University of Saskatchewan Huskies forward Zane Franklin leads the Canada West conference in points and assists this season. (Josh Schaefer/Huskie Athletics/GetMyPhoto.ca ) 

By Katie Brickman-Young

Huskies forward plays key role for men’s team

Franklin leads Canada West

Jan 21, 2022 | 10:21 AM

Zane Franklin enjoys being the sparkplug type of player.

The first-year University of Huskies forward is having himself a season so far – he leads the Canada West men’s statistics in points (23) and assists (18).

“It’s been really good. I didn’t know what to expect when coming into a new league and team, but it has turned out to be really good,” said Franklin. “From a team standpoint and an individual standpoint … there isn’t a lot to complain about.”

Franklin joined the Huskies after a solid Western Hockey League (WHL) career and a full season with the Allen Americans in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL).

The transition to USports hasn’t been too difficult for the Marwayne, Alta. product, except for some of the changes to the rules – no fighting – in particular.

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“I did know a couple guys before coming to the UofS and that made it a lot easier, but the transition from junior to here hasn’t been bad. There are some rules that took a while … the no fighting rule has been harder to remember,” said Franklin. “Nothing has really caught me off-guard. It’s really competitive and tight-checking games.”

This season, Franklin has been paired with third-year forward Donovan Neuls and second-year forward Justin Ball on the top line for the Huskies. The trio was put together by Huskies head coach Mike Babcock in pre-season and the line has consistently played together.

“Right when I got here, we were put together. We’ve just been building off that,” said Franklin. “Donny is a smart centre, and he makes it easy to play. Justin has been awesome and a leading goal scorer. It is always good to play with those two guys.”

The line had early chemistry and so far, have combined for 51 points this season.

“In hockey, some things just click. You play with guys, and you know right away that things just work out. We watch video together and Babcock is always giving us stuff to work on,” he said. “We are all having a good year and the chemistry we’ve had has been awesome. We want to go out there and be one of the top lines and we’ve done that so far.”

Babcock has sung the praises of Franklin multiple times this season, even sharing that he should strive to be the best player on the ice every game.

“Franky can be the best player. We need him to be the best player every night,” said Babcock earlier this season. “There should be a battle between him and (Connor) Hobbs every night to be the best player.”

Growing up, Franklin liked players like Boston Bruins’ forward Brad Marchand and Dallas Stars’ captain Jamie Benn. He tries to emulate Marchand’s game on the ice, playing tough, creating energy, and sticking up for his teammates.

“That’s a good description of me … a little sparkplug. It was easier to be a sparkplug in junior with the fighting, as that was part of my game,” he said. “That was the biggest adjustment … still bring that energy, but in different ways. I think that’s just being physical and those rules never change. Making those hits when they are there and finishing on the forecheck. I think that is an easy way to create energy. I am not one to shy away from scrums after the whistle and I think the boys feed off that.”

Franklin has created a lot of scoring opportunities for his teammates this season, including five assists last weekend in the 11-3 victory over the University of Regina Cougars. That performance earned him the Canada West men’s hockey player of the week honour.

“There has been time this year where guys have told me I need to shoot more, but it is always nice when you set a guy up – everyone is feeling good after that,” said Franklin on his assists. “I actually found out I got that honour on my Twitter feed. It was pretty cool since there are so many great athletes.”

It is an important weekend on tap for Franklin and the Huskies – as they welcome the University of Alberta Golden Bears to Merlis Belsher Place tonight and Saturday evening. The teams are separated by just one point, with Saskatchewan sitting in second place in the conference.

“We are focused on ourselves, but we know it is going to be a competitive, playoff-like game,” said Franklin. “This will be a good test for our team as they are one of the top teams in the league and this is a lot of points to be made up. This late in the season, those points are almost double. It will be good to create some separation between us.”

The games will once again be held without spectators, but fans can listen to the game live on the HuskieFAN app or huskiefan.ca.