The Battlefords AAA Stars won both of their games last weekend and still have not lost a game in 2014.
The Stars traveled to St. Walburg to take on the Beardy's Blackhawks as part of SaskEnergy Hockey Weekend Saturday. Ryan Rewerts stopped all 15 shots as the Stars beat the Blackhawks 6-0.
Josh LaFramboise opened the scoring with 2:34 to play in the first period. He carried the puck over the blue line, crossed in front of the net and snapped it off the post and past Blackhawks goaltender Kyle Rahier. The Stars didn't give the Blackhawks a chance to breath as Bryce Neufeld scored 12 seconds later to put the Stars up 2-0 after the first.
In the second, Stars forward Kaleb Dahlgren made a nice play with his glove to knock the puck down. He took it across the net and beat Rahier with a low backhand shot with 1:49 left to play in the second.
The Stars continued to pile on the offence in the third. LaFramboise scored his second goal of the game on the power play with 8:32 left. Spencer Bast's shot was saved and directed to the faceoff circle. LaFramboise was waiting and scored underneath Rahier's arm. LaFramboise completed his hat trick four minutes later.
With 1:42 left, Graham Gove pressured the Blackhawks defence. Gove stole the puck and went into the Blackhawks' zone shorthanded. Rahier stopped his first shot, but Gove was able to pot the rebound.
Rewerts was never challenged in the game while picking up his 15th win and second shutout of the season. Rahier stopped 44 shots in a losing effort for the Blackhawks. It was his 10th loss of the season.
The Stars returned home to the Civic Centre Sunday afternoon. LaFramboise recorded his second straight hat trick to lead Battlefords to a 5-1 win over the Saskatoon Contacts.
It was a strange start to the game as the Contacts were penalized for not leaving the ice fast enough before the opening faceoff.
Later in the first, LaFramboise scored on the power play to open the scoring five minutes into the period. He scored again with eight minutes left to put the Stars up 2-0. The Stars outshot the Contacts 10-2 in the first 14 minutes of the frame.
The Contacts applied some pressure near the end of the period. Stars goaltender Rylan Toth was able to make a couple of tough saves after a scramble in front of his net.
In the second, Saskatoon forward Kade Kehoe was given an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for shooting the puck at Toth after the whistle. He was heard telling the referee that he shot the puck as the whistle blew on his way to the penalty box.
The rough stuff continued after the whistle. During a scrum in front of Toth, Battlefords defenceman Nicholas Riemer was given a two-minute minor for roughing. In the same scrum, two Saskatoon players were also given penalties. Kehoe was sent off for roughing and Kobe Kindrachuk was given a double minor for head contact.
During the ensuing Stars power play, Mason Benning's shot from the point beat Contacts goaltender Brock Hamm through traffic in front of the net to give the Stars a 3-0 lead.
With 4:03 to play in the period, Saskatoon forward Jordan Wall's shot appeared to be stopped by Toth and the referee blew the play dead quickly. After the whistle, the puck trickled through Toth's pads and just past the goal line. Because the referee blew his whistle, the goal didn't count.
The Contacts got on the scoreboard 11 seconds after the disallowed goal. Garrett Pilon collected a rebound and scored through Toth's five-hole.
Battlefords restored their three-goal lead with 1:32 left in the second. Josh Bly made a nice pass to LaFramboise in the slot, who quickly snapped it over Hamm's glove into the top corner to complete his hat trick.
The Stars concluded their scoring with eight minutes left in the game. LaFramboise skated up the wing and centred for Alex Pernitsky, who beat Hamm into the top of the net.
After the final whistle, Brayden Uhrich was given a 10-minute misconduct for unsportsmanlike conduct. He was heard screaming at the referee about a check near the end of the game. The referee heard enough and sent him to the locker room before the handshakes.
Toth stopped 32 shots to earn his eighth win of the season. Hamm lost his 13th game while making 31 saves.
Battlefords (23-6-4-1) have won seven straight games and sit second in the SMAAAHL with 51 points, one point behind the Notre Dame Argos.
The Stars' next game is Thursday in Prince Albert against the Mintos. Puck drop is 7 p.m. Battlefords return home to play the Saskatoon Blazers Jan. 29. Game time is 7 p.m. at the Civic Centre.
