Last week was chock full with big wins and dynamic deals for the Flin Flon Bombers.
On the ice, the Bombers knocked off the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League-leading Nipawin Hawks, 4-1, then swept the fourth-place Melfort Mustangs by scores of 5-3 and 5-4 to make the standings much tighter.
The team was also successful wheeling and dealing last week. The Bombers landed Weyburn captain and point-producing forward Cade Kowalski, arguably the most coveted in-league asset heading into the SJHL deadline, as well as Gabriel Waked, a goalie with major junior experience and a talented young defenceman in Jack Michell.
“With the moves that we have made, there is a lot of excitement right now,” Flin Flon head coach Mike Reagan said. “The guys knew it was an important weekend. They were able to accomplish our goal.
“I think we have seen the team come together a lot over the past week here. For our confidence, that’s huge. It also puts some thought into the back of the minds of Melfort and Nipawin about what we have for a team.”
When asked what the reason was for the Bombers’ success last week, Reagan said it is guys buying into what the coaching staff has long been preaching.
“Finally, some of our maybe less responsible players decided they were going to do the little things right and get pucks in behind D-men and be more responsible with the puck. I think we blocked a lot of shots in three games. Just our willingness to compete harder in the defensive zone and pay the price were some of the things I really noticed about the team here over the last week.”
During the rest of the regular season, the Bombers are hoping to climb up a very tight SJHL standings ladder. Only eight points separate the Hawks in top spot (28-12-1-1, 58 points) and the seventh-place Bombers (24-13-0-2, 50 points). The Kindersley Klippers (25-10-3-2) are three points behind Nipawin at 55. Yorkton (22-17-1-0) is in third, even though the Terriers only have 45 points because they lead the Viterra Division. Melfort (25-13-2-0) and Battefords (22-10-4-4) have 52 points each to sit in fourth and fifth, while Humboldt is one point ahead of Flin Flon with 51.
When asked if he has seen parity like this in a while, Reagan, now in his 12th season with the Bombers, said, “I don’t think this deep of parity. Right now, we are sitting in seventh place and we are definitely not a seventh-place hockey club. … There are just so many teams that are capable of winning. It has been a really deep league this year.”
Deals
At the deadline, it was mission accomplished for the Bombers. Reagan said the team’s goal was to get a forward, a defenceman, and a goalie. It was successfully able to accomplish all three.
With each of the three deals the Bombers made, they turned heads. On the Tuesday before the Thursday, Jan. 10 league and national trading deadline, the Bombers landed Kowalski for Dawson McKenzie and future considerations.
“We all knew Cade was the biggest fish out there,” Reagan said. “To get him, I think, not only makes a statement to our fans but to our players as well that we’re doing whatever we can to win. I think that’s important and I think the players respond to that and I think it gives them confidence.”
Last season’s SJHL Rookie of the Year, the 19-year-old Kowlaski was Weyburn’s captain. Committed to Ferris State University for next season, the Morden, Man. product had 14 goals and 39 points in 33 games this season. In his first two games with the Bombers, the 5-foot-11, 180-pound forward scored a goal and recorded three points.
“He brings a lot of things to the table,” Reagan said. “Extremely skilled, great hockey IQ, and he’s got great character and he’s a leader.”
On the Jan. 10 deadline, the Bombers traded 20-year-old goalie Pierce Diamond to the Estevan Bruins for Michell. Diamond was later traded to BC in a deal with the Cowichan Valley Capitals for future considerations.
A 6-foot-1, 170-pounder from Saskatoon, Michell had three goals and six points in 33 games with the Bruins. Reagan acknowledged some people might be surprised with the team netting the 17-year-old.
“We feel he is a much better defenceman than his age,” said the Flin Flon coach of Michell, who has yet to hit the ice for the Bombers. “If you just look at what he has done so far as a young guy, he becomes our third leading goal scorer on the back end just automatically coming in.
“There is a huge upside with him. … It is about the playoffs. It is not so much about right now. Our job is to get him ready to be a solid contributor come playoff time. He has 19 games to do that with us and to learn our system and our culture. I think he is going to be a valuable asset.”
The Bombers sent 19-year-old forward Jessie Young, who had four points in 10 games, to the Granby Inouk of the QJAAAHL for Waked. The goaltender had recently been released by the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League’s Blainville-Boisbriand Armada. The Bombers had been interested in goaltenders with major junior experience on their resume. Nipawin’s Declan Hobbs and Battlefords’ Joel Grzybowski both played in the Western Hockey League and backstopped their SJHL teams to championships.
In his first action as a Bomber, Waked, who hails from St-Bruno-de-Montarville, Que., had 26 saves on 30 shots. The 6-foot, 194-pounder stopped a penalty shot and a breakaway.
“He looked very confident, calm. Good presence in the net with his size,” said Reagan, who noted Waked made the long journey from Quebec the day before and was adjusting to his new billets and surroundings. “I like his demeanour and I think his composure is great. I think he is going to be a great one-two punch with him and (Jacob) Delorme.”
