It’s never the best of situations to have to rely on other teams to determine your fate, but that’s where the Moose Jaw WINMAR Warriors find themselves when it comes to qualifying for the Circle K Classic.
The Warriors dropped an 8-3 decision to the Notre Dame Hounds in Wilcox on Saturday night, but still find themselves in fourth place in Sask Male AAA Hockey League win percentage heading into action Sunday -- and as a result, it’s time for a bit of scoreboard watching with Monday’s qualifying deadline looming.
With Warriors’ 10-6-0-0 record giving them a .625 winning percentage, they sit seven percentage points ahead of the Prince Albert Mintos for the final spot for the Classic. Sure enough, the Mintos (10-6-1-0) are in action against the Swift Current Legionnaires on Sunday evening, and with a win would boost their winning percentage to .639, thus jumping into the fourth and last spot.
The Warman Wildcats (.800), Saskatoon Blazers (.700) and Swift Current (.679) have already locked up berths.
The Circle K Classic was formerly known as the Mac’s U18 AAA Tournament and annually features the top teams in that age group from across Canada along with a handful of select international teams. One of the most highly scouted tournaments of it’s kind on the planet, landing a berth in the event is an early-season prize for the top teams in the SMAAAHL.
The Warriors could have locked up a spot outright on Saturday, but it just wasn’t their night. Notre Dame took a 3-1 lead out of the first period and boosted their edge to 5-2 through two before continuing to pull away in the final frame.
Ryan Gibbs, Dylan Duzan and Carson Deichert scored for Moose Jaw, with Gage Nagel picking up a pair of assists.
Duzan’s goal gives him eight goals and 20 points in 16 games this season, good enough for fifth in SMAAAHL scoring, four points back of the league leaders.
Danila Siriaev had two goals and four points for the Hounds, while Alexis Lavigne, Kaden McLean, Caleb Kornelsen, Austin Watts, Koby Bossaer and Ethan Dundas had their other markers. Carter Ellsworth tacked on four assists, while Lavigne had a three-point night.
Luke McKechnie had 24 saves in taking the loss in goal, while Russell Newman turned aside 39 shots for the Hounds.
The WIMNAR Warriors are back in action on Saturday, Nov. 18 when they travel to Regina to face the Pat Canadians. Next home action is Saturday, Dec. 2 when they host the Estevan Bears at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.
