SASKATOON — Last weekend the Saskatoon Blades hosted WHL Eastern Conference-leading Winnipeg Ice.
The Ice won game one 6-3 on Friday night. The Blades rebounded for a 5-2 victory the next night with 5,144 looking on. As of Sunday, the Blades had a 16-5-0-0 record and were third in the Eastern Conference. The Saskatoon team is 7-3-0-0 in its last 10 games.
On Friday, Graham Sward put the Ice up 1-0 in the first period. Conner Roulette tied the in the second. The Ice then scored twice in the second with Conor Geekie and Ben Zloty doing the honours and led 4-1 after Ty Nash scored in the first five minutes of the third period. The Blades rallied with Josh Pillar and Justin Lies scoring on the power play to make the score 4-3 for the Ice.
The Blades were unable to tie things up. Owen Pederson, on a power play, and Vladislav Shilo, into an empty net, capped the scoring for the Ice.
Austin Elliott made 14 saves on 19 shots. For the Ice, Daniel Hauser stopped 30 shots.
The Saskatoon squad wrapped up a 4-1 homestand with the 5-2 win over the Ice on Saturday. Egor Sidorov powered the Blades’ offence with a hattrick. Jayden Wiens and Vaughn Watterodt also scored for Saskatoon. Blades goalie Ethan Chadwick had 21 saves.
The Ice opened the scoring on a Nash powerplay marker. The Blades responded with three goals. Saskatoon led 2-1 and 3-1 at the intermissions. In the third period, Aiden Oiring scored for Winnipeg before Sidorov completed his hattrick. Ice netminder Mason Beaupit had 17 saves.
The Blades are on the road this week. The squad plays in Edmonton on Wednesday, Red Deer on Friday, and Medicine Hat on Saturday.
Blades Roster Moves
The Blades moved 19-year-old Marek Schneider to the Red Deer Rebels last week. The Saskatoon squad receives a fourth-round pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft and a conditional fourth-round selection for the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft.
The Prince Albert product served as an affiliate player for the Blades during the 2019-2020 season before joining the team for the abbreviated 2020-2021 season. He accumulated eight points in 78 games with Saskatoon. Schneider had a goal and an assist through 14 games this season with the Blades.
“We would like to sincerely thank Marek for all his hard work at the rink and in the community over the last four years, and we’re excited for him to get a fresh start in Red Deer,” said general manager Colin Priestner in a media release.
