Honouring the Overagers

The abrupt end of the 2019-2020 Western Hockey League season was undoubtedly needed, given the ever-evolving situation around the world with the coronavirus.

However, we will now have a lot of unanswered questions on the hockey front. From a Lethbridge Hurricanes perspective, they had five games left in the regular season. Could they have caught the Medicine Hat Tigers to get home-ice advantage in what seemed to be a destined first-round battle with their Highway 3 rivals? Could they have emerged from that wild Eastern Conference to challenge for the league championship? And who would have represented the Dub in the Memorial Cup in Kelowna?



Also lost at the end of the season was a chance for fans to salute the overagers. They didn't get to do their final wave during the usual Three Stars at the end of the last game. In this season finale of "Joe's Blog", I've created some awards for the three players who will be moving on.

First up is the "Least Likely To Get ID'd At The Bar" award and I'm giving it to Ty Prefontaine. The 20-year-old blueliner's beard was top-notch every time I saw it. He had a five o'clock shadow by eleven in the morning. He had a career season for the Hurricanes, notching 28 points and was a +43.

My second award is for "Chirpiest Chirper Who Ever Chirped" and this is based solely on the games that I saw, especially when the 'Canes were in Calgary. The other 20-year-old defenseman, Koletrane Wilson, gets bragging rights for this one. He and Hitmen captain Mark Kastelic had an ongoing feud for the ages and after every period, it felt like those two were yapping at each other right through the tunnels. Wilson also had a great season, picking up 33 points and was a +28.

And my final award is entitled the "Never Unpacked His Bags" Award. Brett Davis was constantly on the move during his career, starting Lethbridge before heading to Kootenay, Red Deer and back to Lethbridge to finish out his junior hockey career. Davis' return was a welcome addition to the team, as he registered 25 points in 20 games.

All the fun and games aside, a tip of the cap to all of the 20-year-olds across the WHL for their contributions to their teams and communities.

I'd also like to take a moment to thank Groggy Froggy for being the blog's sponsor. Thanks to all of you for listening and reading. And last but certainly not least, thanks to Jordan for bringing back "Canes This Week" and putting together a stellar product every week with great guests and segments. I'm honoured to have been a small part of the production.

Until next season, WHL fans.