Broncos Finally Knock Off Blades

[Scout]

Broncos finally knock off Blades
Kyle Moir leads Broncos to 3-0 road win in Saskatoon


STEVEN MAH
The Southwest Booster

Kyle Moir and the Swift Current Broncos earned a much needed 3-0 win over the Saskatoon Blades in their eighth and final meeting of the season in front of 3,668 fans at the Credit Union Centre in Saskatoon. Entering the game having lost the previous four meetings between the two teams, the Broncos got 24 saves from Moir and goals from Levi Nelson, Kyle Bortis, and Daniel Rakos to give the Broncos back-to-back wins for the first time since defeating Calgary and Seattle on Jan. 14th and 16th.
The Broncos drove into Saskatoon riding the mometum of an 8-3 win over Prince Albert on Tuesday night and never looked back on their way to a huge two point victory on the road.
The two teams played a scoreless opening frame with the Broncos outshooting the Blades 9-6.
The Broncos outshot the Blades 12-5 in the middle frame and earned a two goal lead off the sticks of a pair of 18-year-old forwards.
Levi Nelson opened the scoring when he banged in a rebound 3:08 into the middle period for his 17th goal of the campaign. The goal gives Nelson a two game point scoring streak after he scored twice and set up another on Tuesday night. Nelson's goal was also the team leading fifth time that Nelson has opened the scoring for the Broncos.
Kyle Bortis scored his second goal in as many nights when he beat Zemlak for his 16th goal with only 39 seconds remaining in the period. The Saskatoon native has now registered nine points in nine games since returning to the Broncos lineup from injury on Feb. 9th in Prince Albert.
The Broncos were outshot 13-4 in the third period but 19-year-old import forward Daniel Rakos scored his 15th goal of the season 5:42 into the final frame to stretch the lead to 3-0. The goal was Rakos' first goal in seven games and leaves him one short of the 16 goals that he registered last season.
Moir earned his fifth shutout of the season, and 16th of his career. Moir and the Broncos last shutout a team on Jan. 5th when they blanked the Regina Pats 9-0 at the Centennial Civic Centre in Swift Current. Moir's record improves to 17-25-0-1.
Zemlak, who stopped 22 of 25 Broncos shots, drops his season record to 6-5. Zemlak had defeated the Broncos in both of his previous starts versus the Broncos this season.
The Broncos powerplay unit led by Kyle Bortis scored on one of three man advantages.
The Broncos penalty kill unit fought off five shorthanded situations.
The Broncos season record improves to 28-33-1-2, which gives the team a three point lead over 25-32-3-3- Prince Albert for third spot in the WHL's East Division.
The loss was a serious blow to the 23-35-2-2 Blades playoff hopes as they now trail the Raiders by six points for the fourth and final playoff spot with Moose Jaw sandwiched in between the two teams with 51 points.
Next action for the Broncos will be Friday night in Medicine Hat when they visit the Central Division leading Tigers.
Saturday the Broncos will visit the second place Kootenay Ice.

[Scout]

Keen's Korner

Thursday, March 01, 2007
Domination




The last laugh goes to the Broncos.

Despite the Blades giving the Broncos fits for most of the season, the Broncos won the game that counted most. And like a giant elbow off the top ropes or a knock-out punch - the Blades might be down for the count.

After a well-played first period, the Broncos and Blades were scoreless. It was a good road period for the team as I'm sure the 7-1 defeat last time they met may have still been lingering in their heads.

The Broncos came out and dominated the 2nd period getting a goal from Levi Nelson off a Jeremy Schenderling rebound just three minutes in. Kyle Bortis added a 2nd marker in the final minute of the period on the powerplay. He found some room between goaltender Garrett Zemlak and the post from a sharp angle.

The third period saw the Blades sustain some pressure. It was the Broncos adding to their lead though. Daniel Rakos let a wrister go that deflected in front past Zemlak. That was it from there. The Broncos defense was smothering and took care of all the loose ends. Justin Mcrae and Ryan Menei were nearly invisible. Through the first seven games of the season series they have combined for 21 points.




The win gives the Broncos a three point cushion on Prince Albert for 3rd place in the east and an eight point lead on 5th place Moose Jaw. Saskatoon drops to the basement nine points back after Moose Jaw beat Prince Albert 7-4. You would have to think the Broncos may have put the last touches on the Blades' playoff hopes. Although they are only six points out of the last spot, they have by far the toughest schedule of the teams. They hit the road for a Central road swing with stops in Calgary, Red Deer, Lethbridge and Kootenay.




