Moose Jaw Warriors defenceman Logan Dowhaniuk has something in his past that could be very valuable to the team heading into the Eastern Conference semifinal -- a playoff series win over the Winnipeg Ice.
The overage rearguard was a member of the Edmonton Oil Kings during their run to the Ed Chynoweth Cup as Western Hockey League champions last season, helping the team to a four-games-to-one win over Winnipeg in the Conference final along the way.
That makes Dowhaniuk unique among his teammates, and the Sherwood Park, Alta. native aims to put his experience to good use when the series drops the puck on Friday night in Winnipeg.
“Last year was the first year I got to play in any playoff games with everything that’s happened, so I definitely learned from that experience and I’m bringing it to this team now,” Dowhaniuk said after practice on Wednesday afternoon. “I think that experience from last year helped me learn what it takes and now I’m hoping I can help the other guys, too.”
Edmonton would go on to defeat the Seattle Thunderbirds in six games to win the WHL title.
Of course, this Warriors team is far different from the future-NHL-talent-packed Oil Kings, who could go man-to-man skillswise with any team in the WHL last season. The Ice find themselves in much the same position as that Edmonton team this season, and Dowhaniuk expects they’ll try and use that to their advantage.
“I expect them to come out and out-skill us, so we’ll have to keep working and being physical against all of them,” he said. “Staying healthy throughout the rounds will be huge, too, any time a guy goes down in the playoffs it hurts, so we’re hoping to do that and have a good round here coming up.”
Helping in that direction is how well things have gone so far in the playoffs for both teams. The Warriors took a four-game sweep over the Lethbridge Hurricanes in their opening series, while Winnipeg did the same to the Medicine Hat Tigers. As a result, both teams got through with few major injuries and will be in far better shape than they might have been coming out of a seven-game banger.
“I think going into the playoffs and getting four in a row is huge for us because you have time to prepare for the next round and it’s the same thing with Winnipeg,” Dowhaniuk said. “So we’re on an even playing field right now and getting it done in four games has really helped us.”
Dowhaniuk entered the post-season with points in five of the Warriors' last six games and hasn’t let up all that much, with three assists in Game 2 and four points in four games against Lethbridge.
He finished last season’s 19-game post-season run with three goals and 11 points.
Now, it’s time to bring it all together and push for a second-round upset against a team that has stood at the top the Canadian Hockey League rankings much of the season.
“We know a little bit about what they’re going to bring and we’ve seen them quite a few times this year, so everyone is prepared and we know it’s going to be a tough one,” Dowhaniuk said.
Games 1 and 2 of the series are in Winnipeg on Friday and Saturday, with the series reverting to Moose Jaw for Games 3 and 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday. Tickets are available at www.sasktix.ca.
