The Yorkton Terriers played only two Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League games this week, both at the Farrell Agencies Arena, both of them losses.
The Terriers record now sits at 15-13-0-1 for 31 points, fourth best in the Sherwood Conference. Weyburn leads the pack with 43 points, followed by Estevan with 35, and Melville with 33.
Notre Dame with 25, and Kindersley with 19 chase the fourth place Terriers.
Saturday the Bauer Conference-leading Battlefords North Stars visited Yorkton, leaving with a 3-0 victory.
Graham Hildebrant had the shut-out for the Stars facing only 21 shots.
Dawson MacAuley was in the Terrier nets for only his fifth start, allowing the three goals and actually lowering his goals against average to 4.33.
Kyle Hall, Tim Rollins and Woody Klassen scored for Battlefords.
A night later Estevan was in the city, and thanks to a late powerplay marker, took home a 4-3 win.
The teams traded first period goals, with the Bruins scoring the lone marker of the second frame, before the teams traded two apiece in the third.
The Bruins got the game winner at 19:44 of the final frame on a powerplay goal by Cole Olson.
Dylan Smith, Derek Whitehill and Tanner Froese also scored for Estevan against Terrier netminder Warren Shymko who allowed the four goals on only 16-shots.
Ryon Sookro, Brenden Poncelet and Nathan Murray responded with Terrier goals. Terrier head coach Trent Cassan said the team was tentative in the losses.
"I thought for whatever reason we weren't very strong on our sticks," he said.
While the Terriers were making good passes, Cassan noted "when they got in the right areas the puck would skitter off our sticks."
Sunday the powerplay was a difference too, with the Terriers managing only one with a man advantage, while the Bruins had three.
Cassan said the Terriers were moving the puck on the powerplay, but it was all around the outside, adding they would need to work on getting a player to the net.
As for allowing four goals on 16-shots, Cassan said at times the defence and goaltending has been the difference, and at times the offence, and Sunday the defence and goaltending may not have been on the top of its game, but that happens over the course of a season.
"I'm not concerned about either. It's just one of those things over a long year."
Up next
The Terriers have a two-game, mid-week, road swing, playing in Kindersley Wednesday and North Battleford Thursday.
The Terriers return to the Farrell Agencies Arena to host Notre Dame Sunday, then travel to Wilcox next Tuesday to again face the Hounds.
