SASKATOON, Sask. — The Saskatchewan Huskies opened their 2026 Canada West campaign with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over the Lethbridge Pronghorns on Friday night (Sept. 4) at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon. The win featured a standout offensive performance from second-year forward and 2025 Canada West All-Rookie
Tao Hein, who scored twice and added an assist as the Huskies held off a late Pronghorns push.
Saskatchewan wasted little time getting on the scoreboard to kick off the latest campaign. Just five minutes into the match, fifth-year forward and team captain
Ethan Cabral found the back of the net after connecting on a setup from Hein, giving the Huskies an early 1-0 advantage.
Lethbridge gradually settled into the contest and found an equalizer in the 35th minute. Pronghorn forward and former Huskie Robert Woodroffe-Brown finished off a play created by Alessio Gusciglio to draw the visitors level at 1-1.
The Pronghorns appeared poised to head into halftime tied, but Saskatchewan struck at a crucial moment. In the 43rd minute, Hein restored the Huskies' lead with an unassisted marker after a deflection which followed a Cabral corner found the striker unconverted. The sophomore then connected cleanly on the bouncing ball, sending the home side into the break ahead 2-1.
The Huskies extended their advantage shortly after the second half began. Cabral and Hein combined once again in the 49th minute, with Cabral delivering the assist and Hein finishing for his second goal of the evening. The tally stood as the game-winner and capped an impressive three-point night for the striker.
Lethbridge refused to go away quietly and continued to push forward in search of a comeback however. Their persistence paid off in the 65th minute when Woodroffe-Brown converted a penalty kick to bring the visitors back within one.
Time would run out for the Pronghorns in the prairie rivals season-opener however as the match was called in the 85th minute to do adverse weather conditions.
The victory gives the Huskies a winning start to the regular season, something they have not done since 2022, when they defeated the Pronghorns 3-0. The win also extends Saskatchewan's unbeaten home streak against the pronghorns to a remarkable 19 games, with the Dogs posting a 13-6-0 record over that span.
The Huskies will look to build on that momentum when they return to action in a weeks time (Sept. 11) and play host to the MacEwan Griffins in one of two home School Day games. The Pronghorns meanwhile head back on the road to take on the Calgary Dinos and MRU Cougars in the cowtown.
