Memorial Cup: What we learned

The Memorial Cup, a four-team round-robin tournament to determine the champion of the Canadian Hockey League, features the winners of the Ontario Hockey League (Hamilton Bulldogs), Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (Acadie-Bathurst Titan) and Western Hockey League (Swift Current Broncos), and the host Regina Pats of the WHL. The event is being held at Brandt Center in Regina, Saskatchewan from May 18-27 and features several NHL-drafted prospects and some eligible for the 2018 NHL Draft.

In the sixth game of the Memorial Cup, Regina defeated Swift Current 6-5 on Wednesday.
Here are three things we learned on the sixth day:

1. Hats off for Henry

Regina forward Nick Henry, a fourth-round pick (No. 94) of the Colorado Avalanche in the 2017 NHL Draft, had the first hat trick of the Memorial Cup. He scored a power-play goal at 7:36 of the first period to give the Pats a 1-0 lead, finished a 2-on-1 rush for a shorthanded goal to make it 3-1 at 16:09 of the second period and scored an even-strength goal with 2:25 left in the second to make it 4-2.
It took Henry 40 minutes to match the three goals he scored in Regina's seven games in the WHL playoffs. He has a Memorial Cup-high five goals in three games.

2. Steel continues to shine

Forward Sam Steel tied a Memorial Cup record with five assists, including the primary assist on Regina's first four goals, and leads the Memorial Cup with 11 points (one goal, 10 assists) in three games.
Selected by the Anaheim Ducks with the No. 30 pick of the 2016 NHL Draft, Steel, 20, could be in line for a top-six spot in Anaheim next season.
Regina coach John Paddock said Steel has a similar style to Philadelphia Flyers forward Claude Giroux, who Paddock coached in the American Hockey League in 2008-09.
"[Steel] is the most complete, all-around forward in the [WHL]," Paddock told Sportsnet.
The other players with five assists in a Memorial Cup game are Prince Albert's Dan Hodgson in 1985 and Halifax's Jonathan Drouin in 2013.

3. Regina to semifinal, Swift Current eliminated

Regina next plays Hamilton in the semifinal Friday. It's a rematch of the tournament opener, which Regina won 3-2 when Henry scored with 33 seconds remaining in the third period.
The winner will play Acadie-Bathurst in the championship game Sunday.
The loss eliminated Swift Current from title contention. The WHL champions went 0-3. They defeated Regina in seven games in the first round of the WHL playoffs.
"It's a special feeling right now," Henry told the Memorial Cup website. "They ended our season. It was nice to get some revenge here."
Swift Current forward Glenn Gawdin (Calgary Flames) had two goals, an assist and a team-high seven shots on goal Wednesday despite playing with a separated shoulder, according to coach Manny Viveiros. Swift Current was without forward Tyler Steenbergen (Arizona Coyotes), their third-leading scorer in the WHL playoffs, who sustained a concussion against Acadie-Bathurst on Saturday.

2018 Memorial Cup schedule

May 18: Regina 3, Hamilton 2
May 19: Acadie-Bathurst 4, Swift Current 3 (OT)
May 20: Acadie-Bathurst 8, Regina 6
May 21: Hamilton 2, Swift Current 1
May 22: Hamilton 3, Acadie-Bathurst 2
May 23: Regina 6, Swift Current 5
May 25: Semifinal: Regina vs. Hamilton (10 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, TVAS)
May 27: Final: Acadie-Bathurst vs. Regina/Hamilton winner (7 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, TVAS)