It was a 5-4 final score in overtime for the Delisle Chiefs in their final game of 2021, as they dropped their weekend home game to Carrot River in overtime, at least grabbing one point after two losses earlier in the week to the Saskatoon Quakers and Royals respectively.
The PJHL’s all-star rosters were announced ahead of the break, and Delisle’s top scorers in Chad Westman and Kyle Heintz were both present on the list of forwards, with defenseman Adam Bradley also cracking the all-star team.
Bradley did not have a point in the loss, but Heintz and Westman certainly played their part in collecting three points each. They would each score once with Kylen Taphorn and Josh Herzog potting the other goals, but goalie Noah Martens was beat in overtime to send the Chiefs into the break in losing fashion.
As mentioned, Westman and Heintz are the teams leading scorers, and are well deserved all-stars. Westman is the team captain and his coach Eric Ditto knows what he can expect from the west central star, leaving him more impressed so far with what he has gotten out of another west central player in the Luseland native Heintz.
“(Heintz) has been a guy who we brought in with high expectations, I think it took awhile for him to get his bearings, but he’s doing what he’s expected and that’s scoring goals because his shot is unbelievable. It’s nice to see that finally rolling.”
Westman leads the team in points at the break with 34 in 25 games, but Heintz might as well assume the team lead in goals as he is tied with Westman at 15 in one less game played than the captain.
Bradley is also a local talent coming out of Stranrear, but another west central player turning heads is the already mentioned goalie Noah Martens. Ditto says that the goalies play is definitely better than his record indicates.
“Our goalie Martens, as a young guy we were excited to get him. The thing with him is his win-loss record doesn’t show how good of a goalie he is. We maybe haven’t given him the goal support we should when he is in net, because he’s played really well and given us a chance to win.”
The Chiefs goalie duo is probably something they will continue to roll with as the season goes on with veteran Tyler Peterson in the starters net, but there is another 20 year old in the forward core that has really impressed Delisle’s coach.
“Nic Prediger, we ended up getting him in a trade, and didn’t know a whole lot of what we were gonna get with him, but he’s really adapted and been a workhorse for us,” shared Ditto, “There are some guys who have stepped up, and if they can keep going in that direction it would be awesome.”
They may not be all-stars, but some of the teams other standouts include off-season acquisition Kylen Taphorn who is providing some secondary scoring with 12 points in 19 games, and Luke Dyer who is filling the net as part of the forward group with 9 goals on the season.
The Chiefs will return to the ice on January 5th to take on the Saskatoon Quakers at home, and then the teams all-stars will ready for their special appearance. It should be extra special for the local players as their club is the host for this years PJHL all-star event, and Delisle as well as the Chiefs organization are very excited to be able to host the event and show off their community. So if you are interested you should clear the calendar for January 8, 2022, and make plans to be at the Delisle AGT Centennial Arena as Saskatchewan’s best Junior B players hit the ice.
Wed, May 8, 9:00 AM
