East Prevails in Second Round of Interdivision Play

The SHL Eastern Division made its case as the superior division over the last couple of weeks. The season’s second and final round of interdivision play concluded on Tuesday, and the East once again prevailed, going 29-24-3 against the West in their home arenas after going 28-23-5 against them at home in the first half of the season.

“For years now, we have said that the West is no longer the best,” said coach Martin Delorme, whose Quebec Tigres went 5-2-1 in this round. “Now we have the numbers to back it up with evidence.”

For the season, the East finished 57-47-8 in interdivision games, winning approximately 55% of the games. It’s a nice payback for the East after the West won both rounds of interdivision contests last season, in addition to winning the SHL Finals.

Somewhat surprisingly, the results of this round affected the Western Division race more than the East. The Tigres’ 5-2-1 mark allowed them to hold onto first place and the league’s best overall record, but they were barely better than their closest pursuers, the Boston Badgers and Hershey Bliss, each of whom went 5-3-0.

“We’re still within striking distance,” said Badgers coach Kyle Barrow. “We’ve got a dozen games left, and we’ll settle this thing head-to-head on the ice, which is the way it should be. Would we have liked to win one or two more here? Sure. But bottom line, we won more than we lost, and we’ll take that.”

Further down the Eastern standings, the Rhode Island Seekers (4-3-1) held onto the final playoff spot, but finished just slightly better than the Washington Galaxy and Hamilton Pistols (both 4-4-0). The only Eastern team to lose meaningful ground was the last-place Baltimore Longshoremen, who went 2-6-0 in this round and 5-11-0 overall, the only team in the division with a losing record against the West.

Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Growlers finished with the best overall record in this round, going 6-2-0 to surge into first in the Western race. Milwaukee got a significant boost after the Michigan Gray Wolves (3-4-1) and Anchorage Igloos (2-6-0) both stumbled, and the Portland Bleubacks (4-3-1) lost ground as well.

“We’ve taken the lead out of the clubhouse turn!” exalted Growlers coach Rodney Reagle. “We’re coming down the stretch, and we’re riding the prettiest horse in the race. I don’t know a lot about horse racing, but I assume that there’s a beauty contest that’s part of it.”

If the Igloos wind up falling short in their quest to win the West this season, they will likely have their interdivision record to blame. They went 6-10-0 against the East this season, the only one of the four top Western contenders with a losing interdivision record. The Igloos have given up 9 points to Milwaukee, 8 to Portland, and 5 to Michigan in interdivision contests.

“Not the result we wanted by any stretch, but we’ve got to put that behind us and move on,” said Igloos coach Sam Castor. “The good news is, the first two rounds of the playoffs are against the West, and we’ve done great against those guys this year, so I like our chances.”

One bright spot for the West: the last-place Saskatchewan Shockers went 3-4-1 this round, suggesting that they have broken free of their dismal midseason skid. “It’s a small step forward, but any steps forward are good for us,” said Shockers coach Jeffrey Marsh. “We found the rope, and we’re pulling ourselves out of the quicksand.”

Does the East’s superiority in interdivision play presage a potential Finals win, the division’s first since 2020? Delorme, whose Tigres have lost the last two Finals, certainly hopes so.

“I am not opening any champagne based on this,” said the Quebec coach. “But perhaps I will put a bottle in the refrigerator, in case we need it later on.”

Shockers Post Rare Win

On Sunday, the Saskatchewan Shockers pulled off an achievement that they had not managed in over three weeks: they won a hockey game.

For most teams, a lone victory wouldn’t be a particular cause for celebration. But the Shockers aren’t most teams. After a surprisingly decent start, Saskatchewan’s season has gone completely off the rails. Sunday’s 2-1 victory over the Boston Badgers snapped a 13-game losing streak. It was only the Shockers’ second win in their last 27 games, as they’d gone 0-11-1 before their last triumph, a 3-2 surprise over the Anchorage Igloos in their first game after the All-Star break. Since then, Saskatchewan’s second half had just been one back-breaking loss after another.

“It feels so good to win!” said Shockers RW Harris Wondolowski. “Honestly, it had been so long that I’d almost forgot what it felt like. Even when you’re a team that’s not the greatest, like us, you still have to win sometimes. Losing all the time is a real grind.”

