The Yorkton Terriers opened their SJHL regular season on the road Friday night, earning a point but falling 5-4 in a shootout to the Weyburn Red Wings.
The Terriers struck first just 6:02 into the opening period off a clean faceoff win by William Leonard, Gabriel Courchesne fired home his first career SJHL goal past Weyburn goaltender Ty Matanovich to make it 1-0. Yorkton doubled their lead late in the frame when Jye Zawatsky walked off the wall on a powerplay and slipped a backhander through Matanovich’s pads for a 2-0 advantage after 20 minutes.
Weyburn cut into the lead early in the second as Luke Schraeder finished a back-door feed from Luke DeKay to make it 2-1. Yorkton quickly restored the two-goal cushion when Aidan Vallance tipped in a point shot from Thierry Laliberte for his first SJHL marker. But the Red Wings answered back less than three minutes later, with veteran forward Lucas Schmid tallying to bring the score to 3-2 after two periods.
The Red Wings came out strong in the third and tied it just 1:38 in on Callas Pierce’s first of two goals in the period. Courchesne struck again for Yorkton, jamming in his second of the night to put the Terriers back in front 4-3, but Pierce’s late powerplay goal with 1:25 remaining forced overtime.
After a scoreless extra frame, the shootout was needed. DeKay and Courchesne traded goals before Weyburn’s Roan Burgess buried the deciding marker in round three to seal the Red Wings’ victory.
Matanovich turned aside 31 of 35 shots for the win, while Terriers goaltender [goalie’s name missing] was stellar, making 49 saves on 53 shots in the tough-luck loss.
The two teams will meet again Saturday night in Yorkton, as the Terriers host their home opener at Westland Arena at 7:00 PM.
MELVILLE MILLIONAIRES 5, ESTEVAN BRUINS 3
The Melville Millionaires kicked off their season in style Friday night, securing a 5–3 victory over the Estevan Bruins at the CN Community Centre.
Melville wasted no time lighting the lamp, jumping out to a 2–0 lead within the first 4:31 of the opening period. Leo Jewitt struck first, followed just a minute later by newly appointed captain Boston Harkness to give the Mils the advantage after 20 minutes.
Estevan regrouped in the second frame with an offensive push as Rylan Williams and Cole Dupuis each found the back of the net, leveling the score at 2–2 after two periods.
The Bruins carried that momentum into the third, with Ethan Andrews scoring on the power play just 33 seconds in to give Estevan its first lead of the night. But the Millionaires weren’t done.
Boston Harkness responded with his second goal of the game, followed just over a minute later by Jackson Lee, who netted the eventual game-winner. Devin Winder added a late insurance goal to seal the deal for Melville.
Between the pipes, Kael Svenson turned aside 28 of 31 shots to earn his first SJHL win. On the other end, Bruins goaltender Dylan Adams faced a barrage, stopping 44 shots in the loss.
The two teams will meet again Saturday night in Estevan at Affinity Place, with puck drop set for 7:00 PM
ELSEWHERE,
Jacob Strizzi scored twice and Charlie Tritt turned aside all 30 shots he faced for his first career SJHL shutout, leading the Humboldt Broncos to a 3-0 victory over the Warman Wolverines in the franchise’s inaugural game.
In Kindersley, Brett O’Halloran stopped 40 of 42 shots while Cooper Flath chipped in a goal and two assists as the Klippers downed the Battlefords North Stars 5-2, giving new head coach Kyle Schneider his first win behind the bench.
The Nipawin Hawks spoiled the banner-raising night in Melfort, edging the defending SJHL champion Mustangs 4-3 at the Northern Lights Palace. Konnor Watson scored twice and Gage Roberts made 31 saves to pace the Hawks.
At the Whitney Forum, Xavier Fauchon netted a pair as the Flin Flon Bombers rolled past the La Ronge Ice Wolves 9-4. Dawson Butler scored twice in a losing effort for La Ronge.
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