After taking some time to celebrate their first Canalta Cup in 17 years, the Battlefords North Stars were back on the ice this week ahead of their next challenge.
The 2017 Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League champions had three days of practice at the Don Ross Arena this week before hitting the road Thursday morning as they travel to Penticton, B.C. to compete in the Western Canada Cup.
“Obviously you enjoy the moment when it happens after winning the league, but now our focus is strictly on Penticton,” forward Connor Logan said.
“We’ve put the SJHL championship behind us and now we’re prepared for the Western Canada Cup with the objective of winning the tournament.”
While the North Stars went a perfect 12-0 in the playoffs and they haven’t lost a game since a 3-1 setback on the road to the Nipawin Hawks on Feb. 24, the team knows that the competition levels will be turned up a few notches as they take on some of the top Junior A teams in Canada.
“We’re playing four games in a short period of time and we know that it’s going to be a battle with four really good teams,” head coach and general manager Nate Bedford said.
“Right now, our major focus is on being mentally and physically ready for the tournament, as it’s going to be a grind.”
The North Stars will open up their tournament schedule Saturday at 8 p.m., when they’ll go up against the host Penticton Vees of the British Columbia Hockey League, who won the league championship with a Game 7 overtime triumph Tuesday night.
“I’m really excited about playing them in their first game,” forward Jared Blaquiere said.
“To be honest, when I came into Junior A with La Ronge a couple of years ago, it was a dream of mine to play against the Vees one day. They are a really great organization and they have had a lot of great players that have gone on to play in the pros.”
There won’t be a ton of rest for the North Stars after that game, as they’ll square off with the Manitoba Junior Hockey League champion Portage Terriers at 3 p.m. Sunday.
“They’ve really been coming up the standings and getting better as the season has gone on,” Bedford said.
“Obviously we don’t know what each team will be doing with their game plans to face us, but we’re not going to change anything on our end. Having a great team defence is our main goal as always.”
After taking Monday off, the North Stars third game of the tournament will be at 3 p.m. Tuesday against the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s Brooks Bandits, who are the top ranked team in the country and are coming off a second straight league title.
“They are a very skilled team that moves the puck quickly,” said forward Keaton Holinaty, who played against the Bandits for two seasons as a member of the Drumheller Dragons.
“They are a team that takes advantage of their opportunities, so we’ll have to limit our mistakes as much as we can against them.”
The North Stars final round-robin contest will be at 3 p.m. Thursday when they’ll go up against the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs, who lost the league final to the Vees.
“The teams are a little different from when I played them last year (as a member of the Prince George Spruce Kings) but Chilliwack and Penticton both bring a lot of skill to the table,” forward Connor Logan said.
“They both have pretty good offences so it will be important for us to shut them down.”
With two berths at the RBC Cup up for grabs, the North Stars know it will take a team effort to have an chance to play for a national championship in Cobourg, Ont. in a couple of weeks.
“I think our depth will be a huge asset,” forward Ben Allen said. “We have the skill obviously to complete, but with how strong our lineup is, we know that anyone can step up at any given time when called upon.
“I think we’re all going out there to have as much fun as we can in that environment and try to live in the moment. If we do all the little things right, we have a chance to go far.”
The top four teams in the round-robin will advance into the playoffs on Saturday, May 6, with the first and second place teams going head-to-head for the tournament title.
The loser of that game will be back action Sunday, May 7 against the winner of Saturday’s matchup between the third and fourth place teams for the second berth in the RBC Cup.