Granted, the Shockers didn’t exactly put on a hockey clinic in this one. They were thoroughly outplayed by the Badgers, who almost had as many shots on goals (32) as Saskatchewan had shot attempts (35). Both of the Shockers’ goals came in the first period on somewhat fluky circumstances. The first shot of the game came of the stick of Shockers C Clarence Thompson 20 seconds in. Badgers goalie Sherman Carter stopped the puck initially, but failed to secure it, and it wound up trickling between his legs and over the goal line. Then with 1:24 left in the period, Wondolowski fired a shot that was headed wide of the net, but clanked off the skate boot of Boston D Matt Cherner, deflecting it past Carter and in.

“As a goalie, I really wanted that first one back,” said Carter. “I absolutely blame myself. But that second one was a total fluke. How are you supposed to defend against that?”

As the game wore on, Saskatchewan’s 2-0 lead remained intact. The beleaguered crowd at Potash Arena began a low-grade buzz, wondering if it might really be possible that their hometown team could really have a shot against the mighty Badgers. Boston continued to pepper the net with shots, but Shockers goalie Eino Malmquist kept turning them aside.

“Really, the credit for this win goes to Eino,” said Shockers coach Jeffrey Marsh. “We really had no business winning this game, and we wouldn’t have if not for Eino saving our bacon. Honestly, he made it look easy, which is a testament to how dialed-in he was.”

In the third, the Badgers dominated the game, outshooting Saskatchewan 12-1. They finally got on the board in the first minute, when LW Lix Darnholm slid a shot between Malmquist’s body and the left post. But try as they might, Boston was unable to come up with the equalizer. When the final horn sounded, the Shockers gathered at center ice and jumped up and down, as the fans gave them a standing ovation.

“I’ll grant, it’s not the prettiest win you’ve ever seen,” said Marsh. “But style points don’t count. We’re just glad to put one in the win column, however we had to get there. We’re not proud.”

The win was significant for another reason: it raised the Shockers’ season point total to 24, guaranteeing that they will not finish with the worst record in SHL history. Both the 2015 Shockers and the 2016 Seattle Sailors finished with 23 points. The players generally seemed pleased that they would avoid that ignominious record, although Wondolowski had mixed feelings.

“If you’re going to be bad,” mused the winger, “it’s kind of cool to be the worst of all time. At least you’re making history, you know?”

2024 SHL Week 12 Transactions

On Monday, the Kansas City Smoke recalled LW Roy Mutz from their CHL affiliate in Omaha and returned C Mason Alpine to Omaha. With C Mike Rivera returning from an injury, the Smoke decided to bring up the 23-year-old Mutz – making his SHL debut – to get some minutes until LW Pascal Royal returns from injury.
On Wednesday, the Thunder Bay Kestrels – CHL affiliate of the Saskatchewan Shockers – activated LW Darius Ghilezan from the injured list. To make from for Ghilezan’s return, the Kestrels released F Harper Hawking. Hawking appeared in 7 games for Thunder Bay, recording two goals and an assist.
Thursday was the SHL’s trading deadline. The following transactions occurred at the deadline:
- The Baltimore Longshoremen traded RW Alberto Fedregotti to the Portland Bluebacks in exchange for minor-league RW Fletcher Queen and a fourth-round draft pick. In related moves, Baltimore recalled RW Rolf Knaufl from their affiliate in Fargo, and Portland demoted F Zeljko Brankovic to their affiliate in Spokane.
- The Shockers traded D Blake Blacklett to the Washington Galaxy for minor-league D Stieg Lisander. In related moves, Saskatchewan recalled D Roscoe Corbetta from their affiliate in Thunder Bay, and Washington returned D Russ Klemmer to their farm team in Virginia.
- The Smoke traded RW Adriaen van der Veen to the Galaxy in exchange for F Sidney Archer. In a related move, the Smoke returned F Roy Mutz to their affiliate in Omaha and called up C Mason Alpine from Omaha.
- The Shockers traded D Buster Kratz to the Michigan Gray Wolves for D Ilya Morozov and a third-round pick. In related moves, Saskatchewan called up D Damir Kriutchkov from their farm team in Thunder Bay, and Michigan demoted D Barrett Snow from their affiliate in Cincinnati.
- The Shockers traded RW Samson Kucharov to the Quebec Tigres in exchange for RW Bryan Irvin and a third-round pick. In related moves, Saskatchewan recalled F Michael Jennings from Thunder Bay, while Quebec demoted F Billy Knox and signed D Luke Boskill to a short-term contract for their affiliate in Halifax.
- The Shockers traded D Harald Haakom to the Hershey Bliss for D Dustin Ecklenburg and a second-round pick.
On Friday, the Fargo Flickertails activated D Colt Mayhem from the injured list. To accommodate his return, Fargo released D Powell Kelmore from his short-term contract. Kelmore appeared in 2 games for the Flickertails, recording an assist.

