The Matchup
Winners of four in a row and five of the last six, the UBC Thunderbirds (12-9-1) host a battle of the two hottest teams in the Canada West this weekend when the No. 3 Saskatchewan Huskies come to Vancouver (18-3-1) Friday and Saturday, January 26 and 27 at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.
The Huskies enter the weekend also on a four-game win streak, having locked up a playoff spot, currently sitting tied with the Alberta Golden Bears for first in the conference.
UBC also has a playoff berth in their sights and can clinch a spot in the post-season for a seventh straight year with at least two points this weekend. The T-Birds find themselves in a log jam in the standings, just one point back of third-place Manitoba and two points ahead of Mount Royal.
The Huskies took both previous meetings against the Thunderbirds earlier this season in Saskatoon but the 'Birds did pick up a point in a 4-3 overtime loss.
Puck drop Friday is 7:00 p.m. PT at Doug Mitchell with the final regular season meeting between the two coming Saturday at 2:00 p.m. PT.
Last Action
The 'Birds rode an emotional high from a 2-1 win in last Friday's Winter Classic over the visiting Pronghorns en route to the weekend sweep with a 4-3 double overtime win on Saturday. The victory also completed the season series sweep for the 'Birds.
Saskatchewan swept the Dinos with 4-1 and 2-0 victories in Saskatoon last weekend to win their season series with Calgary. The Huskies have now won 10 of their last 11 games.
By the Numbers
8– Through the first six games of 2018, the T-Birds have a goal differential of +8, outscoring the opposition by a combined 20-12 margin.
5 – UBC has allowed just five power play goals against over their last ten games, a successful penalty kill rate of 85.3% during that span. Saskatchewan's PK has been strong since the start of the season with an 85.1% success rate.
Players to Watch
Matt Revel (#10, F) – The rookie out of Abbotsford scored the late tying goal in Saturday's comeback double overtime win for his second multi-goal game of the season. Now up to seven goals and nine assists, Revel is third in team scoring and sixth among Canada West rookies.
Michael Stenerson (#5, F) – A model of consistency, Stenerson has eight points in his last eight games and is currently working on a three-game point streak. The fourth-year from Surrey has 15 points, one shy of doubling his total from last season.
Coach's Take
Factoring into the T-Birds' recent success is their overall confidence level, something UBC head coach
Sven Butenschon says is the result of sticking to the process.
"When you focus on the process and the details and you work on them during the week and talk about them and show it in video, then that helps your belief in the game," said Butenschcon. "You don't want to be result oriented, you want to be process oriented, and when you do that you should believe in yourself and that you can come back in a hockey game."
That belief is going to have to continue against the red hot Huskies as Butenschon says his defencemen will have their hands full with one of the conference's most potent offences.
"They're going to have to be prepared to defend and not take any shifts off, not take any situations lightly," said the former professional defenceman turned T-Birds bench boss. "They're playing really well, I think it's a great test for us. We've been beating teams that are right around us, ones we're supposed to beat. I think the timing of this weekend is perfect, we're ready for the challenge of facing one of the best teams in Canada."
