Sask West This Week: At the Break

BY PHIL HEILMAN

A simple and quick recap of the Sask West Hockey League (SWHL) thus far.

The Wilkie Outlaws hold the top stop with a 7-1 record (14 pts), followed by the Kindersley Sr Klippers with a 6-1 record (12 pts). In a tie for third is the Hafford Hawks at 4-2 (8 pts) and the Macklin Mohawks at 4-4 (8 pts). In fifth is the Edam 3 Stars at 2-3 (4 pts), followed in sixth by the Biggar Nationals at 1-6-1 (3 pts) and the Unity Miners in seventh at 0-5-1(1 pt).

Taking a look at the Top Ten scoring leaders, there is no surprise to see a trio of Wilkie Outlaws on top. Brock Harrison is on top with 21 pts (3-18) in 8 games, followed by Derek Keller with 17 pts (1-16) in 8 games, and Brett Boehm with 15 pts (10-5) in 7 games. Keegan Tiringer of the Edam 3 Stars sits in a tie in 4th (8-6 in 4 games) with Jonathon Redlick of the Biggar Nationals (8-6 in 7 games) and Rick Cey of the Wilkie Outlaws (7-7 in 8 games) with14 pts. In 7th is Ryan Keller of the Wilkie Outlaws with 12 pts (9-3) in 5 games. In a tie for 8this David Dziurzynski of the Unity Miners (4-7 in 5 games) and Rory Gregoire of the Wilkie Outlaws (3-8 in 6 games) with 11 pts. In a 3-way tie for 10th is Shayne Neigum of the Kindersley Sr Klippers (6-4 in 6 games), Taylor Bucsis of the Biggar Nationals (6-4 in 7 games) and Tyler Baier of the Macklin Mohawks (1-9 in 8 games) all with 10 pts.

Looking at the Top five in goaltending (minimum 3 games played), we see Logan Drackett of the Kindersley Sr Klippers on top with a 6-1 record (and 1 shutout), a 1.58 GAA and a .958 Save %. In 2nd is Jared Herle of the Wilkie Outlaws with a 5-1 record, a 2.35 GAA and a .929 Save %. In 3rd is Joel Gryzbowski with a 202 record, a 3.50 GAA and a .903 Save %. Trevor Martin of the Macklin Mohawks sits in 4th with a 4-3 record, 3.66 GAA and a .910 Save %. Curtis Sander of the Wilkie Outlaws sits in 5th with a 2-0 record in 4 games with a 4.87 GAA and a .844 Save %.

The league resumes with 4 games in the first weekend of 2025. Kindersley hosts Unity at 8:30pm and Edam hosts Wilkie at 8:30pm on Friday night. Edam hosts Hafford at 8pm in the lone Saturday night game. Hafford hosts Kindersley on Sunday at 6pm.

SWHL December 3 Stars of the Month

Each month, the Sask West Hockey League (SWHL) aims to highlight outstanding performances by players in the league, whether they are the usual high scorers or the unsung heroes.

Third Star: Taylor Bucsis; Biggar Nationals. It has been a tough year for the Nats, but Bucsis has been doing his part, scoring in 3 of 4 games this month and amassing 7 points over those 4 games.

Second Star: Shayne Neigum; Kindersley Sr Klippers. In 5 games this month, the top point scorer for the Champs has gathered 9 points in 5 games, helping propel them to a perfect 5-0 record in December.

First star: Derek Keller; Wilkie Outlaws. The heartbeat of the Outlaws has also had an outstanding month. Not only is he the top scorer for defensemen, he sits 2nd in league scoring. In just 3 games, he has collected 8 points.

Honourable Mentions: Rory Gregoire and Ryan Keller, Wilkie Outlaws. Hunter Steinhubel, Macklin Mohawks. Logan Drackett, Kindersley Sr Klippers.