The quest for Western Hockey League supremacy is down to two teams as the Husky WHL Eastern Conference Champion Calgary Hitmen meet the Kal Tire Western Conference Champion Tri-City Americans in the 2010 WHL Championship series.
It’s the first time the No. 1 seeds from both the Eastern and Western Conference will meet in the WHL Championship series since 2002-03.
The Hitmen and Americans will now face off in a best-of-seven series for the chance to hoist the Ed Chynoweth Cup and earn a berth at the 2010 MasterCard Memorial Cup tournament in Brandon, MB, where they will join the host Brandon Wheat Kings as well as the OHL and QMJHL Champions.
Here's a look at the 2010 WHL Championship series match-up (also attached):
Calgary Hitmen vs Tri-City Americans
2009-10 head-to-head regular-season record:
Calgary: 1-0-0-0, 2pts
Tri-City: 0-1-0-0, 0pts
Martin Jones turned in a 35-save performance to record the shutout as the Calgary Hitmen blanked the visiting Tri-City Americans 3-0 in the lone meeting of the season between the teams on January 31st in Calgary, AB.
Ian Schultz, Joel Broda and Jimmy Bubnick scored for the Hitmen, who went 2-for-5 on the power play while holding the Ams scoreless on five man advantage opportunities, and Tyler Shattock chipped in a pair of assists.
Alexander Pechurskiy got the start for the Ams, turning aside 29 of 31 shots he faced in a losing cause for the Americans.
The Americans have won three of the last five meetings versus the Hitmen over the past five seasons.
CALGARY HITMEN - Husky WHL Eastern Conference Champion
2010 Playoff top scorers:
Brandon Kozun 18gp-7g-19a-26pts
Joel Broda 18gp-12g-4a-16pts
Tyler Shattock 16gp-5g-10a-15pts
Kris Foucault 18gp-8g-6a-14pts
How They Got Here…
-Defeated the Moose Jaw Warriors 4-3 in 1st round.
-Defeated the Medicine Hat Tigers 4-2 in 2nd round.
-Defeated the Brandon Wheat Kings 4-1 in Husky WHL Eastern Conference Championship series.
The Hitmen find themselves back in the WHL Championship series for a second straight season. They lost in six games to the Kelowna Rockets in the 2009 WHL Championship series last spring.
Having been to the Eastern Conference final in each of the last four years, and now making their second straight trip to the Championship series, the Hitmen are looking to finally close the deal and capture the Ed Chynoweth Cup after four years of being on the cusp.
The two-time defending Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy winners, the Hitmen have a balanced team that can score while also playing a strong defensive game.
The fourth-highest scoring team in the WHL during the regular season, the Hitmen have pumped in a League-best 75 goals through 18 post-season games for an average of 4.17 goals per game. Led by playoff scoring leader Brandon Kozun, the Hitmen boast 12 players with 10 or more points in the playoffs and 10 players with at least four goals. In addition, their power play is operating at a 24.1 per cent clip in the post-season.
Defensively, only the Ams have been stingier than the Hitmen through the 2010 playoffs. The Hitmen have surrendered 49 goals – 26 fewer than they’ve scored – for an average of 2.72 goals-against per game. In addition, the Hitmen have tightened up their penalty killing, having allowed only two power play goals in 23 shorthanded situations through their five-game series win over the talented Wheat Kings.
Goaltender Martin Jones endured some shaky moments early in the post-season, but has since brought his game to a new level. The 20-year-old from North Vancouver, B.C., was especially impressive during the Hitmen’s Conference Championship series win over Brandon, having allowed just 12 goals on 156 shots in five games for a .949 save percentage to earn the MVP for the series. Jones now boasts a stellar 28-9-2 record in 41 career playoff appearances.
Keys To Success:
-Size Matters. The Hitmen have plenty of size both up front and on the blue line. Playing a physical game may work to the Hitmen’s advantage versus an Americans team that has one of the smaller lineups in the WHL. Using their size in front of Drew Owsley would also go a long way to helping them beat the red-hot netminder.
-Stay out of the Box. The Hitmen have owned one of the better penalty killing units all season. However, they’d be best not to tempt fate by taking too many penalties versus an Americans team that thrives on the power play.
