The Red Deer Rebels are quickly approaching a point that no team wants to get to.
The point where the number of games they have left is equal to the number of points they need to make up in order to make the playoffs.
That is exactly the situation the Rebels will find themselves in if they are unable to get any points out of tonight's game in Moose Jaw... ten points out with ten games left.
Anyone hoping for an easy game for the Rebels had best look elsewhere. The Warriors are second in the WHL Eastern Conference and are 7-2-0-1 in their last ten games. It wasn't so long ago (Feb 11 to be exact) that the Warriors scored eight times in an 8-5 win at the Enmax Centrium. But the Rebels, much to my frustration more often than not, have a habit of playing up/down to their opponent's level. So we'll see how this one turns out I guess.
The Rebels expect to have Conner Bleackley in their lineup tonight.
Game time tonight from Moose Jaw is at 6pm. Mooner has the pregame show on 106.7 The Drive starting at 5:50.
The four game Saskatchewan roadie wraps up tomorrow night in Regina. The Rebels return to the Enmax Centrium for a Friday night tilt versus Swift Current and a Saturday night game versus Saskatoon.
---
Let's chat a moment about the Calgary Flames...
Last week, Flames GM Jay Feaster promised to clean house if his team didn't its act together for its final two games before the NHL trade deadline.
The Flames then proceeded to blow leads in back to back games... losing to both Phoenix and Philadelphia on home ice.
That would have led one to believe that Feaster might follow through on his word and make some big time changes to his club... which sleepwalked while going winless in its entire four games home stand).
But alas, trade deadline day came and went without so much as a ripple from Flames camp much less a tidal wave.
And now Flames fans are left to suffer through the rest of the season...which will most likely end with missing the playoffs for the third straight time.
But Feaster is suddenly happy with his team. Mere days after (rightfully) lambasting them for lack lustre play on home ice he decides to stick with what brought him to the dance.
Problem is... there are no pretty girls at this particular dance.
Feaster beams with pride about his two deals in January to bring in Blair Jones and Mike Cammalleri... but the fact is the Flames remain a sub-par team barely capable of scoring more than one goal per game. Were it not for #34 between the pipes the Flames would, as Mr. Feaster so eloquently put it himself, be somewhere worse than 30th place.
I'm not particularly surprised by Feaster's inaction. He has shot his mouth off before and is sure to do it again at some point.
Flames nation will simply have to wait until the end of the season... when Brent Sutter falls on the sword for not leading this non-playoff worthy roster into the playoffs... and when a number of overpaid / underachieving free agent eligible players leave town... for changes to occur.
At least they got a head start by re-signing Tim Jackman for two more years...
---
It's now up to Kevin Koe to keep Alberta's perfect curling season intact...
The Wild Rose Province has already laid claim to both of this year's Canadian junior titles (Brendan Bottcher and Jocelyn Peterman) as well as the Scotties (Heather Nedohin) so it seems only fair that Koe and Co. follow suit and win the Brier in Saskatoon.
Not that it will be easy for Koe, who does already have one Brier title to his credit. Brad Gushue (NL), Glenn Howard (ON), Brad Jacobs (N ON) and Rob Fowler (MB) are also among the favorites. The Brier gets underway this Saturday.
Meantime... Red Deer's Jocelyn Peterman, Brittany Tran, Rebecca Konschuh and Kristine Anderson leave today for Sweden where they will represent Canada at the World Junior Curling Championship.
---
No comments:
Post a Comment