Saskatoon Blades Need 3 Things For Playoff Success

Injuries are a part of the game, but it feels like the Blades have been especially unlucky when it comes to their defence staying healthy. For most of the season, Saskatoon has missed at least one of its top five defencemen due to injury. Isaac Poll missed all of November and most of December, plus part of January, then Martin missed most of February. Kaden Allan also missed a good chunk of January, while Derek Thurston, acquired from the Red Deer Rebels in December, hasn’t played since Nov. 22.

Without key players on their blueline, issues have snowballed. Evan Gardner has been one of the busiest goalies in the league, seeing over 1000 shots this season, and against the Vees, he saw his 21st game with 30 or more shots against. But his 25.5 average shots per game is the lowest among the most-worked goalies in the WHL. That implies that the Blades are giving up lots of high-quality scoring chances, and even though Gardner is one of the best goalies in the league, he can only do so much on an odd-man rush.

“That’s the biggest thing: what type of team do we want to be down the stretch?” DaSilva said at the beginning of February. “I think we’re still trying to find that out a little bit. We need to be a team that’s stingy and plays well defensively, capitalize on our chances.” While Gardner gives them a chance to win every night, a healthy defence allows the Blades to play their game much more effectively.

Consistent Production from Veterans

The Blades have a younger team than many of their rivals, especially after they traded 20-year-old Dominik Petr to the Spokane Chiefs for two younger players in December, leaving them with just two graduating players. That put more pressure on veterans Tyler Parr, Rowan Calvert, and Hunter Laing to lead the large cohort of youngsters, and it wasn’t always easy for the trio.

After being named captain, Parr struggled to find his 20-goal, 61-point pace from 2024-25, and after 59 games this season, he has just nine goals and 28 points, including a 23-game stretch with just a single goal and two assists. Calvert has had similar struggles; in his last 13 games, he has just three goals and four points. Laing has been more consistent but has still gone through dry stretches, including an 11-game span in which he recorded just four points.

But lately, all three have been much more consistent, and the Blades have been winning. Laing’s three-point night against the Vees extended his point total to eight in his last seven games, and after his second-period goal, Parr now has a nine-game point streak. Calvert now has two points in three games with his assist on Laing’s goal, and 19-year-old Elias Pul, who has just eight points in 21 games with the Blades, put up four points in his last six games following his empty-netter on Feb. 25.

“We’re showing that we can compete with the top teams in the league some nights,” said DaSilva. “And some nights, we’re not at our best, and showing maybe that we’re not quite there. I think this group can take confidence out of it, knowing that if we all play the right way, and play the way we need to, we can be right there. So it’s a learning process.”

Embracing the Tough Parts

The Blades have never been shy about showing their grit and toughness when pressed. Midway through the first, rookie Tristen Mitchell-McElhone laid a devastating hit beside the player benches, firing up the crowd. Then, after Penticton’s Louie Wehmann laid a high hit on Saskatoon, Parr responded by challenging him to a fight, and after he was sent to the box, Blades lined up to give him a fist bump.

However, despite the Blades’ physical presence against the Vees, Saskatoon is not an overly tough team. Only two teams in the Eastern Conference and four in the West (including Penticton) have fewer penalty minutes this season. The Blades are also one of the smallest teams in the league and sit in the bottom five in both average height and weight. Mitchell-McElhone is the team’s only real enforcer, yet the rookie has only played 37 games this season.

It’s not that the Blades don’t have tough players. Parr, Martin, Pul, Poll, and Zach Olsen have fought multiple times this season and are often the first players in the corners or chasing down opponents with on the back check. Saskatoon is a hard-working, aggressive team, but there are times when they have a reduced physical presence. Some of that can be connected to injuries, especially to Martin and Poll, but given that they have a young, smaller team, it can be risky going up against bigger, tougher opponents.

Even with Allan and Olsen out against the Vees, the Blades played a straightforward, attacking style, and it worked. “Up and down the lineup there’s a lot of really good players,” said Parr after the win, “and if we play simple, hard hockey, I think a lot of teams are going to have trouble with us.”

Time may be running out, but eight points is not an impossible gap to make up, especially if they continue to play as they did against the Vees. That was the perfect example of ‘Blades hockey,’ which the team has been talking about all season long: simple, aggressive, and highly effective. That’s not just the recipe for regular-season success; that’s how you win in the playoffs.