MOOSEJAWTODAY.COM -- It’s always the question when a team wins a Conference championship -- will the team captain touch the trophy, taking into consideration the old trope that you don’t do so when you have a bigger one on the horizon?
Moose Jaw Warriors captain Denton Mateychuk apparently doesn’t buy into that superstition one little bit.
No, the Columbus Blue Jackets prospect was more than happy to hoist the smaller cup on Tuesday night when the Warriors defeated the Saskatoon Blades in overtime of Game 7 to advance to the WHL Final for only the second time in team history.
And especially when he left the bus at just after 1 a.m. on Wednesday morning.
Why would that be?
We’ll let the video speak for itself.
One in the morning, it doesn't matter for Warrior fans!
— Moose Jaw Warriors (@MJWARRIORS) May 8, 2024
What a welcome back to the Hangar!#ProtectTheHangar | #WHLPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/sol1Zhg54A
That raucous celebration saw close to 100 fans meet the team at the Moose Jaw Events Centre after the win, and needless to say, Mateychuk and his teammates were in awe.
“That’s unbelievable, there’s no better feeling that getting a win like that and then having the support of the town like that,” a beaming Mateychuk said shortly after greeting the throng and dropping off the trophy in the Warriors dressing room. “We kind of had an idea that there might be something, but we didn’t expect anything like this, it’s incredible.”
Of course, there was good reason for that support. The Warriors had just pulled off something only one other team in franchise history had accomplished by advancing to the WHL Final -- and in the most dramatic of fashions, too boot.
A 3-2 overtime win in the sixth game of the series to go to extra time, capping one of if not the best playoff series in WHL history.
And now they get to do it all over again when they take the ice in Game 1 of the WHL Final on Friday night in Portland against the Western Conference champion Winterhawks.
“It’s going to be unreal,” said Mateychuk, whose crew landed in Portland at around 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. “I know we’re all excited, but it’s a quick turnaround, though. We have to make sure we’re doing the right things and that we’re ready for Friday… It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity. It’s not often you get a chance to play in a league final like this, so we’re going to take it all in and do what we can to finish things off.”
Hello Portland! #WHLChampionship | #FeedingTheFuture pic.twitter.com/pbKoKQpH43
— Moose Jaw Warriors (@MJWARRIORS) May 9, 2024
The teams met once in the regular season on Feb. 28, with the Warriors taking a 4-3 victory in the midst of their six-game sweep through the U.S. Division.
With things that close in that outing, Mateychuk figures it’ll be much of the same in the biggest games of the season.
“We don’t get to play them very much so it’s going to be different in that aspect, but they’re a fast group, they have some size and we’ll have to be ready for that,” he said. “We’ll watch some video the next couple of days here and get ready for Friday.”
Games 1 and 2 are in Portand on Friday and Saturday, with puck drop at 8 p.m. both games and the contests being broadcast on TSN. The series reverts to Moose Jaw for Games 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday, with game times at 8 p.m. for both games to accommodate the TSN broadcast schedule.
Tickets go on sale for the two Moose Jaw dates at 10 a.m. on Friday and are expected to sell out quickly, so be sure to hit the box office or visit www.sasktix.ca to get yours.
