The University of Regina's men's hockey team opens up its Canada West season with a home-and-home series against the Saskatchewan Huskies. The first game goes Friday night in Saskatoon, while the teams return to Regina for a Saturday game that is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start.

This weekend's games will mark the first of the year for the Cougars, while the Huskies bring a 2-0-0 record into the weekend after defeating Manitoba by scores of 2-1 and 7-0 last Friday and Saturday.

Head coach Blaine Sautner, who returns for his third season behind the Cougars' bench, has liked what he's seen from his troops so far. The team should continue to improve, as two-thirds of the 24 players on the U of R's roster are in their first or second year of eligibility.

“I think we're well ahead of where we were last year at this time,” Sautner said. “It's extremely promising to see the development of some of our veterans. They came into camp in great shape and they've looked solid through our first four games here.”

Between the pipes, the Cougars will have Brant Hilton and Adam Ward, the same one-two punch that helped the Cougars allow the second fewest goals in the conference. Hilton shattered the school's record for lowest goals-against average (2.26) in a season, and was named to the both the Canada West and the CIS All-Rookie Team. Ward has looked good so far in non-conference action, recording a tie against Saskatchewan and a win over Manitoba.

Up front, the Cougars will have the luxury of returning all five of their top scorers from last season. The group is led by second-year centre Kyle Ross, who led the Cougars in goals (8), assists (12), and points (20) in his first year with the team. Caine Pearpoint will likely join Ross on one of the team's scoring lines and will be joined by Dan Bohemier, who transfers to the U of R after a strong season with Concordia (Alta.) College.

Neil Kodman and Dillon Johnston finished second and third on the team last year in points and will again be counted upon by Sautner to play in an offensive role. Kodman and Johnstone have been playing on a line with first-year winger Laurent Benjamin, one of three U of R rookies who were members of the 2008 Royal Bank Cup champion Humboldt Broncos.

The Cougars' biggest hit from last season is on defence, where the team loses Brennan Chapman, Kyle Deck, Josh Fauth, and Clay Thoring. Sautner, however, has effectively filled those holes by recruiting Ryan Bender and Dylan Chapman from the Western Hockey League and Russ Nielsen and Matt Rintoul – both members of Humboldt's first pairing.

Bender, a former Regina Pat who checks in at 6'2” and 235 lbs., has shown some offensive flair in his first action with the Cougars. The first-year blueliner has scored in each of his last three non-conference games and has a team-leading four goals. Bender has been paired with third-year defenceman Ryan Cruse, who Sautner says would be a top defenceman on any Canada West team.

Cody Thoring, who missed almost the entire season last year due to injury, will look to stay injury-free in his second season with the Cougars. He has been paired with Dylan Chapman, who comes to the U of R after a four-season career in the WHL with the Moose Jaw Warriors and the Chilliwack Bruins.

After winning last season's national Junior A championship together, Nielsen and Rintoul will likely remain paired together with the Cougars. Adam McPherson, a 6'5”, 225 lb. second-year blueliner, was steady last season and appeared in 23 of the team's 28 games.

The Cougars return home next weekend for a pair of home games against Lethbridge.