The Estevan Apex Bruins are in a hole in their second-round midget AA provincial series after losing 5-2 to the Notre Dame Argos on Wednesday.
The Bruins, who have fallen to fourth place in the South Saskatchewan Minor Hockey League, fell behind 2-1 to the sixth-place Argos after the first period and trailed for the rest of the game.
Ryan Frehlick struck first for the Bruins 51 seconds into the game, but the Argos would counter with two late-period goals from Ben Duperreault and Patrick Normandeau.
The teams swapped goals early in the second with Notre Dame's Tyler Aberle and Estevan's Zach Paxman scoring, but a Brett Radford goal gave the Argos a 4-2 lead after two periods.
Duperreault would add his second of the night on a power play early in the third, a goal that could prove crucial as the Bruins now trail by three entering Game 2 on Friday. That game starts at 8:15 p.m. at Spectra Place.
Meanwhile, the Apex Bruins (14-9-5) also struggled in regular season play, losing two of three games on the road.
The Bruins did earn a 5-3 win over the Prairie Storm on Monday night, with Dylan Herzberg's hat trick and assist leading the way.
On Saturday, the Bruins lost 9-5 to the first-place Swift Current Hurricanes. Swift Current took a 5-1 lead after the first period and held on despite four more Estevan goals.
The Bruins had the only goal of the second period and Swift Current outscored them 4-3 in the third. Herzberg scored twice for the visitors, with Frehlick, Paxman and Travis Holma also scoring for the Bruins.
Brandon Gauthier led the Hurricanes with three goals and an assist. Hayden Johnston, George Hudec, Thomas Hammerton, Phllip Gossard, Jayden Roosen and Dalton Menke had their other goals. Shots on goal were 28-24 for Estevan.
On Friday, the Bruins lost 6-5 to the 13th-place Moose Jaw Warriors. The teams traded leads all game, but Moose Jaw's Bryton Beattie would score the winner with 2:54 remaining on a power play.
The contest was tied 2-2 after one period and 3-3 after two. The Warriors scored twice in the first half of the third, but the Bruins later matched that with a pair of goals five minutes apart.
Kaelum Bieber, Paxman, Herzberg, Steven Henderson and Frehlick had the Estevan goals. Brandin Cannon (2), Braydon Delorme, Ty Anderson and Riley Cannon were the other Warrior scorers.
In regular season action, the Bruins host Yorkton on Saturday (8:15 p.m., Spectra Place) and visit Melville on Sunday.
