LETHBRIDGE – Battles for playoff positioning continue this weekend in Canada West hockey and the Lethbridge Pronghorn men's hockey continues to push towards a playoff spot but the task will not be an easy one this weekend, hosting the defending Canada West Champion and U SPORTS fourth ranked Alberta Golden Bears.
 
The Pronghorns and Bears will hit the ice at Nicholas Sheran Arena Friday and Saturday night at 7:00pm. Both games will be streamed live on www.canadawest.tv.
 
Friday night's game also marks the Pronghorns 'Bell Let's Talk' night in support of mental health. All Students that come to the game Friday night wearing a Bell Let's Talk toque will get free admission to the game. Toques are available at the student services fair on Wednesday.
 
A Look at the Teams:
 
With three weeks remaining in the Canada West season, the Pronghorns (8-11-3) currently hold down the final playoff spot but are only four points ahead of the Calgary Dinos. The Pronghorns are also only four points behind the Mount Royal Cougars for fifth spot.
 
Despite playing some of their best hockey of the season, the Pronghorns are 1-3-2 since the semester break and every point will be important down the stretch.
 
Offensive production continues to be an issue for the Pronghorns, scoring the second fewest goals in the conference and four of five losses in 2018 haven been by one goal, including two 2-1 losses in the past three games. The other loss was a 5-3 decision to Mount Royal, where MRU scored an empty net goal with less than a minute to play.
 
After losing only one game during the first semester of Canada West action, the Golden Bears (18-3-1) have had an up and down start to the New Year. Over the past three weeks the Bears are 3-2-1, which included being swept by the Manitoba Bisons to kick off 2018.
 
Last weekend, the Bears swept the last place Regina Cougars, winning by scores of 9-3 and 4-2.
 
The top scoring team in the conference, the Bears hold the top power play in Canada West at 23.9%. Their penalty killing isn't too shabby either, sitting second at 85.6%.
 
Key Players:
 
With an assist last Friday night, Mitch Maxwell registered his 100^th point as a Pronghorn and leads the team in scoring this season with eight goals and 16 assists.
 
Justin Valentino sits second in Pronghorn scoring with 15 points but has only picked up a goal and an assist in his last six games.
 
Freshman defenceman Dallas Valentine is tied for second among rookie defenceman in scoring with two goals and 10 assists.
 
Garret Hughson continues to carry the bulk of the load in the Pronghorns crease and is second in Canada West in total saves this season with 665. He also holds a 3.22 goals-against average and a 0.911 save percentage.
 
For the Bears, eight players sit in the top 20 in Canada West scoring led by Luke Philp, who is second in Canada West scoring with nine goals and 21 assists. Trevor Cox leads Canada West in assists with 25.
 
In the crease, the Bears have platooned rookie Zach Sawchenko and Brendan Burke. Sawchenko leads the Canada West in goals-against average at 1.98, while Burke is third (2.13). Sawchenko holds a 0.916 save percentage compared to Burke's 0.915.
 
Up Next:
 
The Pronghorns head out on the road, traveling to Winnipeg to face the Manitoba Bisons for a pair of games. The following weekend, the Pronghorns will wrap up the regular season hosting the Regina Cougars.