- Have you noticed that only the five teams with the best regular season records remains? Tri-City, Spokane, Vancouver, Calgary and Lethbridge. The Broncos were the black sheep of the group finishing 11th in the regular season. They say the regular season doesn't mean anything, not this year.
- Through the regular season and playoffs, the Broncos were the only team in the WHL not to get shutout this season. Through the 72 regular season games and 12 playoff games, the Broncos scored at least a goal. Brandon was close, they were blanked on their final game of the playoffs by Lethbridge.
- How lopsided were the powerplays in the Broncos/Hitmen series? How about 34-21 Hitmen. Not saying it was the reason for the series win but it sure played a huge role. When it comes to a six game series, that's a huge difference in powerplay time.
- Six home ice playoff games should go a long ways towards a potential profit for the organization for the 2nd straight year. Granted, the Broncos couldn't maximize their revenue because of renovations most of the season. We will get the final numbers at the AGM.
- The Broncos could see a handful of their older players sign professional contracts over the next while and summer. We will wait and see. All three 20 year-olds have some irons in the fire. Levi Nelson is expected to sign with Boston shortly, Zack Smith and Dale Wiese are getting some attention from NHL teams. Keegan Dansereau has too much skill not to get an offer of some sort and Jesse Dudas and the Columbus Blue Jackets continue to talk. Although the 20 year-old situation next season could make for some tough decisions for the Broncos, it's quite possible the pool of players could be shortened significantly before camp.
- Did anyone see the time clock freeze during last night's Calgary Flames / San Jose Sharks game? I had a chuckle... it happened three times in three games last week in Calgary during the Broncos/Hitmen series.
- It was sure awesome to call some WHL games from the Saddledome. Friday's game featured the Stanley Cup Playoff logo on the ice just inside the bluelines. Maybe it's just me, but I thought it was a neat experience...
- Thanks to Brad Curle and the crew at the Fan 960. We had some fun this series. Great job by Pat back at the studio as game host. It was fun to be one of the pre-game guests all series long. There wasn't a stone left unturned when breaking down the series.
- It took to game six, but I finally got a smile from Hitmen Head Coach and General Manager Kelly Kisio in our pre-game interview. Kelly was very accommodating all series long. His no- nonsense approach took a break the odd time in our pre-game Q and A session. Through it all, both coaches were very complimentary of each other and their opponent.
- Was beating the Regina Pats the end all, be all for the Broncos? In a word, no. They wanted more and weren't satisfied. Although our fans relished in the six game series win, the team wanted more.
- It was great to see our fans so excited for game six back on home ice. Tickets were all but gone in the early afternoon. The line-up started early and carried out in front of the I-plex main entrance. Playoff fever took over this city.
- The Eastern Conference Final will be some great hockey too. With Calgary five hours away and Lethbridge about 3 1/2, it may be worth checking out in person.
- Who is our playoff MVP? Is it Travis Yonkman or do other players get some consideration? Keegan Dansereau could be a close runner-up. I think it's Yonks though. The Broncos should fire a news release on the award winner sometime this week.
- I'm headed down today to get some audio for the radio stations. Maybe I'll transcribe a few of the quotes for the blog. Thanks to Tim Kehler for our 20 minute post-game interview after game six. I heard a lot of people sure liked his take on the team and the series.
More later.......
Jon
6 comments:
Guess your possible good luck omen of the Bronco bus passing the Hitman bus in the wee hours panned out as well as the pig spleen prophecies did for the Pats. Well, only 4 1/2 months to go and everybody starts over again at zero.
Jon, just say the better team won, don't try and come up with excuses like using the penalty angle, that's weak dude... Yonkman finally came down from that high he was playing on, and played human. His horseshoe finally ran dry, and that is and was the difference against Calgary...
Jon just think of the brighter side, you and Switzer can now meet up with Roddie and Galo on the greens and get your golf game up to par... You shouldn't be too far behind since the greens just opened up, because when the Pats and the Warriors lost out there was still snow on the ground... Have a great summer Jon, and see ya at the Brandt Centre next year, I will be the one yelling up at your booth...
Not making excuses. The better team did win. Just like in round one Darcy. And unlike, what some of the Pats fans did (including yourself) I'm not going to run our team down. They played hard, showed a lot of heart and made this city proud.
Truthfully Jon, your team doesn't deserve to be run down. They did give their all and likely did better against Calgary than most thought.
As a Pats fan, we ran our team down because we were brutal. It's our right as paying customers. The Friday night game against the Broncos was the worst display by a contending team ever.
Your right Jon, the Broncos at least made it to round two... Not to mention that the Pats players and personnel should be appauled at the way the year ended up... You are also correct dude that I and others slammed the Pats players and management, but for good reason and I don't think anyone that did needs to feel bad about it... I also know I will not apologize for slamming the Pats team... Maybe some of the stuff I said was over the line, but the Pats and their players should be ashamed at the way they played games 5 and 6 against the Broncos... Jon you see here in Regina most don't accept mediocricy very well... Most fans in Regina were choked at the lack of effort from some of the players and coaches on the team... Although we should be used to mediocricy here in Regina, we just don't accept it very well... I also know that most of the people I have talked to in Regina are still choked, and feel that there should be some accountability... Anyhow Jon that is my two cents from why I and others reacted the way we did when the Pats lost... P.S. Jon you can disagree with me if you like, but if the Pats had played Calgary I say that they would have eliminated them... You see the Pats matched up against Calgary better than they did against Speedy Creek... Anyhow dude have a good summer, and see ya at the Brandt in the fall...
Why wouldn't the Broncos have stayed Friday night in Calgary, got a good nights rest and taken the bus home to arrive early afternoon like a road game? Some guys just looked dog tired on Saturday...
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