Wings Bomb Bombers!

The Weyburn Red Wings put together one of their most solid efforts of the season and were rewarded with a big 4-0 victory over the Flin Flon Bombers on Friday night at the Colosseum. AJ Whiffen was not overly busy in the Weyburn goal but made the saves when called upon as he picked up the shutout, making 25 saves. Josh Bray had Brayden Nargang each had big nights as Bray had the hat trick, while Nargang had a goal and two assists. Kyle Haines and Mick Pawlyshyn added assists for the Wings. The Wings also played a solid defensive game and were very sound on the penalty kill, including killing off a couple of 5 on 3 disadvantages. This is no easy task as they shut down the big line of Pierre-Luc Boucher, Dennis Kubat and Reid MacLeod. Carsen Chubak made the start for the Bombers and allowed all four goals on 22 shots before making way for Calvin Bartel early in the third. Bartel only faced 5 shots in the final 17 minutes of the third period. With the win, the Wings grab a share of second place as they move to 10-6-1-1 for 22 points and are now tied with the Estevan Bruins. The Bombers drop to 9-7-0-1 but remain in second place in the Itech Conference.

In Wilcox, the Notre Dame Hounds picked up their second straight win, a 3-1 victory over the Nipawin Hawks. Rylan Schwartz and Eddie Gale each had a goal and an assist to pace the Hounds. Kyle Ireland scored the eventual game winner for Notre Dame in the first period. Mark Roper, Chris Bratina, Blake Peake and Tanner Vandesype added assists for the Hounds. Dean Prpick scored the lone goal for the Hawks with assists going to Kyle Cowan and Adam Schwark. Mark Currie picked up the win for the Hounds as he stopped 22 of 23 shots. Jesse McDonald made his first start of the season for the Hawks and stopped 33 shots. The Hounds improve to 4-14-1-0 while the Hawks drop to 7-6-0-1.

In Yorkton, the Terriers upset the Itech leading Humboldt Broncos, 5-2. Kyle Block paced the Terriers with two goals. Scott Jackson added a goal (empty netter) and assist for Yorkton. Bryan Hull and Logan Dew had the other Terrier goals. Carter Smith, Chris Cook and Jock Sutter also had assists for the Terriers. Jordan Schindel and Scott Schroeder replied for the Broncos with assists going to Brayden Klimosko, Laurent Benjamin and Justin Stoski. Lynden Sammartino rebounded from a couple of tough starts to make 32 saves for the victory. Taylor Nelson had a tough night as he only stopped 16 Terrier shots. With the win, the Terriers improve to 9-7-1-2 for 21 points, one point back of the Red Wings and Bruins for second. The Broncos are now 13-3-0-0 and despite the loss still have a big lead over second place Flin Flon.

Finally, in Melfort, the Mustangs continue to win since the acquisition of Ilia Ejov as they doubled up the Kindersley Klippers 6-3. Taylor Watt continued his torrid pace as he scored two goals and added two assists. Clint Olson added two goals while Gary Childerhose had a goal and an assist. Donavon Chow added a short handed goal for the Mustangs. Brady Gordon added three assists from the point. Ryan Sawka scored twice for the Klippers. Kirk Pearce added a goal and an assist while Justin Perreaux and Matt Sawa each had two assists. Ejov made 27 saves to earn his third consecutive victory. Ryan Niesnzer allowed all six goals before being pulled just 24 seconds into the third in favor of Randy Willis. The Mustangs sit third in the Itech with a record of 9-7-0-0. The Klippers are firmly entrenched in fifth in the Sherwood with a record of 8-7-0-1.

Tonight's Three Stars:

* Josh Bray - Weyburn Red Wings (3 goals)
** Taylor Watt - Melfort Mustangs (4 point night)
*** Lynden Sammartino - Yorkton Terriers (32 saves for win over Humboldt)

Honorable Mentions - Rylan Schwartz (Notre Dame), Brayden Nargang (Weyburn), AJ Whiffen (Weyburn), Kyle Block (Yorkton), Clint Olson (Melfort)

Reminder - The Red Wings face the Notre Dame Hounds in Radville tomorrow afternoon at 3:00. This is a home game for the Hounds. As the game is being played in a non-SJHL arena, I am unsure if there will be online scoring available for that game. I will be sure to post a summary as soon as possible on my return to Weyburn tomorrow night. I should have something posted in the early evening tomorrow if all goes well.

- Brad M.