Cubs get early litmus test with season-opening road trip

By JAMES TUBB on September 19, 2024.

The Medicine Hat Cubs look to hit the ground running as the HJHL season gets underway this weekend.

The Cubs get their 51st season underway Saturday with the first of two road games, opening the campaign against the Okotoks Bisons. They’ll head to Coaldale on Sunday to face the Copperheads as well in the opening weekend.

Head coach and general manager Randy Wong likes starting the season on the road as an early bonding opportunity, while also negating some of the attention a home opener brings.

“Just to get on the bus, you can bond a little bit, you get away from the pressures they’re playing at home in front of more friends and family,” Wong said. “It’s just nice to get away and not have to worry about whatever distractions may be in your world when you’re playing a home game.

“That hype of that first home game, sometimes takes its toll. So to be able just to be mature in those first two away games and then settle in for your first home game the next weekend is great.”

The Cubs enter the regular season off a sweep of their two exhibition contests, beating Coaldale 8-5 on Sept. 7 on the road and winning 7-5 at home the next night. In the first win, Medicine Hat scored four goals in both the second and third periods for the 8-5 victory. In the second game, a five-goal third period propelled the Cubs over Coaldale.

Wong says the weekend of preseason was about giving the new players a chance to experience the league and the intensity of the higher level.

“We talked about raising the bar a little bit, preseason raises it and lets us see how guys perform and some guys did real well, some guys struggled a bit,” Wong said. “But it’s only their second game in the league. So you expect that now we get ready for Saturday night in Okotoks, a totally different beast. And again, we have to raise the bar up another notch to be able to compete against Okotoks in the regular season.”

The Bisons enter the season off a third-straight HJHL title. The Cubs are looking to get past the third round after a third-straight year of falling short of the league finals. Getting an early shot at the defending champ comes with pressure, which is part of the reason the Cubs narrowed numbers down at training camp as early as they did, Wong says.

They wanted players to get the early feeling of opportunity and pressure before the season gets underway.

“We gave all those guys a chance to play and they all played reasonably well. Some may have outperformed others and you start to figure out the pieces to the puzzle of where guys belong,” Wong said. “We’ve answered some of the questions, so we’ll take the first six games of the regular season and do the same so that we get better each game and get more comfortable.

“It takes confidence to play well in this week and you have to get the repetitions in. So that’s what we’re kind of hoping for as we start the season.”

Wong liked a lot of players in the preseason and when asked, singled out 17-year-old Redcliff product Nolen Sutherland, who will be making his HJHL debut, as a standout rookie who could have an impact this season.

“He played really well, got four goals in the first game and we put him on the power play because early on he showed signs of finishing,” Wong said. “That’s something we’ve missed a bit, the guy that can truly finish when needed.

“When you’re playing from behind a bit and you have guys to step up like your (Kyle) Woolridge’s and now Nolen, suddenly you have more optimism and you’re not afraid of going down a couple. Knowing that you have some guys who can really finish when you need to.”

After the season-opening weekend, the Cubs will have their home opener is Sept. 27, a 7:30 p.m. contest at the Kinplex against the High River Flyers.