Mills Double-up Terriers

Melville, SK: Curren Wintonyk-Pilot and Matt Kjemhus’s first-period goals stood up as the difference as the Melville Millionaires defeated the visiting Yorkton Terriers 3-1 to improve to 2-0 in the preseason.

The home side got off to a swift start in this one. Just 1:33 into the first period, Millionaires forward Curren Wintonyk-Pilot was able to tip a puck blocker side past Terriers goaltender Luke McKecknie, opening the scoring. The Terriers were given a chance to tie the game on the man advantage when Boston Harkness went off for Cross-checking. The Terriers mustered one shot but couldn’t solve Mills goaltender William Dyke. The first period was rough with extracurricular activities after almost every whistle as the two sides renewed their bad blood for each other. The Millionaires doubled their lead when defenceman Matt Kjemhus let go of a seeing-eye point shot that found its way through traffic and beat McKecknie over the glove. The Terriers were outshot 16-6 in the opening frame.

The Terriers began to gain some traction with 12 shots in the middle frame. They finally found the score sheet on their fourth powerplay of the evening. Defenceman Dalton Mayes for a pass from Jaxon Mayes, and he beat Dyke glove side, cutting the lead in half. The Terriers then had a glorious opportunity to tie the game when the Mills got into some penalty trouble, and it saw the Terriers with a 5 on 3 for over a minute. The Mills called a timeout, and it seemed to spark the penalty kill as they successfully killed it off. Both teams switched goaltenders at the midway point of the game, and Blake Sittler was tested early, and he had to make a right pas save in tight off Millionaires forward Brendan Olson. The Terriers had another chance on the powerplay to knot the game at two, but instead, it was the Mills taking advantage. Felix Beauchemin dashed in on a shorthanded breakaway and slipped it five-hole on Sittler, restoring the Millionaires two-goal lead. 20-12 in the second period.

In the third period, the Terriers only had eight shots on goal and had a few good chances but failed to solve Mills goaltender Brendan Smith. The Terriers now fall to 1-1-1 on the preseason, with games against Waywayseecappo, Weyburn, and Melville still on the preseason schedule. These two teams will meet tomorrow night in Yorkton for a 7:00 PM puck drop.