Bruins vs. Hounds preview

Good morning. The Bruins are heading into their second meeting with the Notre Dame Hounds tonight looking to make up for last Saturday's poor showing in Wilcox.

Don't forget former Bruins coach Gerry James will be on hand to promote his biography, Kid Dynamite, written by Ron Smith. There are all kinds of stories from his three seasons leading the "James Gang" in Estevan and that was only a very small part of his colourful career in hockey and football.

NOTE: The Bruins traded a player to an out-of-province team for cash on Wednesday. I believe the 48-hour waiver window expires this afternoon, so I won't be able to announce anything until then.

Estevan Bruins (2-2)

The focus for the Bruins right now is trying to cut down on their goals against. Yes, they won a thriller on Tuesday and yes, they're at .500, but they've allowed 19 goals in four games. You can't expect to win 6-5 and 8-4 on a regular basis. Sticking with the blueline, Tyler Kauk has been a standout in virtually every game. For a rookie, he's been a workhorse and has really helped lift the burden off some of the other unproven defencemen.

As far as I know, they will be playing in front of a new goalie. Steven Glass is expected to get his first SJHL start tonight. He looked every bit as good as the two veterans in training camp, so I'm looking forward to how he responds in a meaningful game.

Up front, don't be surprised if the Whitehill-Jelinski line (with either Daae or Dochylo) adds some offence tonight. They really set the tone physically on Tuesday and it sounds like Sunday's game in Yorkton was more or less the same. I expect Whitehill to put up some points once he gets his legs under him.

Notre Dame Hounds (3-2)

Several Junior B players from B.C. have come into the SJ the last couple of years and had success, and Brandon Millin is, so far, another example. The 19-year-old scored twice against the Bruins last weekend and is second in Hounds scoring with five points. Todd Christian is also off to a good start and Carson Grolla provides offence from the back end (I'm still surprised I got him so late in our draft!).

Perhaps the biggest reason for the Hounds' start, though, is 18-year-old goalie Ty Reichenbach. Many thought veteran Matt Smidt would be the starter, but Reichenbach is 3-1 with a .926 save percentage so far. He was outstanding against the Bruins in the third period last Saturday, stopping 15 of 16 shots in the frame to secure a Hounds' victory. Maybe we shouldn't be surprised that the Hounds traded the rights to Dubyk and Desaultels despite losing Russell Abbott.