The Estevan Bruins wrapped up the 2019-20 regular season Saturday night with a 6-4 loss to the Weyburn Red Wings at Affinity Place.
After Brady Nicholas scored on a power play for the Bruins six minutes into the first period, the Red Wings scored five times in an 8 1/2-minute span to lead 5-1 after the first period. Shayde Peterson and Dace Prymak scored 18 seconds apart on the Red Wings first two shots of the game to take a 2-1 lead.
The Bruins appeared they might get some momentum after killing off an extended two-man advantage by the Red Wings, but then Prymak, Connor Stephenson and Palmer Sinclair scored just over two minutes apart to give the Wings the 5-1 advantage after one.
Isaiah Thomas scored 21 seconds into the second for the Bruins, but Jake Misskey’s goal seven minutes later restored Weyburn’s four-goal lead.
It remained a 6-2 game until the 9:26 mark of the third, when Griffin Asham-Moroz scored to leave the Bruins down three, and Tylor Ludwar scored 39 seconds later on a dump-in that eluded Weyburn goalie Douglas Wakelyn.
The Bruins would hit a couple of posts in the final minute, and wouldn’t get any closer than two.
Keenan Rancier gave up the first five goals of the game on 12 shots on goal. Randy Cooke came in and allowed one goal on 20 shots.
Weyburn won despite having just 15 players dressed, and starting their backup goalie.
The loss ended the Bruins five-game winning streak – their third five-game winning streak since the end of the Christmas break.
A night earlier, the Bruins dominated the Red Wings in a 4-1 win in a game that unravelled in the third period. It was a scoreless game until the 13:08 mark of the second period, when Cody Davis scored to put the Bruins in front. Tyson Manz scored less than five minutes later to put the Bruins up two.
Kade McMiillen's goal 29 seconds into the third gave Estevan a 3-0 lead. Mathieu Belanger tallied less than three minutes late for Weyburn, but Davis notched his second of the game midway through the third to restore Estevan's lead.
It would have been more lopsided if not for the efforts of Weyburn goalie Joseph Young, who made 33 saves for the Red Wings, but several were spectacular, especially in the third period when the Bruins outshot the Red Wings 16-5.
Cooke had 13 stops for the Bruins.
Tensions boiled over in the third period. After a relatively tame opening 40 minutes, with just eight minor penalties - five for Weyburn, three for Estevan - the two teams combined for 119 minutes in the final frame. All of those penalties came in the final 12 minutes, thanks to a couple of fights and a number of other incidents.
The Bruins will finish sixth in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League's regular season standings, and will play either the Yorkton Terriers or the Melfort Mustangs in the first round of the playoffs. They won’t know their opponent until after Monday night’s game between Melfort and the Flin Flon Bombers.
Regardless of the opponent, Game 1 is slated to be played Friday night.
