The Battlefords AAA Stars didn’t have the results they wanted in their last games before Christmas.
However, the way they performed against one of the top teams in the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League has them excited for the remainder of the season.
The Stars took on the league-leading Regina Pat Canadians in a pair of games at the Civic Centre on Dec. 17 and 18, where they dropped 4-1 and 4-3 decisions.
“The guys showed a lot of heart and we can build on that in the new year,” Stars head coach Jean Fauchon said.
“We did get into some penalty trouble and Regina was able to capitalize on the power play, but we showed that we could play with Regina during the weekend.”
The first meeting between the two sides was a lopsided one in the shots department, as the Pat Canadians dominated the Stars by a 57-18 margin.
“Regina is a very skilled team and they are so good defensively, which allows them to create a lot of offence,” Fauchon said.
“We did get out shot badly but it wasn’t as out of hand as it looked. It was a little lopsided due to some power plays, but we could play with them when we were at even strength. However, when we took penalties, they made us pay for it.”
Matthew Flodell had the lone goal for the Stars while Lance Alm made 53 saves.
Ben Solomon and Matthew Chekay led the way for the Pat Canadians on offence with a goal and an assist.
Chase Nameth and Preston Brodziak had the other goals for the visitors, while Nathan Moore turned aside 17 shots.
Despite being outshot 46-18 in the rematch a day later, the Stars were able to erase a 2-0 deficit in the second period and forced the Pat Canadians to pull starting netminder Dean McNabb.
After both teams traded goals early in the third frame, Tylor Ludwar put the visitors out in front for good with 15 minutes to go, which led the Stars to swap out goaltender Joseph Young in favour of Alm for the final minutes.
“Joe was playing really well for us, but I wanted to shake things up a bit,” Fauchon said. “Lance did a good job in the last 15 minutes, but we just weren’t able to get anything going on offence to tie it up.
“Their goalie was playing really well and I was surprised to see him get pulled after we tied it, but I think they were looking to do the same thing as we did.”
Jaden Shewchuk and Adam Beckman had a goal and an assist each for the Stars, with the other goal coming from Luke Reid.
Tyler Lees paced the Pat Canadians on offence with a goal and assist, while Randen Schmidt and Carson Denomie also found the back of the net.
Thanks to a 5-3 record in December, the Stars now have an 11-4-2 record on the season and are tied for the eighth and final playoff spot in the SMAAAHL standings with the Tisdale Trojans.
“Everything that we have worked on in the last couple of months has really started to come together,” Fauchon said.
“We’ve been fortunate enough to get a number of big victories and the guys have battled hard. I’m hoping to see more of the same when we come back in January.”
The Stars will be on the road for four games to start the new year, with their first contest taking place on Jan. 5 against the Swift Current Legionnaires.
They will return to the Civic Centre on Jan. 15 for a match up with the Notre Dame Hounds.
