Kenton Dulle and the rest of the Huskies men’s hockey squad keep winning in preparation for the University Cup.

All season the Huskies men’s hockey players have been saying that they want to earn their way into the University Cup tournament, not merely make it by default as the host team. Now 10 games into the season, the Dogs are making a strong case for deserving their spot.

Last season the Dogs qualified for the prestigious University Cup tournament by winning the Canada West conference championship. This year the Huskies host the University Cup and, regardless of where they finish in the conference playoffs, the Dogs are guaranteed entrance when the country’s best teams meet to battle for top Canadian university sport honours.

“Although we’re hosting nationals we want to make it there the right way, by winning our league. We don’t want to take any short cuts,” said Derek Hulak, who is second on the team in points but was forced to sit out for the first time in over a year when the squad played Regina Nov. 9 and 10. Hulak will be sidelined for a few weeks with a dislocated shoulder.

Hulak was the leading point producer in the Canada West last season and was a pivotal player in the team’s success.

He says it’s hard to watch from the bleachers but is focused on recovering and getting back to the ice as soon as possible to help the Dogs continue their winning ways.

The Dogs are 8-2 thus far in the season and have owned the top spot in the conference for the majority of the year. The team slid to second place in the standings after losing a game to Regina Nov. 10 and currently sit two points behind the Alberta Golden Bears. The Huskies, however, have two more games than Alberta has left in the season schedule. Plus the Dogs boast a better win percentage than their 9-3 counterparts.

Huskies head coach Dave Adolph attributes the team’s success to playing a smart style of hockey.

“We haven’t been taking a lot of risks with the puck and that’s really a big part of hockey right now, trying to make sure you play as high percentage as possible. We have been a real good team this year at playing high percentage hockey,” Adolph said.

The Huskies top offensive line has been a major part of that high percentage play. All three players, Hulak, Kyle Bortis and Jimmy Bubnick, were among the top 20 point producers in the league coming into the Nov. 9 match against Regina.

With Hulak out with an injury, with third-year forward Kenton Dulle filled in at left wing on the top line. After making the move up, he posted a goal in his first game with the new line.

“We’re missing a pretty key member on that line but Kenton has slowly been working himself into a spot where he is a dangerous player,” Adolph said.

“It’s definitely a big confidence boost for me,” Dulle said.

The Dogs have played in six games this year that were decided by a one goal margin, and have won five of those six games. The squad will attempt to keep up the success in the remainder of the season and into playoffs, attempting to defend their conference title and earn their way into the University Cup tournament.

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Photo: Raisa Pezderic/The Sheaf