The Matchup
As jockeying for playoff positioning continues with 10 games remaining in the regular season, the UBC Thunderbirds (8-9-1) head on the road for the second straight weekend, this time visiting the Regina Cougars (3-13-2) Friday and Saturday, January 12 and 13 at the Co-operators Centre.
Currently sitting in fourth place in the conference, tied in points with the Lethbridge Pronghorns, the T-Birds are aiming to stay within that final Canada West home playoff berth while hopefully gaining ground on the third place Manitoba Bisons who are seven points ahead.
It's been a rough season for the Cougars who have just one win on home ice having dropped their last four games. Regina sits in last place in the conference, five points back of the Calgary Dinos.
Puck drop Friday is 5:00 p.m. PT with Saturday's final regular season meeting between the 'Birds and Cougars at 3:00 p.m. PT.
Last Action
The 'Birds started 2018 with a 3-2 double overtime win last Friday against the Dinos, followed up by a 4-2 loss Saturday to finish the double header with a split, but also with the season series advantage over Calgary.
Regina dropped both halves of a home double-header in the Cougar bowl against visiting Mount Royal. Regina allowed five goals in the first period in an 8-2 loss Friday night followed by a 4-2 loss Saturday.
By the Numbers
343 – UBC has accumulated the most penalty minutes in the Canada West with 343, an average of just over 19 minutes per game. Regina is averaging 15.6 penalty minutes per game, the third lowest in the conference.
54 – The Cougars have struggled in their own zone having allowed 54 goals against through ten home games. Heading into Friday, UBC's road record is 4-5-1 while the 'Birds average three goals per game away from Vancouver.
Players to Watch
Chase Clayton (#22, F) – With two assists in last Saturday's win which included setting up
Nick Buonassisi's overtime winter, Clayton is heating up with four points in his last four games. The third-year forward has once again been a stalwart on the penalty kill while logging quality minutes in all situations.
Tyler Sandhu (#19, F) – With a point in four of his last five games, the rookie from Richmond's 15 points on the season has him just one back of
Austin Vetterl for the team lead. The Arts student is currently fourth in Canada West rookie scoring.
Coach's Take
Given how tight the standings are and how quickly things can change, the 'Birds know they can't be taking any opponent lightly, especially while on the road.
"If we have that same mentality (as last weekend) with desperation, fighting for our lives, we'll be fine, we just can't take anything for granted," said UBC head coach
Sven Butenschon. "We've had trouble in that rink. We have to go in business like, play our game and execute our game plan and we'll be fine."
The T-Birds played both games last weekend with just three forward lines, but they are getting reinforcements for the Cougars.
"
Austin Glover is coming back, a big man in the middle, so that will help, but it's not about one or two guys, we proved that last weekend," said Butenschon. "We had two defencemen playing forward in Grewal and Guenther and they were fantastic. They kept it simple, they worked hard, they finished their checks, I think other forwards on our team can take a page out of their playbook. It's going to take another team effort."