The two Saskatoon products Kyle Bortis and Travis Yonkman had some strong cheering sections. I ran into the Bortis family post-game. Kyle's dad Roger told me the Credit Union Center was so quiet that he actually heard all three of my goal calls. Wow. Maybe I was too loud, then again the CUC can be a library at the best of times.


It was good to see some smiles return on the team. They guys are having some fun again after posting back-to-back wins. The trip home was good as we arrived back in the city just after 1am. Just enough time to catch a few hours sleep before getting back to the station for the morning sports run and Eagle 94.1 FM morning show. It's always easier coming into work off the road following a win the night before.


The Broncos have a tough weekend ahead with Friday night's game in Medicine Hat followed by a Saturday night tilt in Cranbrook against the Kootenay Ice.



Last night a nasty snowstorm near Brandon (go figure!) delayed the start of the Wheat Kings-Tri City game. The delay lasted just about two hours as they dropped the puck around 9pm at the Keystone Center.



I talked with Anaheim Ducks grinder and Stewart Valley native Travis Moen yesterday as we rolled into Saskatoon. He'll be featured in an upcoming Broncos broadcast. He says he was happy to survive the trade deadline . . . "I can breath again" is what he said following a day full of deals. Moen only signed a one-year deal with Anaheim. He is probably in for a substantial raise at the end of the year. He's putting up career numbers this year while playing a solid checking role on the team. Ducks' General Manager Brian Burke must be thrilled with his play. He's getting great bang for his buck.




Anyone else see the Ryan Smyth news conference from the Edmonton airport? Ryan Smyth falls into the Oiler tradition of tearful goodbyes in front of the cameras. I think it's played out quite frankly. It's tough for fans to feel sorry because the Oiler's couldn't meet his agent' Don Meehan's demands for $5.5 million plus per season. That's the business. If he really wants to be back, he'll re-sign as an unrestricted free agent in the summer once the marketplace is set. Meehan is looking out for #1 here. He has several clients up for contracts this summer and knows if Smyth's contract is under-valued, he stands to lose a lot with his other clients. Meehan wasn't about to set a lower standard for the rest of his players.




That's about all I can muster this morning.... have a great day,

Jon

[Scout]

Broncos Win Key Games
MAR 1 - The Swift Current Broncos find themselves breathing a little easier in the standings after a successful set of back to back games this week. The team had a strong showing against the Prince Albert Raiders on Tuesday night and followed it up with another solid effort last night in Saskatoon.

The Broncos offense, which had been struggling heading into the week, erupted for 8 goals on Tuesday night. The welcomed offense propelled the Broncos to an 8-3 weekend over the Raiders thanks to goals from Michael Wilson, R.J. LaRochelle, Kyle Bortis, Zack Smith (2), Levi Nelson (2), and Jeremy Schenderling. Two of the Broncos 8 goals game while shorthanded marking the first time this season they recorded 2 or more shorthanded goals in a single game.

On Wednesday night the club travelled to Saskatoon for another important division game and skated away with a 3-0 victory thanks to Kyle Moir's 5th shutout of the season. Moir is now just 1 shutout away from tying the Broncos single season record of 6 (Ian Gordon 93/04, Bryce Wandler 99/00). Kyle Bortis, Daniel Rakos, and Levi Nelson scored for the Broncos in the victory.

The team's next action will take place on Friday night when they travel to Medicine Hat to renew their rivalry with the Tigers. The game will be the 5th of a 6 game season series with Medicine Hat having won 3 of the first 4 contests. The Tigers have outscored the Broncos 13-11 this season while they are outshooting them 133-114. The Broncos power play is operating at a 16.13% success rate against the Tigers in 2006/07 while their penalty kill is successful on 83.33% of their opportunities. Levi Nelson has 3 goals and 3 assists in the season series while David Schlemko has 1 goal and 4 assists. The two teams last met on December 30th in Swift Current where the Broncos skated away with a 5-2 victory thanks to 2 goal performances by Kyle Bortis and Levi Nelson.

The Broncos now sit alone in 3rd in the East Division and are 3 points ahead of the 4th place Prince Albert Raiders and 8 points ahead of 5th place Moose Jaw. The Broncos are also just 7 points behind the Regina Pats for 2nd in the East Division and home ice advantage in the 1st round of the WHL Playoffs.