Eying Playoffs, Galaxy Acquire Pair

Wilson Shuster is not afraid to make a big splash. Even though the Washington Galaxy game into the deadline eight points behind the Rhode Island Seekers for the final playoff spot in the East, Shuster – the Galaxy’s GM – was on the lookout for big deals, the kind that could alter the trajectory of the race. Thanks to his boldness and persistence, he came close to landing a big fish. According to team sources, Washington made multiple aggressive offers to acquire LW Magnus Gunnarson and D Dominic Sanchez from the Hamilton Pistols, who approached the deadline in selling mode. If Shuster had been able to make the deal, it might have given the East race a major jolt.

In the end, though, the Pistols chose to keep their roster intact. But that didn’t keep Shuster from adding on, as he wound up adding a different wing-defense pairing instead, landing D Blake Blacklett from the Saskatchewan Shockers and RW Adriaen van der Veen from the Kansas City Smoke.

“As long as we have a shot at the playoffs, we’re going for it,” said Shuster. “This is not an organization that gives up. We made the playoffs last year when everyone said we had not shot. The year before that, we fought all the way down to the last day of the season. As long as we’re breathing, we’re fighting. And if there’s anything I can do to help us win that fight, I’m going to do it.”

Shuster’s moves earned leaguewide praise for strengthening the Galaxy at a minimal cost to their store of prospects and draft picks. His acquisition of Blacklett, in particular, was heralded as a steal, costing Washington only 19-year-old minor-league blueliner Stieg Lisander. Blacklett, though just 25, is a six-year SHL veteran who is a consistent contributor on both ends, a 30-to-40-point scorer who regularly puts up 85 to 100 blocks a year. In DC, he will reunite with a couple of former Saskatchewan defensemen, Wyatt Barnes and Robby Rohrman. Roster-wise, he fills the gap left by Geoff Moultrie, who has been sidelined for over a month.

“For me, to have a chance to come here and compete for a playoff spot, that’s awesome,” said Blacklett. “I appreciated my time in Saskatchewan, and I had a lot of fun there in my career, but all the losing we’ve had lately really wears you out. And I’ve heard nothing but good things about DC from Wy and Robby. To come here and have something to play for, it’s like the sun is out again.”

Van der Veen, meanwhile, slots into a middle-six role for the Galaxy. The 26-year-old Dutch native never quite lived up to the promise some in the Smoke organization saw in him; they hoped for him to be a premium secondary scorer, but instead watched him shuttle between Kansas City and CHL affiliate Omaha for years as he struggled to develop defensive or blossom as a scorer. Ironically, this year van der Veen finally found a niche as a setup man, putting up 28 points (4 goals, 24 assists) in 40 games. But his contract was up at year’s end, and key members of the Smoke coaching staff and front office were unwilling to commit to a long-term extension, so the organization decided to recoup value while they could.

“Adriaen is a player I’ve had my eye on for some time,” said Shuster. “He’s a really smooth skater, tremendously graceful. I think he’s been a bit miscast as a scorer. He’s a truly gifted passer, and we plan to take advantage of that.” Asked if he intended to sign the winger to an extension, Shuster replied, “Absolutely. I wouldn’t have acquired him just to rent him. I want Adriaen here for the long haul.”

To acquire van der Veen, Washington parted with Sidney Archer, a 24-year-old winger in his fourth season with the Galaxy. After steady improvement over his first three seasons in the nation’s capital, Archer took a step back this season, struggling in a fourth-line role, with just three points (2 goals, 1 assist) and 11 blocks in 31 games. For KC, he offers more defensive upside than van der Veen; even though he likely profiles as a bottom-six player, he is two years younger than van der Veen and thus offers more room for growth.

“We’re glad to have Sidney on board here,” said Smoke GM Garth Melvin. “He’s a hard worker and a solid two-way player. He helps us now, and he can help us later too.”

Despite the additions, the Galaxy lost their first two games after the deadline and now lag 10 points behind the Seekers. Even if Washington comes up short this season, though, Shuster remains pleased with his work at the deadline. “I’m not just thinking short-term here,” said the GM. “This helps us next year too, and the year after, and longer than that if we nail them down for the long term. But don’t think for a second that we’re giving up on this season either. We’ve got the time and the team to get this done.”