Mintos, Bears, Timberjaks collect wins in opening weekend

“You never want to lose points in this league, so getting those first two wins is big for the group to kind of start building that confidence,” said Mintos head coach Tyson Dallman. “As you sit back and watch and rewatch the games and stuff, obviously there’s still some things that we need to work on and get to work and hammer out some of the details, but overall good weekend.”

Eight different Mintos found the back of the net in Saturday’s win with Sean Lavoie being the only multi-goal scorer in the contest. He also collected an assist to end the night with three points as Cooper Sawatzky also had three points in the form of a trio of assists. Meanwhile, netminder Cohen Kuntz picked up his first AAA win and shutout as he turned aside all 32 shots he faced.

During their rematch on Sunday, Madden Dell led the way for Prince Albert with a pair of goals and an assist as Caleb Philp and Ethan Janzen pitched in with a goal and an assist of their own. Kuntz was again in goal for the Mintos as he stood tall for the 38 save win.

For Notre Dame, Paul Abrametz, Alex Abbott, and Arlo Barclay were the goal scorers as Owen Light led with two assists.

The Mintos are back at home on Thursday as they renew their Highway 3 rivalry against the Tisdale Trojans at the Art Hauser Centre at 7 p.m.

Northern Bears earn split against Weyburn

The Prince Albert Raider Northern Bears managed to redeem themselves on Sunday afternoon after Weyburn spoiled their debut game in their new home arena at the Lake Country Co-op Leisure Centre.

Game one on Saturday night was a learning curve for the youthful Northern Bears, as they dropped their season opener 5-0 to a flying Gold Wings team. Taelah Schnurr led the scoring department with a four-point night (1G-3A) while Tila Boyd earned her second career AAA shutout with 27 saves.

Game two was more favourable for P.A. as they were in the driver’s seat from puck drop in a narrow 3-2 victory. Rookie Amelia Bernier potted her first career AAA goal just over 1:30 into the game and then assisted on Jersie Andersen’s marker just over 10 minutes later to give the Bears a 2-0 lead heading into the second.

Some mid-period penalty trouble ended up costing P.A. in the middle frame as Kahli Keen converted on the powerplay, before Londyn Hoffman scored just over a minute later to re-establish the two-goal lead entering the third.

There, the powerplay proved costly once again for the Black and Orange as Harbour Janz made it a one-goal game with under 12 minutes to play. The Gold Wings did have other opportunities with the man-advantage to score again later in the frame, however, Tess Kelly stood strong between the pipes for Prince Albert to give the Bears their first win of the season. Additionally, it was Kelly’s first win at the AAA level as she turned aside 29 of the 31 shots she faced.

“It was different,” said Northern Bears head coach Steve Young, noting it was their first time playing at their new home. “I thought our first game we played a little tentative, but the next day we were a way better team. I think the biggest thing that everyone – coaching staff and players – what everybody’s bought into is that we have to work hard. If we’re not going to work hard, we’re not going to get results and everybody’s pushing their way right now for sure.”

The Northern Bears are now preparing for their first road trip of the regular season as they head to Swift Current to battle the Wildcats for two games split between Saturday and Sunday.

Timberjaks pick up win in PJHL opening week

The Prince Albert Timberjaks are in the win column on the season after returning the favour against the Saskatoon Royals.

P.A. was on cruise control for their first win of the year, which saw them take down the Royals 6-2 at the Northern Regional Rec Centre on Saturday night. The win came after dropping the season opener 5-2 on Wednesday in Saskatoon.

Saturday saw the Timberjaks jump out to a 5-0 lead at one point in the third with Keethan Isbister, Trey Mudry, Cruz Stacey, and Brody Anderson finding the back of the net as Isbister scored twice. However, penalty trouble cost P.A. the shutout as Jake Bergman scored on the powerplay to get the Royals on the board. Isaiah Arnold added another goal two minutes later to continue the climb back, before Anderson’s second of the game put the final nail in the coffin as the Jaks took it, 6-2.

Isbister and Anderson both finished with four points on the night, as Stacey led the way with five (1G-4A). Jaxon Hozack picked up the win in goal for Prince Albert, making 21 saves for his first win at the Jr. B level in his first career start.

Following the win, the Jaks trekked south on Sunday afternoon to Martensville for a matinee against the Chiefs.

The Chiefs jumped out to an early 2-0 lead and continued to press, even when the Jaks began to fight back. Prince Albert made it a one-goal game on two separate occasions before Martensville scored two in the third, including one with 50 seconds to play to seal the opening weekend win, 5-2.

Connor Brady was handed the loss in goal for P.A. as he turned aside 22 shots. The Jaks hit the road again for their next contest, which will see them trek northeast to Carrot River for their first game against their rivals, the Outback Thunder.

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loganc.lehmann@pattisonmedia.com

by Logan Lehmann

Mintos, Bears, Timberjaks collect wins in opening weekend

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