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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Terriers in hunt for RBC Cup
MJHL champions eager to end Manitoba's 38-year drought
TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS archives The Terriers celebrate with goalie Adam Iwan after winning Game 5 of ANAVET Cup over the Humboldt Broncos. Humboldt went on to win the series in seven games.
With the grind of 22 playoff games behind them, the Portage Terriers turn their focus this weekend to the biggest prize of all -- the RBC Cup Canadian championship.
And Blake Spiller, coach and GM of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League champs, is starting to find the positives after falling short in the wild-swinging ANAVET Cup seven-game series loss to the Humboldt Broncos.
"We've played in Humboldt," Spiller said on Wednesday, talking about the Elgar Petersen Arena, site for the RBC Cup tournament that begins Saturday. "Maybe that'll be a little bit of an advantage for us on teams that haven't played there yet."
It could be worth something against the Soo Thunderbirds (Ontario), Woodstock Slammers (New Brunswick) and Penticton Vees (B.C.) who will join the Terriers and Broncos at the championship.
Portage begins its quest for Manitoba's first national championship at this level since 1974 with a Sunday game against the Thunderbirds.
The Terriers then play Woodstock on Monday, Penticton on Wednesday and Humboldt on Thursday in an ANAVET Cup rematch.
The tournament playoff round begins Saturday with semifinals and then moves to the championship game Sunday, May 13, to be broadcast on TSN. The Terriers are coming off the final ANAVET Cup series ever, having played the final five games of that encounter in six days.
The RBC Cup tournament could be as demanding.
"This is still four (round-robin) games in five days, still quite a bit," Spiller said. "I know it's a tournament format and not a series but if you if you happen to get to the playoffs, it could be six in eight days and that's still a pretty condensed schedule.
"But not anything different than what we went through in the ANAVET."
Spiller said that he could see Wednesday as a turning-point day for his team, which rallied from 3-0 down against the Broncos last week to force a seventh game.
After winning in triple overtime in Game 6, the Terriers were on the short end of a 4-0 score in Game 7 Sunday.
"I think we were all pretty disappointed when all was said and done," Spiller said. "It was still there on Monday, that we didn't finish the comeback.
"We practised Tuesday and I could tell the guys were still a bit down. This may be an emotional letdown but at the same time, I know this group enough to know they'll regroup and be ready to go.
"Finishing that comeback would have been a pretty big thing but we'll take the positives out of it."
On Wednesday, Terriers fans had a chance to help pump their team back up, staging a pep rally.
"A big thing for our guys, helping us to realize Humboldt is one of the top teams in the country and they've been built to be that way for two years," said Spiller.
Spiller's squad will depart Friday for the tournament, and the coach said injury issues to key players, captain Andrew Wiebe and forward Dylan Butler, are behind them.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 3, 2012 C2
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