SASKATOON – The Saskatchewan Huskies are still basking in the glow of their recent Canada West men’s hockey championship victory, but not for much longer.
“The guys are still excited from last weekend, but we still have work to do, so it’s back to the grind time here,” third-year forward Josh Roach said.
With their 16th conference title secured, the Huskies’ focus now shifts to the University Cup. There is still plenty of work to be done if the team hopes to win its second national championship.
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“It was such a high, a rush, the mountain was super high there,” Canada West rookie of the year Kohl Bauml explained. “I think being able to refocus, keeping the valleys and peaks kind of neutralized right now would be the best way to look at it.”
Although the Dogs haven’t won the big one since 1983 they still have plenty of national championship experience on their current roster. The team is making its fourth trip to nationals in the last five years and they’re hoping to use some of those experiences to their benefit. That includes their loss to Alberta in the 2014 championship final, which capped Roach’s rookie season.
“Just enjoy the ride,” Roach said he told teammates who have yet to play on the national stage.
Easier said than done. The Huskies will be competing against some stiff competition in the eight-team tournament with virtually no room for error.
“The biggest thing is sticking to what we do best. Obviously we don’t know any of these teams hardly at all. We may get to watch a little bit of video but at the same time it’s a one-game knockout so it’s going to be up to us,” Bauml said.
“We’re not going to let anybody control our destiny.”
“If you go in there thinking you’re a little better than you are and have a tough first period, you’re going to be in big trouble. So I think we’ve filed the Canada West thing,” head coach Dave Adolph said.
Adolph and the rest of the Huskies will find out for sure when the tournament begins on March 17.
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