In College hockey, the Huskies and Alberta Golden Bears has been considered by some to be the greatest rivalry in the Canada-West conference.
Both rosters include some former NHL draft picks and Saskatoon Blades.
The Golden Bears’ goaltender, Tyler Palmer, was called up to be the emergency backup goalie for the Edmonton Oilers nearly a week ago.
But on the weekend, the Huskies men’s hockey team swept the competition to move into first place in the conference.
Both teams are tied in terms of points in the standings, but the Huskies hold the tie-breaker and have two games in hand on the schedule.
In two spirited affairs at Merlis Belsher place, Saskatchewan beat Alberta on Friday and Saturday.
The victories on the weekend extended the Huskies winning streak to nine games in a row.
Friday night’s contest was a see-saw battle, with the Huskies and Golden Bears each trading goals through the first two periods.
In the third, Chantz Petruic scored a powerplay marker with just over five minutes left to give Saskatchewan a one goal lead.
From there on, Jordan Kooy shut the door as Saskatchewan hung onto win 4-3.
In the rematch on Saturday, the Huskies got two goals from Raphael Pelletier and Liam Keeler in the first period. Keeler had just returned from representing Canada at the FISU world university games.
Early on in the second frame, Dawson Holt found the back of the net for his 10th goal of the season to put Saskatchewan up 3-0.
The Golden Bears ran into penalty trouble after that, but kept battling, and found a break courtesy of a shorthanded goal from former NHL Draft Pick Brett Hyland.
But Saskatchewan kept the foot on the gas, with another goal from Chantz Petruic to restore the Huskies three goal lead.
Roddy Ross put up a wall between the pipes for Saskatchewan in the third period, helping the Huskies seal a 4-1 lead.
The Huskies roster includes a number of former Saskatoon Blades including Josh Pillar, who was a fourth round NHL draft pick, Trevor Wong, Rhett Rhinehart and goaltender Ethan Chadwick.
The Huskies are now on the home stretch towards the playoffs.
Saskatchewan will travel to face MacEwan and UBC before coming back home for a final two game set against the Manitoba Bisons.
If Saskatchewan holds onto first place, they will receive a first-round bye into the semi-finals.
