Hitmen excited to return to playoffs for first time since 2023 against Blades

The Calgary Hitmen are back in the playoffs for the first time since the 2022-23 season and for players and their coach alike, it feels fantastic.

Friday night, the third-seed Hitmen will face off against the sixth-seeded Saskatoon Blades in the opening round.

Even though the Hitmen had 14 more points than the Blades in the regular season, they’re well aware that they’re in for a battle against Saskatoon.

For many of the players on the Hitmen roster, this will be their first taste of the post-season in two years.

Hitmen team captain Carson Wetsch can’t wait to get going.

“Oh! I can’t wait,” Wetsch said Thursday. “I mean, it’s been a while since I played in a playoff game. It’s been two years, so just getting to be back in that moment and re-live it – it’s going to be awesome!”

Leading scorer Oliver Tulk, who racked up 100 points on 38 goals and 62 assists in 65 games, echoed Wetsch’s comments.

“We’ve been looking forward to this for months now,” Tulk said, “So finally getting to play in a playoff game (for the) first game in a couple of years is really exciting for me and a lot of the guys in this room.”

Hitmen head coach Paul McFarland said the arrival of the post-season has added a jolt of energy to his team’s preparation.

“It’s the best time of the year for sure,” McFarland said. “I mean, you work all year to be in these moments, in these situations.”

“You can even see by practice and the energy in this room and the excitement for the entire group to get going here,” added McFarland, “so as a group, we’re excited and wish we probably could have played a couple of days ago to start the series – but we’ll wait until tomorrow night.”

The Hitmen have home ice advantage in this series, with the first two games scheduled for Friday and Sunday at the Scotiabank Saddledome.

With files from CTV’s Glenn Campbell