CALGARY – For the first time since 1996, the University of Calgary Dinos will get their shot at the Canada West Championship, but will have to go through an all-familiar foe to convert that chance.

By beating the Saskatchewan Huskies at Father David Bauer last weekend in the final game of their best of three series by a count of 4-1, the Dinos earned their spot in both the Canada West finals as well as the CIS University Cup. Calgary will now take the familiar three-hour drive north, where they will battle with the three-time reigning Canada West champion Alberta Golden Bears. The Bears defeated the Manitoba Bisons in two straight games to solidify hosting duties this weekend.

The last time the Dinos lifted the Hardy Cup was in 1996, when they defeated the Regina Cougars in two games. Conversely, Alberta has won nine of the past 10 Canada West Championships, with their only defeat during that time coming in 2006-07 when they lost to the Huskies.

The Dinos are 8-8 all-time in the Canada West finals, while Alberta boasts a terrific 22-11 record. Calgary holds the slight edge in head-to-head battles in the championship series, holding a 5-4 advantage.

The winner of this weekend's race to two wins will head into the University Cup in Fredericton with both conference bragging rights as well as momentum, while the other will also attend with redemption on their minds.

The six-team University Cup tournament goes March 24-27 in Fredericton N.B., where new CIS national champions will be crowned. Alberta and Calgary have both booked their flights already thanks to their conference semi-final wins, while the University of Western Ontario Mustangs and the McGill Redmen have clinched spots as well. UNB, who will play host to the tournament, also claims a spot, leaving the final berth for the StFX X-Men, who knocked off defending champion Saint Mary's in the Atlantic conference semi-final Tuesday night.

Alberta has 13 CIS banners hanging from the rafters of Clare Drake Arena, which will undoubtedly be marked by a wild atmosphere yet again this weekend. Calgary is still searching for their first University Cup, and last participated in the dance in 1999-2000 as a conference wild-card.

Calgary sports a 2-3-1 record against Alberta this season, getting their two wins in a rare home-and-home sweep of the Bears in January. The Dinos' victory at Clare Drake snapped a losing streak in Alberta's barn that spanned back to October 2006, which only boosts confidence heading there this weekend.

Dustin Butler was phenomenal in net for Calgary against Saskatchewan this past weekend, allowing only one goal in a clutch 31 save performance in game three on Sunday, as well as two goals each in the first two games. His playoff performance comes as no surprise to the Dinos and their followers, who have watched the third year netminder set conference lows with a 2.12 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage in a career year.

Reid Jorgensen and Brock Nixon lead the Dinos with seven assists in the postseason, with Nixon potting two all-important ones in the deciding game on Tuesday. Aaron Richards and Jerrid Sauer, who typically found the score-sheet for the Dinos this past season, had two goals apiece in the three games.

Veteran forward Jevon Desautels picked a great time to find his scoring touch, scoring a couple of key goals as well over the playoffs, while rookie defenceman Kodie Curran also posted two.

Alberta's Kurtis Mucha was made to look unstoppable between the pipes against Manitoba last weekend, letting in only one goal on 50 shots thrown his way. Mucha played 18 games in the regular season, posting a 2.45 GAA and stopping 91% of his shots.

Derek Ryan and Chad Klassen, who led Canada West by a large margin in scoring with 47 and 46 points respectively, lead the Bears strong offensive attack, while Sean Ringrose and Eric Hunter are hardly forwards to forget about.

Alberta rookie blue-liner Jesse Craige was one point shy of the Canada West lead in scoring by a defenceman, trailing only Calgary's Cory Pritz, who has settled in as a premier player for Calgary in his second year.

The two teams will kick off their series on Friday night at Clare Drake Arena, with game two and three set for Saturday and Sunday (if necessary). Puck drops at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, with face-off for the rubber match slated for 7 p.m. Sunday evening.

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