Canadian goaltender Martin Jones.

BY PATRICK KING
sportsnet.ca

The Calgary Hitmen are ready for anything.

In a post-season that went from near disappoint and heartbreak to relief, Calgary's playoff story reads like a script: from down and out in one series to nearly letting another one slip away, the team is not short on learning lessons. That's why the team opens its third-round series with a warrior-like mentality that welcomes all comers.

"We've been through a lot of different scenarios already in a short period of time," coach Mike Williamson acknowledged. "We faced some adversity and I think the character of both our team and the individuals on our team has been exposed and we're happy with what we see."

The top-ranked Hitmen narrowly escaped from the No. 8 Moose Jaw Warriors in the opening round. Moose Jaw won the first two games in Calgary and held a 3-1 series lead before the Hitmen rallied to win Game 7 at home.

Calgary didn't make it much easier on themselves against the Medicine Hat Tigers in Round 2, barely avoiding another seventh game by defeating the Tigers in overtime in the sixth game. Now they will take on the Memorial Cup host Brandon Wheat Kings in the Western Hockey League's Eastern Conference final.

It's the second year in a row these teams will determine the Eastern Conference's participant in the league championship series. The Hitmen swept the Wheat Kings a year ago and although both have undergone changes from last season, many of the players who played in that series are back, including Hitmen goaltender Martin Jones.

"I don't think either team is expecting a sweep," he said. "We have two pretty good teams going at each other here."

The scenario was different a year ago. The Wheat Kings were the rising young team learning the playoff ropes with the knowledge they would be hosting the 2010 Memorial Cup.

Conversely, Calgary was the team loaded with veterans that finished the season with 122 points. Last year's Hitmen squad produced just three fewer points than the WHL and Canadian Hockey League record, set by the 1978-79 Wheat Kings.

Although Jones admits this year's version of the Wheat Kings is stronger than last, he remains mindful that his team's preparation has less to do with the opponent than themselves.

"Obviously we saw them last year and we know what to expect a little bit from their team," he said. "I think the main thing is we're worrying about our game-plan and trying to execute that."

The Wheat Kings are known mostly for its red-hot offensive attack. Brandon's 321 goals scored were far and away the best in the regular season and are averaging 4.3 goals per game in the playoffs.

"For us to be successful, Jones is going to have to be really good," Williamson noted.

His goaltender will be familiar with at least one shooter. Brayden Schenn, the Wheat Kings' playoff and regular season leader in points, was a teammate of Jones' on the silver-medal winning Canadian world junior team. The two are also prospects of the Los Angeles Kings.

Although Jones admits another potential playoff series never camp up in conversation, he knows the stakes will be higher.

"It's one thing to be able to stop him in practice and it's another when there are five players on the ice," he said. "It's a lot more different when you're in a game situation."

Schenn had a goal and five assists in the four regular season meetings. Calgary won the first meeting in a shootout, but lost the next three by a combined 15-7 margin.

"In the games that we weren't successful, their top-end guys were able to turn close games into separation for their side - separating themselves from us with two or three plays over a short span," Williamson said. "Our focus is very important: we have to pay very close attention to detail and not let those guys start to skate and get open space on the ice."

It was clear as the season wore on that one of these two teams would capture the regular season point record and get home ice throughout the playoffs. The Hitmen edged the Wheat Kings by three points for that honour and will start the series at the Pengrowth Saddledome.

Home ice didn't play an integral part of their first two round victories and Williamson is just as confident on the road as he is at home. But if it does come down to the decisive seventh game, he would understandably much rather stay at home.

"If you had to choose whether to play that deciding game at home or not you definitely want to play it here," he said.