The stage is set for the tail end of the Big Six Hockey Playoffs.
After sweeping their semi-finals series, the defending champion Moosomin Rangers and the Redvers Rockets will be squaring off for a blockbuster ending. This is nothing new for either team, as the 2025 season marks the third time they'll see each other in the finals. League president Craig Barber remarked that fans are in for a wild finish.
"Well, I think there's a large target between the two of them. Bud [Holloway from the Rangers] can put a game on his back. [The] big thing for him is, though, they just played three games in three nights. I went to Sunday's game and they still look pretty deep, you know, really good for playing three games in three nights. Redvers is -- they're deep, they're really deep, their team. Goaltending is going to be the key factor, I think, to this series,"
All eight teams in the Big Six made it into the playoffs this season. Out of those eight, two teams proved to be unstoppable. Moosomin swept their series against the KW Oil Kings in the quarterfinals and the Oxbow Huskies in the semis. Meanwhile, the Rockets would find themselves undefeated against the Wawota Flyers and the Oxbow Huskies, respectively.
Moosomin and Redvers met for the first time in the finals back in the 2022-23 season. In that run, it would be the Redvers Rockets that would supplant the Moosomin Rangers after sweeping the series 3-0. Last year, the matchup was a lot closer in scoring, but Moosomin would claw back the championship title after a series sweep. This year, as the tie-breaker season, Barber believes it's anyone's cup to win.
"Both of them can do it. The Redvers [Rockets] showed for the year, you know, in the league play, they were undefeated, basically. I'd like to see it go five games and the rinks be full and, you know, they battle it out."
Throughout the season, both teams, and much of the league for that matter, also navigated choppy waters when scheduling games around the ongoing SHA Senior Provincials. The league president admits that having both competitions run in conjunction has had some impacts on the Big Six post-season. They're hoping that moving the end of the season earlier will alleviate some issues heading into the match up.
"This is the first year we've tried this and it's actually going to work out for Moosomin and Redvers. We've moved the end date a little bit sooner than what we did and so then it gives each round a little bit extra time to play the games. It helped out the teams that were in provincials to not have to play, you know, four games in five nights or five games in seven nights. Now, they basically got a month to play five games. Both teams should be able to stay well-rested for provincials and playoffs."
Schedules have yet to be posted for the Big Six finale, but both Redvers and Moosomin will be busy this Friday for provincials. The Rockets will be starting their series with the Radville Nationals in the Senior D South Final. Meanwhile, the Rangers are hoping to close out their series with a win against the Langenburg Warriors in the Senior B South Final pool.