Regina Pat Canadians sweep Moose Jaw, advance to Telus Cup regional

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Known primarily for their offensive firepower, the high-scoring Regina Pat Canadians showed impressive defensive chops while sweeping the Saskatchewan Male U18 AAA Hockey League best-of-five championship series against the Moose Jaw Winmar Warriors.

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“We really took pride in our D-zone play, getting the puck out and generating offence off that,” said Pat C’s defender Eli Johnson, whose power-play goal midway through the third period completed the scoring in Regina’s 3-1 series-clinching victory Thursday.

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“You know, defence only goes so far, right?”

Regina allowed only three goals in three games, earning back-to-back 2-1 victories before eliminating Moose Jaw before a standing-room, sold-out-in-advance crowd of approximately 1,600 inside the 1,200-seat Co-Operators Arena. Crowds have been building to watch the Pat Canadians, partly to see Maddox Schultz, who led the under 18-league in scoring as a 14-year-old and is expected to be the first overall pick April 29 in the WHL prospects draft.

“The coaches couldn’t watch pregame warmups because there was no place to sit or stand,” said Pat C’s head coach Ryan Hodgins. “They mentioned playing in the (6,000-seat) Brandt Centre and I’m going, ‘Absolutely not!’

“Why change it up? This is home, it’s our home rink. We’ve had a great crowd base all year. It’s been unbelievable!”

Teammates Jonah Sivertson and Chase Surkan, who opened the scoring, were second and third in league scoring. Reid Bechard gave Regina a 2-0 lead before Gage Nagel pulled Moose Jaw within 2-1 midway through the second period.

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Regina placed first in regular-season standings before sweeping the eighth-place Prince Albert Mintos, eliminating the third-place Saskatoon Blazers in four games and advancing against second-place Moose Jaw. Saskatoon won the last two championships, beating Regina in back-to-back finals.

“We really stepped it up against Moose Jaw because they have a good offence, so we had to do that,” said Pat C’s goalie Taylor Tabashniuk, who made some crucial third-period saves among his 18, but faced only three shots in the opening period.

“I’m speechless, honestly. I’m so proud of these guys. Everyone played their role and we got the job done but … sorry, the job’s not finished. You guys hear that a lot: The job’s not finished.”

It was Regina’s last home game of the season because the Pat Canadians have qualified for the four-team Telus Cup west regional playdown starting Thursday in Kenora, Ont. A host squad plus teams from Winnipeg and Thunder Bay will also be attending. The west winner advances to the national championship, slated for April 21-27 in Chilliwack, B.C.

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The Pat Canadians have won four national championships, but none since 1999. They won their last league championship in 2020, when they placed first in regular-season standings and were advancing through the playoffs when Hockey Canada cancelled all its competitions because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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