JORDAN HARTSHORN
Sports Writer
I expect candour from Huskies’ head coach Dave Adolph. It’s kind of his thing. Out of all the coaches at the University of Saskatchewan, he has never shied away from a colourful quote or an honest diatribe. Even still, his words after his team’s second consecutive overtime loss at home to the Alberta Golden Bears on Saturday gave me pause.
“Now we have to refocus and make sure we don’t lick our balls for the rest of the way!” he offered as an emotional prognosis for the remainder of the season.
Like I said: pause.
When he first spoke them, the words didn’t really register. I guess at the time describing his team’s need to move on from their two gut-wrenching defeats was aptly summed up in the need to not be content to lick, as a dog does to clean, one’s genitalia.
But I suppose, in the most unusual, yet hilarious of expressions, Adolph nails it.
The Huskies lost two more games to their storied rivals from Alberta over the weekend, 5-4 in overtime on Friday and 4-3, again in an extra frame, on Saturday. Yes, unfortunately it’s a familiar script as of late. Alberta has now won 15 of the past 16 showdowns between the two schools, and even Adolph was quoted as saying after Friday’s loss that it’s not much of a rivalry because his side rarely finds a way to win.
There is even more reason for the Huskies to lick their proverbial wounds and admit this season is just not theirs for the taking. At 10-7-3, fourth in the Canada West conference, the Huskies are performing below their typical expectations, which would have them in first or second in the conference. Despite a tidy record at home (8-2), Saskatchewan has been lacklustre on the road with a 2-8 record.
“Now we have to refocus and make sure we don’t lick our balls for the rest of the way!”
-Coach Dave Adolph
Sadly, the Canada West conference title, and the lone berth to the University Cup in Thunder Bay March 25 to 28, will likely go through Edmonton as the Bears are secure in the first place position with a 18-2-1 record, and an 11-point cushion between them and second-place Manitoba.
So, do the Huskies pack up, head home, call it a darned good effort, quit on their season, and, um, lick their balls?
I bloody well hope not.
If a fair-weather follower saw the numbers and read that the Bears had won 15 of the previous 16, it would ring as impressive and somewhat daunting. But that’s something journalists — myself included— constantly botch in interpreting college sports.
Due to the limitation on the number of years players can compete in the college game, teams change entirely over the years. If they’re lucky, they lock down a core of consistent, successful players who lead to championships, and add new, young recruits to learn from the thriving pedigree.
And that’s what the Bears have going on right now.
The Bears’ past 15 victories over the Huskies that date back to the 2007-2008 campaign. However, this is not entirely fair statistically. The bulk of the Huskies offensive pop — Steven DaSilva, Kyle Bortis and Chad Greenan — were still playing junior hockey at that time.
Plus, the Bears also happened to win the University Cup that year in Moncton. A plethora of players from that roster still play for Alberta, including the weekend’s overtime goal scorers Kyle Fecho and Derek Ryan.
Rosters fluctuate. Again, the 15 victories are easy to quote, but just before that run the Huskies had won five of eight meetings against the Bears.
It’s not an excuse but a reality — this is an established Albertan side, while the young Huskies outfit has struggled to find itself. But after watching the quality of hockey Friday and Saturday, it would be impossible to say that Alberta has a distinct advantage over Saskatchewan.
Coach Adolph said the fact that the Huskies were only able to come away with two measly points in the standings was “un-fucking believable.” Alberta could have taken all four, and so could the Huskies.
The so-called rivalry is still alive. These two schools have been going at it for decades, and the small, recent disappointments are not going to usurp that notion.
Whether the Huskies meet the Bears in the Canada West semis or in the conference championship final, one thing is certain: there’s plenty of good hockey to be played.
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photo: Lesley Porter