Eighteen goals for and 15 goals against added up to three straight road wins for the Estevan Power Dodge Bruins on the weekend.
The Bruins (14-3-0-1) moved into the top spot in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) standings on Sunday night after racking up a 5-4 win over the La Ronge Ice Wolves (2-13-0-2) at Mel Hegland Arena on Friday, a 5-4 shootout victory against the Flin Flon Bombers (8-6-2-2) at Whitney Forum the next evening and an 8-7 overtime barnburner versus the Melfort Mustangs (5-10-1-2) at Northern Lights Palace on Devil's Night.
“Our depth was good and our team was firing on all cylinders offensively,” said Chris Lewgood, head coach and general manager of the Bruins. “We played an open style of game and when you don't have last change you can't protect against the opposition's top lines and as a result we were able to outgun the other teams.”
Bruins goaltender Curtis Meger made 39 saves in his first start of the season and nine different skaters picked up at least one point in the team's opening tilt against the SJHL's last place Ice Wolves.
Nic Tallarico was between the pipes in Manitoba stopping 45 Bombers' shots including Brandon Lesko, Greyson Reitmeier and Jason Lavallee in the shootout. After Flin Flon netminder Zac Robidoux foiled SJHL leading goal scorer Kaelan Holt, Bruins centre Jason Miller scored the winner in the extra frame.
Michael McChesney got the action off to a fast start in Melfort lighting the lamp 27 seconds into the first period. Both teams went back and forth throughout the contest with each club notching two goals in the opening frame, two goals in the middle stanza and three goals in the final 20 minutes including markers by Mustang forwards Tanner Zentner and Miles Warkentine in the last 43 seconds to force overtime. Josh Rieger, who leads all SJHL defencemen in scoring with four goals and 19 points, found the back of Melfort's net 1:46 into the fourth period.
“We put on 1,800 kilometres this weekend and we've won six games in a row,” said Lewgood. “We're very excited about where we're at and obviously as every team does we've got areas we need to improve on, but at the end of the day we're more than satisfied.”
Bruins notes...
Bruins leading scorer Matt McNeil has been awarded the SJHL Player of the Week honours after the right wing scored four goals and recorded 10 points in the past four games.
Captain Lynnden Pastachak is on a 14-game point streak and has recorded at least one point in every game he's played this season except for a Sept. 24 match against the Battlefords North Stars when the gritty right wing was ejected for checking from behind 5:45 into the first period.
Goaltender Nathan Alalouf is currently sidelined with a concussion he sustained against the Yorkton Terriers on Oct. 25. Alalouf has not been cleared for practice and it is unknown when he'll be able to return to action.
The Bruins traded 18-year-old defenceman Zach Sherburne to the Alberta Junior Hockey League's Lloydminster Bobcats for future considerations on Oct. 25. Sherburne appeared in 13 games for the Bruins this season recording one goal and five points.
