For months now rumors have been circulating on message boards and in coffee shops that the Saskatoon Blades will be pulled from the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup as tournament hosts.
The basis for those rumors was the inconsistent play of the Blades throughout the 2012-2013 season. With a record of 22-20-0-3, the Blades are sitting in eigth place, four points out of a playoff position in the WHL’s Eastern Conference.
CHL President David Branch toured Saskatoon with WHL Commissioner Ron Robinson and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League commissioner Gilles Courteau today in preparation for the Memorial Cup Tournament.
Branch, Robinson, and Courteau stated that they support the City of Saskatoon and the Blades as tournament hosts and participants.
Removing the Blades from the tournament would have gone against Memorial Cup tradition, Since 1983 the host city has traditionally had a team participate in the tournament. The only times a host city hasn’t had a representative in the tournament were in 1988 (Chicoutimi, Que.), 1990 (Hamilton, Ont.) and 1991 (Quebec City).
