'Everyone's spirits are high': WHL rivals Regina Pats, Moose Jaw Warriors excited for new year

The Western Hockey League’s (WHL) 2024-25 regular season will get underway on Friday and all five Saskatchewan squads will take to the ice on opening night.

“It’s obviously full optimism for every hockey team right now. You know everyone’s spirits are high, everyone’s healthy right now. So we’re real excited to get the season going,” said Regina Pats head coach, Brad Herauf.

This will be Herauf’s second season with the head coach title attached to his name. Last year the Pats finished the season with a 22-40-4-2 record and at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, the first season of a new rebuild following the Connor Bedard era.

“I definitely learned a lot in my first season as head coach. Spent a lot of time over the summer getting better at my job. I definitely learned that I need to be better and want to be better. And with the results we had last year with our players, they need to be better,” said Herauf.

“I think we’re all hungry. We want to get over that hump and make sure we’re in the playoffs this year. So I think everyone’s doing those extra shots after practice, extra skating, anything we can do to make the playoffs this year, we’re doing that.” Pats 18-year-old centre Zach Moore said.

Moore was traded to the Pats last December from the Saskatoon Blades. In his 20 games as a member of the Pats he recorded six goals and five assists for 11 points.

The Blades went all the way to the Eastern Conference final but lost to the Moose Jaw Warriors in game seven. Saskatoon boasted the best record in the league last season heading into the playoffs. The East Division was a powerhouse of Saskatchewan squads heading into the postseason with the Warriors and Swift Current Broncos all making major moves during the year to try and make a run at the WHL Championship. Those moves open the field up this season, especially in the East Division with players that have now aged out or others who have moved on to the pro ranks.

“I think we have a good group. Maybe it’s a bit tighter this year but I think if we’re playing our game, I think we can beat anyone in the league,” said Moore.

“This division is going to be really close, and I think if we start off on the right foot here, we have a good chance of being a top seed,” added his new teammate and veteran defenceman John Babcock.

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Babcock was picked up by the Pats during the off-season from the Blades and is one of their overagers this season. The defenceman split last season between the Kelowna Rockets and Blades and recorded 17 points in 64 games.

“I feel like I bring a lot of leadership, physicality on the back end and then just experience. I’m the oldest defenceman by two years and hopefully I can show the younger guys the ropes a little bit,” Babcock shared.

Defending a championship

Just down the Trans-Canada Highway in Moose Jaw, the Warriors are coming off a very different season as the reigning WHL Champions.

“It’s surreal. You drive around town, you see all the guys and it just brings back memories. It’s kind of nostalgic,” said forward Lynden Lakovic.

Lakovic is entering his third full season as a Warrior. In last year’s playoff run he had 8 points (five goals, three assists) in 20 games.

The team was led by forwards, Jagger Firkus, Matthew Savoie, Brayden Yager and defenceman Denton Mateychuk, who rounded out the top four spots for points in the post-season last year.

This year only Yager is expected to return to the Warriors, but that does not mean the team feels as if they are in a re-build which tends to follow a championship season in junior hockey.

“I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people. Obviously you look at the roster and we have a lot of younger guys coming in. But I think we have a lot of key pieces and it’s room for a lot of guys to step up. I think we’re going to flip the script a lot faster than people think,” said Lakovic.

“For us it’s opportunity for new guys and guys that were here last year. Just look at it as opportunity and there’s no reason we can’t have a strong season this year,” Warriors associate coach Scott King said.

The Warriors coaching staff agreed the Eastern Conference and division could be a lot tighter this year than in previous seasons.

“We talked about that in the coach’s room. You know there’s no real clear cut this year. There’s going to be some good teams but we feel [we have] as good of a chance as anybody else to have a good season. There’s opportunity this year and we’re not going to be just satisfied with last year. We have to build on it,” said King.

“I know there’s a lot of teams that went all in last year and a lot of teams only have a few players coming back so it’ll be competitive,” said goaltender, Jackson Unger.

The Warriors will begin their season on the road on Friday night in Brandon but will return home on Saturday to face the Prince Albert Raiders in their home opener. It will also be the night their 2024 WHL Championship banner will be raised.

“We’re all pretty excited. It’s going to be pretty cool. There’s going to be a lot of people in that stands that will enjoy it with us. It’ll be special,” Unger said with a smile.

The Pats also begin their season on the road as they head to Prince Albert on Friday night and return home to face the Brandon Wheat Kings on Saturday.

The Swift Current Broncos and Saskatoon Blades play a home and home against one another respectively on Friday and Saturday as well.