VANCOUVER – For the first time in six weeks the conference leading UBC Thunderbirds are back in Canada West action this weekend when they host the Saskatchewan Huskies at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.
A strong first half of the season saw the defending champion T-Birds close out 2022 with six wins in their last seven games to sit alone atop the conference standings and remain in first despite starting the New Year on a bye week.
"It was a long break but a good break mentally to take that extra time for everyone to be with their family and friends and get a break from the rink," said UBC head coach
Graham Thomas. "It's always a balance between rest and trying to get some competition. But this time we did a bit of a mini-camp and did some testing to see where everyone's at and had a little intrasquad game and then right back into the grind."
While UBC does remain in first, the lead is a tenuous one. The top half of the Canada West is a verifiable log-jam with the 'Birds just a single point ahead of Alberta and Mount Royal with the Huskies just three points out of first, although UBC does hold a pair of games in hand over all their closest rivals.
After splitting their first two games head-to-head in Saskatoon back in October, this weekend series could go a long way to determining playoff seeding.
Friday night will mark the first return to Vancouver for the Huskies since the 2022 Canada West Final where the T-Birds swept the series to claim their first conference title in five years.
While UBC hasn't faced an opponent since early December, the Huskies are fresh off a pair of 2-1 victories at home last weekend against the Trinity Western Spartans, extending Saskatchewan's point streak to five games.
"It's a tough test for us right off the bat, they've already got heir skating legs underneath them so for us we'll have to be sharp and really focussed on our game plan," added Thomas. "They play fast and will come at us with a lot of speed and they play a pressure game with good defence and good goaltending. We'll have to be ready to play with pace and make good decisions under that pressure."
Despite the Huskies averaging just under two goals per game – the third lowest total in the conference – they've managed to keep the puck out of their own net, boasting a conference low 1.45 team goals against average. Saskatchewan's goaltending tandem of Camryn Drever and Colby Wilson hold down the conference's two highest save percentages. But not to be outdone, second-year T-Bird
Elise Hugens enters 2023 with a stellar .938 save percentage and a 1.38 GAA.
Needless to say, goals could be at a premium this weekend, especially considering the Huskies and T-Birds both boast penalty kills with upwards of a 90 per cent success rate.
With just ten games remaining in the regular season, the 'Birds are in prime position to secure one of the coveted top two playoff berths for a second straight season, but not without a considerable amount of hard work yet to come.
"We're in a position we don't want to take for granted. Everybody's going to come at us and bring their best. Everyone's jockeying for position, every game is going to be huge and every weekend is going to be huge. We've earned that position but we can't take it for granted, to be in control of our own destiny."
Puck drop against the Huskies on Friday, January 13 is set for 7:00 p.m. PT at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre with Saturday's rematch scheduled for 3:00 p.m.
Tickets are available now and both games will be streamed live on
Canada West TV.
