MOOSEJAWEXPRESS.COM • Wednesday, December 12, 2018 • PAGE A17
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Another tough weekend for Generals
Local squad takes pair of losses in Midget AAA action despite solid play Randy Palmer - Moose Jaw Express
Normally, if a team sparks three breakaways, a half-dozen two-on-ones and numerous odd-man rushes, things are going to look good on the scoreboard at the end of the day. With the Moose Jaw Generals and the way things are going for the local Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League team this season, that kind of performance apparently isn’t nearly enough. The Generals carried the play five-on-five and generated scoring chances galore against the Prince Albert Mintos but were rewarded with a 6-0 loss Sunday at Mosaic Place. That came on the heels of a 4-1 defeat to the Yorkton Maulers the previous night, leaving the Generals with a 7-16-2-1 record and in 10th place in the 12-team league, nine points out of a playoff spot. “It’s very frustrating,” Generals head coach Ray Wareham said. “I can’t imagine what the kids feel like, but for the most part they’re keeping their heads up... but when you get two-on-ones and breakaways and you don’t get anything over and over again, that’s really tough. It just that nothing is going for us.” It’s not for a lack of effort, either. Wareham admits that he and his coaching staff have pretty much drained the playbook trying to find positive results. “We’ve tried everything; I mean absolutely everything,” he said. “I’ve personally never been through anything like this, as a player or a coach, how things just won’t turn out for us. I’ve tried pushing buttons, we’ve asked the guys to do different things, but noth-
Prince Albert Mintos forward Gavin Ingram got a bit of a rough ride after running into Generals goaltender Jaxson Taupert and drawing the ire of defender Jeron Kletzel.
ing works. They seem happy and are trying to stay upbeat, but it’s just not translating on the ice.” That certainly was the case on Dec. 9, where the Generals actually outshot Prince Albert 30-29 but gave up four power play goals despite that advantage. Gabe Klassen had a hat trick for the Mintos; Chase Bertholet picked up five assists. “It seems like every little mistake we make ends up
in the net,” Wareham said. “Then we get a break and can’t get anything... you look at today, our penalty kill, which has been good lately, let us down. But we had just as many chances five-on-five and couldn’t get anything to show for it.” The Generals’ Jaxson Taupert made 23 saves in the loss, Spencer Welke stopped 30 shots for the shutout. Against the Maulers, Moose Jaw finished the game with a 36-26 advantage on the shot clock but only managed a second-period goal from Ben Wourms-Rowe. Reece Hodson had 22 saves in goal for the Generals. As tough as things have gone for the local squad, Wareham remains optimistic that a sudden turn could be on the way – especially if his charges keep working towards the future. “I just told the guys, the thing you have to do is just try and continue to get better each day,” Wareham said. “You can’t worry so much about wins and losses right now, you just have to focus on getting better each day and the ultimate goal is to play junior. It’s our job to get you there, no one likes losing, but as long as you keep improving and give yourself the best chance to move on next year, that should be their focus. And if they do that hopefully the wins will start coming.” The Generals are back in action on Saturday, Dec. 15 when they travel to Swift Current before hosting the Beardy’s Blackhawks on Sunday, Dec. 16 (1:30 p.m., Mosaic Place).
Baseball and hockey legend recognized for standout career Like any proud son or daughter, Cathy Hunchuk has told her children many stories about the athletic exploits of their grandfather – tales of his playing days in hockey and baseball, his accomplishments on the diamond and on the ice, all the usual interesting stuff. Her father, and the youngsters’ grandfather, is none other than Moose Jaw sports legend George Hunchuk, an athlete so prolific from the 1940s right through to the 1970s that he ended up playing professional hockey and actually cracked the ranks of the Major League Baseball minor league system. “It’s so fun to share the stories with our kids, because they just knew him as Grandpa,” Cathy Hunchuk said. “They didn’t realize that Grandpa was a phenomenal athlete and just how much he accomplished back when he was playing.” The Moose Jaw sports world most certainly knows and remembers those stories – so much so that when the selection committee for the Moose Jaw and District Sports Hall of Fame were reviewing potential inductees for 2018, Hunchuk’s inclusion was an absolute no-brainer. The dual sport star was among six inductees enshrined on the Wall of Fame in Mosaic Place during the Hall’s annual induction ceremony. “This is completely special; it’s beyond words, in some respects, because he loved Moose Jaw,” Hunchuk said. “Of all the Halls of Fames to be inducted into, this is it. In his words, it would have meant the most.” Hunchuk wasted little time finding sports success, as he was a member of the 1944 juvenile provincial champion Moose Jaw Monarchs and then joined the Moose Jaw Canucks for their
Randy Palmer - Moose Jaw Express WCHL title-winning season in 1946. We’d go through the chronology and it He turned pro the following season and didn’t mean anything to me back then, played in the American Hockey League and he was so blasé about it; it wasn’t a before shifting over to the Pacific Coast big deal. So now when you think about League in 1948 and becoming a first it, the process he went through to play team all-star with the Vancouver Cahockey at the level he did and to travel and be involved in games of that calinucks. He had a try-out with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1950 and played bre was something.” Hunchuk was inducted into the Sasminor pro hockey for another season katchewan Baseball Hall of Fame as before returning home and spending an individual in 1998 and as a member the next 20 years as one of the top playof the Moose Jaw Regals team in 2013. ers in area’s amateur leagues. “It’s pretty cool.” Cathy said of watchHe received the Baseball Sask. Andy ing her dad dominate the ice when they Zwack Lifetime Achievement Award were kids. “It was a lot of fun going to the Wall of Fame on induction night in 1998. those games and watching him play, was even more special for Cathy, know- George Hunchuk died in 1996. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame alongand the camaraderie with the hockey ing his legacy will be forever known. community and the friendships my par- “We’re all super proud and are look- side former NHL standout Doug Smail, ents made that lasted a lifetime.” ing forward to seeing this in the fu- former national champion figure skater Hunchuk was a founder of the Moose ture,” she said. “During the application Susan Humphreys, baseball coach and Jaw Pla-Mors in 1959 and was a play- process, it was an opportunity to do a builder Jim Baba, baseball and curling er/coach for close to a decade. He then whole lot more research on my dad and coach Roger Anholt and multi-sport was an integral member of various I hadn’t realized that it was a big deal. builder Stanley ‘Hub’ Gutheridge. Old-Timers teams and played until the age of 69 in 1996. That covered the winter months. In summer, Hunchuk was all about baseball, which Cathy described as his first love. And interestingly enough, he was pretty good at that, too. Hunchuk had a tryout with the Chicago Needing a gift for the person Cubs in 1950 and was offered an opwho has everything? portunity to play ‘D’ class baseball but opted to return home as a player/coach with the Regals and Lakers. There, he was the top catcher in the Southern Saskatchewan Baseball • Driving Range punch cards League for 15 years, winning the bat• Green Fee punch cards • Cart Rentals ting title in 1960. He was a founding • Gift Certificates in any denomination member of the Moose Jaw Ol’ Birds We will be open on SATURDAY Dec 22nd from 1:00-4:00 senior team and saw one of his teams in efforts to help you with all your Holiday shopping win the over-40 division at the Senior needs! Men’s Baseball League World Series in Call Trent at (306) 692-4459 1993. Or email manager@lynbrookgolf.org for more info. Seeing George’s photo and profile on
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