Wednesday, August 11, 2021 brandonsun.com REPORT GAME RESULTS BEFORE 9 P.M. PHONE 204.571.7442 FAX 204.727.0385 Sports EMAIL [email protected] TRY TO BEAT THAT!: THE 1978-79 BRANDON WHEAT KINGS Brandon wins league title in six games BY PERRY BERGSON WHL PLAYOFFS The 1979 Western Hockey 1979 WHL PLAYOFF RESULTS League fi nal featured its two DIVISIONAL ROUND-ROBIN SEMIFINALS best teams, the Brandon Wheat (Double home-and-home round-robin) Kings and the Portland Winter EASTERN DIVISION Hawks. Brandon (58-5-9) had fi nished 14 points ahead of Portland (49- CENTRAL DIVISION 10-13), which was the top club !" in the more competitive West #"$ %% Division. " A sense of the dominance the WEST DIVISION & two teams had on the league ' came when the all-star teams () * were named. Brandon’s entire top line of Brian Propp, Ray Al- DIVISION FINALS (best-of-seven) lison and Laurie Boschman was %+ , named to the fi rst team, along !" %+ #"$ & %+ ' with defenceman Brad McCrim- mon and goalie Rick Knickle. LEAGUE ROUND-ROBIN SEMIFINALS The only fi rst team spot to Home-and-home round-robin get away from the Wheat Kings went to Winter Hawks defence- & man Keith Brown. On the sec- !" ,% ond team, Portland forwards WHL FINAL (best-of-seven) Mike Toal and Perry Turnbull %+ & and defenceman Blake Wesley all earned nods. WHL AWARDS Brandon and Portland split Perry Turn- four meetings in the regular bull, Portland. Brian Propp, Brandon. season and playoffs prior to the Keith Brown, Portland. fi nal. The Brandon Wheat Kings and Portland Winter Hawks congregate near the Brandon bench during Game 2 of the WHL fi nal at Kelly Kisio, Calgary. The teams met twice in the Rick Knickle, Brandon. the Keystone Centre on April 28, 1979. (Brandon Sun fi le photo) regular season, with the Winter Errol Hawks winning 3-2 in Brandon Rausse, Seattle. on Jan. 15, and the Wheat Kings Division all year. They played I’m not going to miss the net.’ ! Dunc McCallum, Bran- don. earning a 7-4 decision in Port- in tough division because New I remember thinking ‘I hope I land on Feb. 14. They also split West always had a good team don’t fan on it but I’m not going ALL-STAR TEAMS the two games in the semifi nal and Victoria had a good team to regret missing the net. When I FIRST TEAM round-robin. too.” got in, I really didn’t look at the Rick Knickle, Brandon. Brandon’s high-scoring of- GREGG DRINNAN (Bran- goalie (Bart Hunter) that much Keith Brown, Portland. fence was countered by Port- don Sun): “That Portland team but I fi red it low on the ice at ba- Brad McCrimmon, Brandon. ! Laurie Boschman, Brandon. land’s top forwards, Toal (71 was really good. Blake Wesley sically the centre of the net and "# Brian Propp, Brandon. games played, 38 goals, 83 as- was a good defenceman, there it went in.” # Ray Allison, Brandon. sists, 121 points), Turnbull was always a question whether STEPHEN PATRICK: “I can (70gp, 75 g, 43a, 118p), Alvin Keith Brown or Brad McCrim- remember Donny’s overtime SECOND TEAM Szott (72gp, 40g, 61a) Tim Took- mon was the best defenceman goal. I asked him about it when Warren Skorodenski, Calgary. ey (56gp, 33g, 47a, 80p), Jim in the league that season, Flo- I saw him one time and said ‘I Craig Levie, Edmonton. Blake Wesley, Portland. Dobson (71gp, 38g, 39a, 77p) rent Robidoux and Jim Dobson, would have sworn you looked ! Mike Toal, Portland. and Florent Robidoux (70gp, they were really good. It was right at the left corner and not at "# Perry Turnbull, Portland. 36g, 41a, 77p). They also had two really good teams and it Brandon defenceman Wes Coulson is helped off the ice by ath- the net, but at the rink to throw # Dirk Graham, Regina. high-scoring blue-liners Brown was great hockey to watch. Nei- letic therapist Jack (Smokey) Stouffer) and Brad McCrimmon the goalie off and then you shot (70gp, 11g, 85a, 96p) and Dave ther of those organizations was during Game 3 of the WHL fi nal against the Portland Winter it and it went in.’ His story is a Babych (67gp, 20g, 59a, 79p). goofy so you didn’t have to be Hawks. Coulson’s shoulder kept him out of the rest of the little bit different.” WORK REMAINS The Winter Hawks were also concerned about silly stuff hap- league fi nal, and he played hurt at the Memorial Cup. (Brandon Naturally, the Wheat Kings tough, with Wesley leading the pening. It was just good, hard- Sun fi le photo) GAME 6 celebrated their win, but they way with 292 penalty minutes, hitting junior hockey.” The series resumed on May 3, knew their work wasn’t over. grabbing a 4-2 victory. The next followed by Turnbull (191), Max KELLY McCRIMMON: “Ken April 30 was a travel day, and and the hosts took a 3-1 lead ear- The Memorial Cup was set to night, Brandon tied it up when Kostovich (178) and Dobson Hodge and Brian Shaw, who in Portland on May 1, the Wheat ly in the third period. But Wes- begin four nights later in Que- Brian Propp scored the winner (143). were the owners of the team, Kings likely played their most ley took a high-sticking major bec, and a bruised and bat- in the third period. In net, Warren Skorodenski of would tell you that’s what re- complete game of the series but when he clipped Ray Allison on tered Brandon team had to fl y The victory came at the cost the Calgary Wranglers earned ally put them on the map. They fell 5-2 after Hunter made 47 the face and the forward’s nose home. That put a damper on of forward Kelly McCrimmon, second team all-star honours moved there and weren’t doing saves for the Winter Hawks in began to bleed. Brandon scored the night’s activities. who fractured the same bone in ahead of Portland’s Bart Hunter, great and that team was really front of 7,818 fans. That squared three times during the ensuing RAY ALLISON: “I played his arm he had broken earlier in but it couldn’t have been an easy strong and the playoffs were so the series 2-2. fi ve-minute penalty. They added three and a half years and I the season, knocking him out of decision. Hunter appeared in 55 good.” DON GILLEN: “When you’re a pair of insurance markers and would have done anything to the rest of the playoffs. contests, posting a 3.82 goals- RAY ALLISON: “It was not a young guy, Portland was the eventually emerged WHL cham- win the (WHL). I wanted to “It was heartbreaking at that against average in the wide- only physical but they probably closest thing to a pro atmo- pions for the fi rst time. win the west more than I want- time of the season,” McCrim- open game played at the time. had the second best D in the sphere when you played there. GREGG DRINNAN: “In the ed anything because it was no mon said. “It was the league fi - LAURIE BOSCHMAN: “I re- league. They had (Keith) Brown, Their rink was just about full six games, you could make the easy road.” nal, so I missed the rest of the member them being equally as Bart was a good goalie and they when we played them, they had argument that the deciding fac- STEPHEN PATRICK: “It’s league fi nal and the Memorial good. I don’t know what their re- could score with you. If you nice uniforms, they looked like a tor was a major penalty to Blake great but you don’t have a lot Cup.” cord was all season but they had didn’t check them and play both pro hockey team. I always liked Wesley for his sticking Ray Alli- of time to celebrate because On April 29, Brandon took a very good squad as well.” ends of the rink, they would beat the Blackhawks growing up son. It was Game 6 in Portland you have to get focused on the its fi rst series lead, but again KELLY McCRIMMON: “It was you. It was tight. The difference and liked their uniforms even and it was deemed a major be- next thing, which is the Memo- it came at a cost. Defenceman such a good series and such in the whole series was probably though we were playing against cause it drew blood.” rial Cup … The two teams that Wes Coulson, one of the team’s good teams.” a couple of power-play goals.” them. With the crowd and the WES COULSON: “We scored should have been in the fi nals remaining three 19-year-old de- BRIAN PROPP: “Portland had WES COULSON: “They had music, they put on a pretty good three goals, that put us ahead were in the fi nals so that was fenceman after the March inju- a really good team and that was their top offensive guys too and show. They had a professional 4-3 and that really defl ated important. Also we beat them ry to Mike Perovich, injured his a tough series. We found a way to they could score goals. The goal- atmosphere there.” them. They were done. If they in Portland.” shoulder. A few days later, the win but it was tough. They had a tending was pretty much on an win Game 6, then we both have DAVE CHARTIER: “We cel- Oak River product was cleared good team, and a big team.