Depth of University of Alberta hockey Golden Bears behind team's regular-season success
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There are 1,001 reasons why Golden Bears hockey should be celebrating what has already been a historic 2012-13 season.
But with playoffs getting underway with a best-of-three semifinal against the rival University of Calgary Dinos this weekend, their work is only just beginning.
In their 100th year of competitive hockey, the Bears closed out the final regular-season weekend by earning their 1,000th and 1,001st victory in program history ? the most out of any team in the CIS.
But even tossing a couple of impressive Canada West records into the mix hasn?t given Bears head coach Ian Herbers much pause for thought.
Not for now, at least.
?Not really, we still have the focus of getting to nationals and winning a national title,? said Herbers, who benched the Bears to a conference-best 23-4-1 record to earn a bye through the first round of playoffs last weekend.
?All our preparation, our league play, we?ve put ourselves in a good position and gave ourselves home ice through all of playoffs
?We?re supposed to challenge for a title every year. Once the season?s over, we?ll have a chance to enjoy everything that?s been accomplished this year, with the 1,000th win, lowest goals-against average ? that?s a record ? three consecutive shutout games ? another record. All that was preparation going into playoffs.?
No. 2-ranked U of A host the No. 10 Dinos at Clare Drake beginning Friday at 7 p.m., where the Bears will ride the hot hand of third-year goalie Kurtis Mucha, who started
17 of 28 games this year on
the way to a conference-high 14 wins and .936 goals-against average.
More impressive yet, besides earlier this year becoming the first Canada West goalie to score a goal, is the fact Mucha hasn?t allowed one in his last 144:20 of play, going back to a 3-2 shootout loss to the Dinos on Jan. 26. He finished off the year with consecutive shutouts,
which combine with one from fifth-year netminder and 2011-12 CIS goaltender of the year Real Cyr to set a
conference record.
?Kurtis has been strong for us all year,? Herbers said of the native of Sherwood Park, who was one of the final four goalies in Edmonton Oilers training camp in 2009. ?He?s started the weekend off for us all year and he?s put us in good position to win every night. So we?re just going to keep going with that rotation.
?He?s taken a bit of a leadership role on the team as well, being in his third year. He?s stepping his game up and it started for him in training camp.?
But the net?s not the only area where the Bears have depth.
?That?s the strength of our team,? Herbers said. ?We want to be using all four lines, all three pairs on defence, everybody needs to be involved. Everybody?s got to be chipping in, not just one line, one goaltender or one defenceman.
?That?s how we wear teams down and frustrate teams because it?s just a big green and gold wave after wave that comes after them.?
Saturday?s game goes at
6 p.m. at Clare Drake Arena, with Game 3 scheduled for Sunday at the same time, if necessary.
The Bears are 3-1 this year against Calgary ? who won last weekend?s quarter-final series over the University of British Columbia 2-1 ? and 14-1 all-time in the post-season when playing them at Clare Drake Arena.
Busy all over
Four will enter, three will leave.
The top-ranked men?s volleyball team in the nation, the U of A Golden Bears, will host the Trinity Western University Spartans, University of British Columbia Thunderbirds and Brandon University Bobcats in the Canada West final four tournament at the Saville Community Sports Centre this weekend.
And only the teams earning a place on the conference podium will move on to the CIS championships March 1-3 at the Universit? Laval in Quebec City.
The Bears earned the right to host, along with the top seed, after an unprecedented 19-straight wins on the way to a 20-2 league record and are looking to improve upon
last year?s conference bronze medal.
They open the tournament against the fourth-seeded Bobcats Friday at 6 p.m., with the bronze- and gold-medal games set for the following day at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., respectively.
All games will be webcast through http://ab.canadawest.tv.
Also on slate this weekend, Bears and Pandas swimming are at the University of Calgary for the CIS championships, while Bears and Pandas track and field are at the University of Regina for conference championships.
Bears and Pandas tennis teams host the Green and Gold Invitational at the Saville on Friday.
gerry.moddejonge@sunmedia.ca
twitter.com/SunModdejonge
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