NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat Cubs captain Levi Schlosser and assistant Jacob Milne celebrate Schlosser's goal in the second period of the Cubs 12-0 win over the Strathmore Wheatland Kings Sunday afternoon at the Kinplex.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
The Medicine Hat Cubs got the tune-up they needed this weekend before the playoffs.
The Cubs outscored their two opponents 27-0, beating the High River Flyers 15-0 on Saturday and winning 12-0 against the Strathmore Wheatland Kings in their final regular season game Sunday.
Cubs head coach and general manager Randy Wong said they talked about finishing strong but didn’t realize it was going to be that strong. He said the Cubs played with pride in the final two games and had some internal motivation.
“There was a friendly competition who was going to be our team leading scorer, so this weekend guys really took it above themselves to help their linemates out to achieve that,” Wong said. “So I think it was good internal battle that happened and you look at what did transpire and the older guys really came through this weekend.”
Cubs captain Levi Schlosser had himself a 15-point weekend to not only take the lead in team scoring with 29 goals and 42 assists for 71 points in 36 games, but also hit a personal milestone.
The MedHat product hit the 100-point mark, all with the Cubs, in the HJHL during Sunday’s win. Schlosser said he didn’t think it was going to happen in the final game but credited Jacob Milne and Colby Friedrich for reaching the milestone after being only six points away before puck drop.
“We knew that that’s what it was and had hopes go getting it, but to actually get it was something special,” Schlosser said.
Wong said Schlosser reaching the milestone says a lot about him as a player and what he brings to the Cubs.
It really only took him only the two seasons to get there,” Wong said. “It shows that he can finish, he’s got a good work ethic, stays healthy. That’s huge for us and that’s why he’s our captain and is leading us in the right direction.”
Schlosser wasn’t the only Cub who had a big offensive weekend. Milne had 12 points in the two wins and Friedrich had nine. The Cubs put on an offensive show over their final two games at the Kinplex before the post season, outshooting High River and Strathmore 105-35 combined.
After the weekend sweep the Cubs record for the season finishes at 25-8-3, securing second place in the South division and giving them a bye through the first round of the HJHL’s playoffs.
Besides getting a chance to gain confidence before the playoffs, the Cubs also gave back to their sponsors and fans over the weekend. In the first intermission of Sunday’s win, Medicine Hat had a weiner dog race that the team said they want to make an annual event.
Wong said they wanted to show that Cubs games are more than just a hockey game but a family event. He said he hopes people can come support the Cubs come playoff time.
“We wanted to put on a good show and show that there is a junior team heading for playoffs in town and please come out and support the guys,” Wong said. “It’s nice that there is some playoff hockey and we are excited about playing it and hopefully fans are excited about coming to see it.”
There is no date set yet for the Cubs’ first playoff game. But with the HJHL’s scheduling rules the first round of playoffs, which starts tonight, has to be completed in six days – Feb. 14.
When asked how excited he is for the Cubs to get their playoffs started Wong said this is “everything.”
“It’s what you play for and we’ve had a good regular season and now you just try to wipe that clear and you have to eliminate those,” Wong said. “It doesn’t matter how many points you have or how many wins you had everyone starts over again.
