0 to start the new year, putting up a pristine 1.00 goals-against average, a .956 save percentage and three shutouts to help vault MRU to second place in the Canada West standings.
His most daunting performance?
A 20-save, 3-2 shootout victory against cross-city rival University of Calgary in front of more than 10,000 fans at the Scotiabank Saddledome on January 24.
“Always going into that Crowchild game, there’s just a weight around the school,” Farkas said. “There’s certainly a weight in the building. I felt like there was just like a pressure on my shoulders kind of pushing me down a little bit. But it was wicked. I mean, we were just trying to win, trying to get the results so that we could walk out of that building happy and it was a lot of fun.”
Farkas currently leads the conference with 17 wins and four clean sheets in 21 starts and sits third in goals-against average (2.09) and save percentage (.919).
The Penticton, B.C. product had won 12 straight games before the Saskatchewan Huskies snapped the streak in a 4-3 win on February 3.
The 6-foot-2, 190-pound netminder played more than 100 games over four seasons in the WHL from 2016 to 2020 with the Portland Winterhawks and Victoria Royals, posting a career-high 30 wins in 2018-19 for Portland.
Farkas initially pursued U SPORTS hockey with the University of Prince Edward Island Panthers, but difficult times brought on by a nagging injury and the pandemic caused him to look west once again. Encouraged by friends who were already playing for the Cougars, he gave Head Coach Bert Gilling a call and the rest is history.
Despite having nine first-year players on the roster, Mount Royal has amassed a 20-6 record and is third in the U SPORTS Rankings heading into the final weekend of regular season play, buoyed by strong performances from players like Farkas and November/December WHL Grad of the Month Connor Bouchard.
Farkas credits the team’s closeness for the success they’ve found on the ice and relishes the upcoming opportunity to chase the men’s program’s first Canada West Championship.
“Sometimes in life you only get so many chances to do something great with great people, right?” Farkas said of the Cougars’ upcoming playoff push. “You know, in a couple years time, I may never see some of these guys ever again. They may move away, they may start families, whatever it is. Just knowing that right now that there’s a job to do and there’s a task at hand and just embracing the present and just trying to go through it with these guys, that’d be awesome.”
Mount Royal will close out its regular season with a weekend set against the top-ranked University of British Columbia Thunderbirds (21-5) in a battle for first in the Canada West standings starting on February 9.
For each season played in the WHL, a player is awarded a one-year post-secondary scholarship, which includes tuition, compulsory fees, and required textbooks. In partnership with Canada West universities, numerous WHL Scholarship recipients each year are also awarded additional financial assistance from their university to receive Western Canada’s Premier Hockey Scholarship.
Since 1993, the WHL has awarded over 7,500 scholarships to graduate players. The WHL is the leading supplier of hockey scholarships in Western Canada and offers one of the most comprehensive scholarships in North America.
WHL Grad of the Month
The WHL Grad of the Month is a partnership between the WHL and Canada West. CW coaches vote to select the winner each month. All nominees must have played at least one full season in the WHL and be in good standing in Canada West.
About the Western Hockey League
Regarded as the world’s finest development league for junior hockey players, the Western Hockey League (WHL) head office is based in Calgary, Alberta. The WHL offers a world-class player experience featuring three key cornerstones: hockey development, education, and a safe and positive environment for all participants. A diverse and inclusive organization, the WHL consists of 22 member Clubs with 16 located in Western Canada and six in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. A member of the Canadian Hockey League, the WHL has been a leading supplier of talent for the National Hockey League for close to 60 years. The WHL is also a leading provider of hockey scholarships with over 375 graduates each year receiving WHL Scholarships to pursue a post-secondary education of their choice. Each season, WHL players also form the nucleus of Canada’s National Junior Hockey Team.
About Canada West
As the leading university athletic conference in the country, Canada West is home to student-athletes who excel in the classroom and their communities. The conference is comprised of 17 member institutions spanning from Victoria to Winnipeg, with over 3,200 student-athletes competing across 14 sports. Canada West’s mission is to train leaders and build champions by providing leadership in the delivery, regulation, and promotion of university-level high-performance sports programs throughout Western Canada.
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