-Learn from the Past. This is the Hitmen’s second straight appearance in the WHL Championship series. The team boasts 11 players who felt the sting of losing the WHL Championship to the Kelowna Rockets last season. They’ll need to draw on that experience in order to find a higher level of play if they want to hoist the Ed Chynoweth Cup.
TRI-CITY AMERICANS - Kal Tire WHL Western Conference Champion
2010 Playoffs top scorers:
Brendan Shinnimin 17gp-8g-14a-22pts
Kruise Reddick 17gp-9g-12a-21pts
Brooks Macek 17gp-6g-11a-17pts
Justin Feser 17gp-3g-14a-17pts
How They Got Here…
-Defeated the Chilliwack Bruins 4-2 in 1st round.
-Defeated the Kelowna Rockets 4-1 in 2nd round.
-Defeated the Vancouver Giants 4-2 in Kal Tire Western Conference Championship series.
The Americans are making their first-ever appearance in the WHL Championship series after winning the Western Conference Championship for the first time in their 22-year history.
Their most recent lengthy playoff run saw the team lose the 2008 Western Conference Championship series to the eventual WHL and Memorial Cup Champion Spokane Chiefs.
The Americans have proved to be a team without any glaring weaknesses or holes. Boasting a deep and talented group of forwards and a strong, if unheralded, group of defensemen, and an outstanding goaltender, the Americans have been the most consistent team throughout the 2010 WHL playoffs.
Up front, the Ams boast plenty of speed, skill and offensive depth, with eight forwards having topped the 10-point mark, and seven players with five or more goals in the post-season. Kruise Reddick has made a habit of scoring big goals at key times in the playoffs, while sophomores Brendan Shinnimin, Justin Feser and Brooks Macek have carried their strong regular-season play right through the playoffs. Perhaps the Ams’ biggest offensive weapon is their power play, which torched the Giants for 10 goals in 32 chances in the Western Conference finals.
Defensively, the Americans have surrendered the fewest goals of the remaining two teams. The team has given up just 39 goals in 17 games, and has surrendered more than three goals in a game just three times. Boasting a combined +30 rating in the playoffs, Tri-Cities’ defense corps may lack marquee names, but has done a stellar job in shutting down some of the WHL’s top offensive threats through the first three rounds.
In net, Drew Owsley has continued to build on an already outstanding sophomore season, showing he can fill the shoes left by two-time WHL Goaltender of the Year Chet Pickard. Owsley leads all WHL goaltenders with a 2.14 GAA and a terrific .931 save percentage through the playoffs, and has not lost back-to-back playoff games. Owsley shut the door on the Giants in the Conference Championship series, allowing just five goals on 105 shots over the last three games of the series while earning 1st Star honors in all three games.
Keys To Success:
-Speed Kills. Not the biggest team, in terms of physical stature, the Americans do possess plenty of speed. They have used their team speed to their advantage all season, and will need to continue to do so versus a much bigger, physical Hitmen team. Players like Johnny Lazo, Brendan Shinnimin and Jordan Messier will need to turn on the jets to expose Calgary’s defense.
-Road Warriors. With Calgary having home ice advantage, the Ams know they will need to win at least once on Hitmen turf if they want to win the series. Boasting a solid 6-2 record on the road in the post-season, the Ams have proven they can win in tough buildings. Yet, the Ams failed to score in their only visit to Calgary this season.
-In Owsley We Trust. Drew Owsley has been one of the big reasons the Americans have reached the WHL Final. The MVP of the Kal Tire WHL Western Conference Championship series, no goalie has better numbers or has been more consistent than Owsley in the post-season. Now, Owsley will need to out-duel an equally strong goaltender in Martin Jones and keep the high-scoring Hitmen at bay.
Series Schedule
#1 – Tri-City @ Calgary; Friday, April 30 (7:30pm MT)
#2 – Tri-City @ Calgary; Saturday, May 1 (8:00pm MT)
#3 – Calgary @ Tri-City; Tuesday, May 4 (7:05pm PT)
#4 – Calgary @ Tri-City; Wednesday, May 5 (7:05pm PT)
#5 – Tri-City @ Calgary; Friday, May 7 (7:00pm MT)**
#6 – Calgary @ Tri-City; Sunday, May 9 (5:05pm PT)**
#7 – Tri-City @ Calgary; Monday, May 10 (7:00pm MT)**
No comments:
Post a Comment