As the Huskies take the month of December off for final exams and the holiday season, there is no better time than now to check in with the status of each team.

The Huskie teams are in good or great shape across the board. With over 108 Canada West championships and 26 national titles earned throughout its 108-year history, a program with this level of historical excellence is expected to uphold its tradition year in and year out as a top program in Canada.

With this in mind, let yourself procrastinate final exam studies and  get acquainted with each teams’ positioning in an ultra-competitive Canada West conference. 

Men’s hockey 

In his 27th consecutive season at head coach, Dave Adolph has the Huskies tied for second place in the conference with 11 wins and five losses. Four of their five losses came in the opening four games of the season, and now they have won 11 of their last 12, including eight straight.

The leading scorer for the Huskies is rookie forward Jared Dmytriw, who is a top 10 scorer in the conference with 14 points in 16 games played. The former Vancouver Giant is second in the conference among all rookie skaters.

The 2018-19 U Sports goaltender of the year, Taran Kozun, is giving the Huskies a good chance to win each time he starts between the pipes. Kozun’s 2.33 goals-against-average is third in the conference while he holds the most wins among all goalies with nine.

Women’s hockey 

Winners of their last three straight games, head coach Steve Kook has his Huskies heading into the break on a positive note in his 13th season at the helm. Saskatchewan is just one point behind the first-place University of Calgary Dinos and are well on their way to qualifying for the six-team playoff. 

In their lone matchup this season, the Huskies swept the Dinos on the road in October.

Fourth-year forward Bailee Bourassa is a top-five scorer in the conference with 13 points in 16 games played. Bourassa has been the most active shooter in the conference as well, recording 71 shots on goal so far.

Fourth-year goalie Jessica Vance has recorded three shutouts so far this season, climbing the record books with 18 in her career which gives her sole possession of third all-time in Canada West history. She is now just one shutout away from moving into a tie for second-place all-time.

Men’s basketball 

In his ninth season as the official head coach of the program, Barry Rawlyk’s Huskies are in the thick of things in a tightly packed Canada West conference. Saskatchewan is tied for sixth place heading into the holiday break with six wins and two losses. The top 12 teams will battle it out come playoff time. 

Fifth-year guard JT Robinson leads the Huskies in scoring with 18.8 points per game, eighth-most in the conference. Robinson is scoring with good efficiency, shooting 47.5 per cent from the floor. Second-year guard Alexander Dewar is not far behind Robinson’s production with 17.4 points per game on a fantastic 53 per cent shooting percentage.

Second-year forward Kessler Bishop is grabbing 9.3 rebounds per game while blocking 1.1 shots per game, the fifth and sixth marks in the conference, respectively. 

Women’s basketball 

The number one ranked team in the country, led by head coach Lisa Thomaidis in her 21st season, is perfect. 

Seriously though, they have not lost a game yet this year heading into the holiday break. Tied for first in the conference, the team looks to earn their fourth Canada West title in the past five seasons and hopefully grab their first national championship since 2016.

Fourth-year forward Summer Masikewich is leading the team with 15.6 points per game on 50 per cent shooting. Fifth-year guard Sabine Dukate is second in team scoring with 14.4 points per game on 48.4 per cent shooting. 

Men’s volleyball

Losing their last three of four games, the sky is not falling for first-year head coach Sean McKay and the Huskies who are still in a good position to make the eight-team Canada West playoffs currently sitting in fifth place.

Third-year outside hitter Dylan Mortensen, the former Canada West rookie of the year, has recorded the most kills in the conference with 177 through 12 matches played. Fourth-year setter Connor Gavlas is of great assistance to Mortensen and the team as a whole, recording the second-most assists in the conference with 389.

Women’s volleyball

In his fifth season as the head coach, Mark Dodds’ Huskies team is tied for fourth in the conference with eight wins and four losses. The top eight teams will qualify for playoffs.

Saskatchewan is the only team to defeat the number one ranked team in the country, the Trinity Western University Spartans. That is no feat to be taken lightly.

Fourth-year outside hitter Emily Koshinsky leads the team with 149 kills, which is seventh-most in the conference. Second-year setter Averie Allard is third in the conference for assists with 410. 

Wrestling 

For the first time in program history, the Huskies women’s wrestling team is the number one ranked team in the country. The men’s team is third in the country. 

Huskies fans can expect head coach Daniel Olver to get the most out of both the men’s and women’s teams heading into the Canada West championship on Feb. 7 and 8, followed by the U Sports championship on Feb 21 and 22.

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Tanner Michalenko/ Sports & Health Editor

Photos: Supplied by GetMyPhoto.ca/Huskie Athletics