Sarah Mills: Alberta's referendum is Canada's wake-up call
Sarah Mills says Canada needs better collaboration between Ottawa and the provinces. She says what's good for Quebec sho...
Oct. 14, 2011 was a long, long time ago for the Saskatoon Blades.
Adele and Maroon 5 topped the music charts, while movie-goers bought tickets to watch Brad Pitt in Moneyball and a remake of the 1984 blockbuster Footloose.
It was also the last time the Blades beat the Everett Silvertips in the Western Hockey League.
Read more:
- Blades rookie Kain Martinuik eager to represent Canada at U17 World Challenge
- Riders to start Jack Coan over Trevor Harris vs. Elks
- Trophygate: Thunder finally handed PFC hardware after Hilltops gaffe
A losing streak of 5,486 days, which finally came to an end on Wednesday night at SaskTel Centre.
“We said it before the game, that streak ends tonight and it did,” said Blades forward Cooper Williams.
For the first time in over 15 years, the Blades skated to a 3-2 shootout win over the Silvertips, snapping a 12-game losing streak against Everett.
Head coach Dan DaSilva was seven years into his professional hockey career when the Blades last defeated the Silvertips 4-2 at Angel of the Winds Arena in Everett, which he said is hard to believe with the losing streak now behind them.
“I didn’t realize it was 15 years,” DaSilva said. “I thought it was a little less than that, but happy to be a part of the franchise’s first win in 15 years against Everett.”
The Blades rallied from a pair of deficits against the Silvertips before they outlasted the defending WHL champions in a five-round shootout with very little separating the two clubs.
Hayden Harsanyi netted a goal and the shootout winner in Wednesday’s win and was proud of how his team handled an Everett squad still loaded with championship DNA.
“We knew they were going to be good,” Harsanyi said.
“Obviously, they’re a championship team. They don’t have lots of the pieces they had last year, but we knew they were going to come hard and they know how to win.”
Harsanyi potted his fourth goal of the season and registered a game-high six shots on goal to drive the Blades offence, which outshot Everett by a 36-33 margin.
“I thought that (Harsanyi) had one of his best games of the year,” DaSilva said. “Not just because he scored a goal and shootout winner, but he was noticeable all (throughout) the game.”
After a scoreless first period, it was the defending league champions who found the back of the net 3:14 into the middle frame.
Everett winger Henry Meier took a pass and toe-dragged around Blades defenceman Isaac Poll, before he sniped home his third goal of the season for the 1-0 Silvertips lead.
Saskatoon found their answer with 3:10 left in the second period with a rush chance of their own, as Harsanyi kept the puck on a 3-on-2 fast break and wired his shot from the top of the circle past Everett goaltender Bennett Byers.
The Silvertips got the lead back with 11:25 left in the third period off a Rhys Jamieson shot which squeaked through the five-hole of Saskatoon goaltender Martin Psohlavec.
With the puck trickling through the blue paint, Jamieson knocked the puck in to the Blades net for the go-ahead goal to make it 2-1.
It took less than two minutes for the Blades to respond to the Jamieson marker, as a Jack Kachkowski shot off the end boards was finished off by Williams to tie the game at 2-2 and force overtime.
With neither side able to finish the game off in extra time, the Blades and Silvertips traded goals in the shootout from Hunter Laing and Williams for Saskatoon, as well as Jamieson and Atte Vuori for Everett.
On Saskatoon’s fifth attempt of the shootout, Harsanyi pulled the puck to his backhand and was able to roof it past an outstretched Byers for the go-ahead marker.
“I kind of took some information from (Laing),” Harsanyi said. “Went in the opposite side, but same hand and just thought he would bite on it after he got scored on the first (attempt).”
Psohlavec, who made 31 saves on 33 shots against, poked the puck away on Everett captain Jaxsin Vaughan’s final attempt to preserve the historic victory.
Saskatoon Blades celebrating Hayden Harsanyi’s second period goal in a 3-2 shootout win over the Everett Silvertips on Oct. 21, 2026 (Steve Hiscock / Saskatoon Blades)
DaSilva thought it was one of the most competitive games he’s seen so far this year and is encouraged how the Blades rose to the occasion against a perennial powerhouse from the Western Conference.
“It was a good hockey game,” DaSilva said.
“Both teams, I thought, played really hard. It was fighting for ice out there, it was hard to come by. Both teams defended really well, I thought that both teams were dangerous and both teams worked hard.”
The streaking Blades have now won four of their last five games and will load up the bus for a three-game road trip through Alberta starting Friday night.
“It’s an unreal feeling for us just momentum-wise,” Williams said.
“We’re going on an Alberta swing, we play three games in five days. It’s just going to that, bringing the momentum from this game, It’s an unreal feeling and I think a lot of us are pretty juiced up for this Alberta trip.”
While Saskatoon has kept pace with the Brandon Wheat Kings and Swift Current Broncos for top spot in the East Division, Harsanyi added they can’t afford to take their foot off the pedal after a promising few weeks of play.
“We need to keep building,” Harsanyi said. “Last year we were in a similar spot, I think we were 9-3 or 9-2, and we kind of had that fall off. I think it’s just staying consistent and knowing what we got to do every day.”
The Blades (6-3-1) will visit the Edmonton Oil Kings on Friday night to begin their road trip with stops Sunday and Tuesday in Calgary and Red Deer.
Saskatoon’s next home game is slated for a Halloween matinee affair at SaskTel Centre on Oct. 31 against the Seattle Thunderbirds at 2 p.m.
Read more:
