(Benny Walchuk):
Good morning, it’s time for the Melville Millionaires Coaches Show on GX94. Joined now by Head Coach and GM Doug Johnson. Coach, your club came away with a weekend split against the Weyburn Red Wings — what stood out to you about your team’s performance in those two divisional games?
(Doug Johnson):
Well, obviously, we had a phenomenal start on Friday, scoring five in the first period. It was great to see the offense come alive — that was something we were a bit concerned about heading in. The unfortunate thing was we gave up a few too many goals and didn’t get a few calls. Even the ref-in-chief mentioned we were on the wrong side of some tough ones. Hopefully that evens out.
Right now, we just need to find a way to get on a roll. I liked a lot of what we did, but we still had a couple of mental lapses that cost us. The season’s starting to slip by, so we need to fix those issues now.
(Benny Walchuk):
You mentioned that offensive outburst Friday night — what did you like about what you saw offensively, especially in that opening period, that you’d like to see continue?
(Doug Johnson):
Just getting pucks to the net. We were on them quickly, created turnovers, and I think we caught Weyburn a bit off guard with our pace. We used our defensemen well — they scored a few nice goals — and we just kept firing pucks toward the goal. That high-volume mentality is what we need to have.
We can’t be waiting for the perfect play; we’ve got to score some ugly ones. I thought we did that really well on Friday, and even on Saturday. Both goals that night came off point shots with traffic, and that’s the kind of hockey we have to play.
(Benny Walchuk):
You’ve got the Flin Flon Bombers coming to town tonight — a team that suffered their first loss of the season last night in Humboldt. What kind of challenge do they present, and what’ll be key against them?
(Doug Johnson):
Flin Flon’s always going to be a skilled, fast team that plays with pace and compete. Mike Reagan always has them well-prepared, and after that loss, they’ll be ready to go tonight.
For us, it’s about getting on top of them early, exploiting a few of their weaknesses, and making sure we’re hard on their defense every time we enter the zone. It’s really strength versus strength — there aren’t any secrets between our two teams at this point. It’ll come down to who wants it more and who’s willing to sacrifice a bit extra.
(Benny Walchuk):
And a big week for Kael Margolis, who was named Saskatchewan Player of the Week. What does that recognition say about how he’s been playing for you guys?
(Doug Johnson):
It’s pretty special — especially considering he’s only had a couple of practices with us. He’s come in and immediately established himself as a dominant player. That’s what intrigued us about him, and that’s why we worked hard to bring him in.
He’s a 200-foot player, known for his shot, but he’s making some great plays and reading the game really well. He’s also very sound defensively — you can tell he’s played at a high level and wants to win. We’re thrilled to have him, and I think this is just the beginning for him.
Benny Walchuk):
Awesome, Coach — thanks a lot for this, and best of luck tonight and heading into the weekend.
(Doug Johnson):
You bet — thanks very much.
