How good is the Western Conference of the Western Hockey League?
It would not be a surprise to see any of the eight eventual playoff teams in the Memorial Cup national final.
But the corollary is that four very good teams will be out after the first round when the post-season commences next month.
The form chart will continue to be filled in tonight and Saturday, when the Kamloops Blazers (33-18-5) come into Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre to take on the Victoria Royals (30-21-4).
“This whole conference is very competitive,” Kamloops head coach Don Hay said.
“There is no rest. Every team, every game, is competitive. It forces you to be better.”
Hay, one of the legendary coaches of the WHL, sees one key down the stretch: “Can your top players be your best players every night?”
They certainly were Tuesday and Wednesday for the Seattle Thunderbirds, as their top line of likely future NHLers — Mathew Barzal, Ryan Gropp and Keegan Kolesar — destroyed the Royals in a two-game sweep at the Memorial Centre.
Hay pointed to his goaltending as being crucial for his team. Connor Ingram, who played for the silver medallist Canadian team at the 2017 world junior championships, has a 2.26 goals-against average in 33 appearances for the Blazers and Dylan Ferguson a 2.78 average in 25 games.
“Both give us a chance to be competitive every night,” Hay said.“Overall, I like our depth.”
Victoria leads the eight-game season series against the Blazers 3-1 and won the last meeting 6-1 on New Year’s Eve in Kamloops.
“Victoria has a quick team and they exposed us with their tenacity and quickness. We need to defend that better,” Hay said.
