The Melfort Mustangs continue to get better and the results are starting to follow as they go into the Christmas break as the winners of three of their last four games.
The Mustangs enjoyed a fantastic week on the ice taking two of three games as they got past the Melville Millionaires 2-1 in Melville on Dec. 13 and the Humboldt Broncos 5-1 in Humboldt on Dec. 17, while losing to the Yorkton Terriers 3-2 on Dec. 14.
Defense was the key to the Mustangs success this week, said Trevor Blevins, the head coach.
“Away from the puck, we did a great job picking players up in all three zones and I thought it was our best week defensively.”
Blevins was particularly impressed with the Mustangs’ effort in their final game of the week in Humboldt as they knocked off the Broncos for the first time in six tries.
“Full credit to our guys to mentally to prepare for that one last game before Christmas on the road. It said a lot about the leadership in our dressing room to be able to focus in for 60 minutes and really I thought we were the much better team.”
Thanks to their 2-1 week, the Mustangs improve their record to 15-15-1-4 on the season and move into seventh in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League standings, just six points behind the Broncos for fourth, with two games in hand.
After a slow start to the season, Blevins said he is pleased to see his team get back to .500 by the Christmas break.
“I’m pretty happy with where we’re at in our progression but more so we see improvement not only team-wise but individually with all the players. So that’s satisfying going into the break but also really excited for the second half to make a push into playoffs.”
With the Mustangs going into the break on a high note, Blevins said he is not concerned that the break will affect the momentum they have built up, noting that he is not worried about wins and losses but about the process.
“It’s more about improvement on a daily basis, focus in on the little things and making sure everyone’s taking small steps to improve... we’re happy with our progression and we just want that to continue.”
Looking ahead the Mustangs receive a well-deserved 13-day break before returning to action Dec. 30 and 31 for a home-and-home series against the Nipawin Hawks starting in Melfort.
After the break, Blevins said the first couple of practices are going to be very important for the team so they can shake the rust off.
“Going into those games obviously it’s a huge rivalry... we’re always excited when Nipawin is a home-and-home and we’ll treat it like a playoff atmosphere, I’m sure.”
