EDMONTON - A return to normal is in high demand these days, and for fans of Golden Bears hockey nothing is more normal than watching the team compete in the Canada West playoffs come springtime.

Clare Drake Arena will see host to the first Bears postseason game in over two years when Alberta hosts a best-of-three semifinal series against their bitter rivals, the University of Calgary Dinos.

The Bears (16-3-1) were able to clinch a first-round bye with a scorching tail-end to their season, going 13-1-0 in their last 14 games to surpass the UBC Thunderbirds for the regular season title. The only loss in that frame? A January 3-1 victory for the Dinos in Edmonton.

Calgary (12-7-1, playoffs 2-1) enters the series on a roll as well, winning key late season games against the Thunderbirds, the Mount Royal Cougars, and a quarterfinal series win against the Saskatchewan Huskies.

This is the latest installment of a rivalry that predates the formation of the Canada West conference. Friday's Game 1 will be the first playoff matchup since a semifinal sweep for the Bears in the 2019 CW playoffs. The Golden Bears enter the series riding a 16-series win streak over Calgary, having won 32-straight playoff games over Calgary. 

The last Dino playoff series win came back in the 1996 Division Final. 

The Golden Bears beat the Dinos in the season series 2-1, which featured high scoring and entertaining games throughout. Six goals on average were scored in games between the two this season, with Alberta outscoring the Dinos overall 12-7.

Alberta boasts not only the best offence in the conference, but across the nation. Their 4.65 goals-per-game mark is tops across all U SPORTS competitions helping lead them to their #2 national ranking.

First-team all-rookie forward Gary Haden leads an exceptionally deep scoring group, one that saw fourteen players reach double-digits in point totals. Haden recorded a team high of 21 points, flanked by fellow first-years in Eric Florchuk and Josh Prokop, who recorded 20.

They have been remarkable on the defensive side as well. Captain Clayton Kirichenko, recently named a CW first-team all-star, leads a defensive unit that tops the CW and places fourth nationally in goals against per game.

Part of that achievement is also due to the quality between the pipes for the Bears this season. The tandem of third-year Taz Burman and first-year Nick Schneider rank first and second respectively in goals against average across the CW.

Calgary has been solid on both ends of the ice this season, ranking fifth in the CW in goals for and against per game. They are led by captain Ryan Gagnon, fellow first-team all-star, and second-year Kaden Elder who paces the team with 10 goals.

Rookie Dinos goalie Carl Stankowski earned first-team all-rookie designation as a part of a 4-3-0 campaign that included a 2.73 goals against average. Second-year Brodan Salmond rounds out an effective goaltender room in Calgary.

Special teams will be a focal point for both teams in this series. The teams are separated by just a single percentage point on the powerplay, with Alberta converting 26.6% to Calgary's 25.6%. Elder ranks second across all U SPORTS competitions with six powerplay goals. The Bears and Dinos rank third and fifth respectively in penalty kill percentage in the CW.