The Battlefords North Stars played a pair of road games on the weekend, coming home with one victory and the lone similarity in the two games was a third period collapse.
The North Stars opened the weekend series in Yorkton to take on the Terriers. Going in with a 1-4 record on the season, a pair of victories would have been a huge boost for the North Stars.
The first period ended with zeros, but the North Stars outshot Yorkton 10-8 in the frame. Three pucks beat netminder Casey Parker in the second, but the North Stars had two goals of their own to keep it close. Igor Leonenko, the SJHL rookie, scored his fourth of the season and Blake Young netted his third.
It was a winnable game going into the third and final period, but Yorkton ran away with it. The Terriers scored four times on only eight shots, leaving the North Stars no chance. A goal from Tanner Quinn halfway through the frame was the only bright spot for the North Stars, who fell to 1-5 with the 7-3 loss.
The North Stars had a better outcome in game two Saturday night in Melville against the Millionaires, but it was still far from picture perfect.
Newcomer Alex Bechtold scored his first as a North Star in the first period just days after being acquired by the club to give his team a 1-0 lead going into the second period. Latrell Charleson and Young each put up goals in the second. Goaltender Darren Martin was beat once by Melville, but a North Stars win was within reach as the team had a 3-1 lead with 20 minutes left to play.
Once again, though, the North Stars were hurt by a third-period rally. The Millionaires scored three goals and Kyle Schmidt was the only North Star who was able to tickle the twine, sending the game to overtime.
The extra frame decided nothing and that meant the game came down to a shootout.
With a 1-6 record staring the team down, Martin stepped up in a big way for the North Stars, stopping all five shooters he faced. The first four North Stars weren't able to get a puck past Isaiah Piett at the other end, until Young capped off his big weekend with the game winner.
The victory was much needed for the North Stars, who now sit third place in the Kramer Division at two wins and five losses. They trail Humboldt, 3-3, and Kindersley, 4-1, in the standings through the first two weeks of the season.
The next game for the North Stars is Oct. 11 when they go to Nipawin and they're back at home Oct. 19 to take on division rival Kindersley.
