Terriers Welcome North Stars To The Westland
Photo Credit: Simple Shots By Jackie Story Coming In:
Another gutsy performance saw the Terriers outplay the Estevan Bruins on Tuesday night and extended their home winning streak to four games. Despite finding themselves down 1-0 after the first period, Yorkton scored three times in the second stanza and powered themselves to a 4-3 victory. The captain, Logan Cyca, led by example with two points on the night, including the game winner. Now they go up against a North Stars team that has beaten Yorkton twice on the road. The Terriers know if they want to taste victory, they have to play a complete 60 minute game, like the last three contests, and hope some of the bounces go their way.
View From Battlefords:
Canada’s number one Junior A team. Unbeaten in regulation. Winners of eight straight. It doesn’t get more formidable then the Battlefords North Stars, who everyone is tipping to remain unbeaten through to Christmas. The North Stars boast the top three point getters in the SJHL in Kian Bell, Holden Doell and Jake Southgate, the top goaltender in Josh Kotai and two of the top special teams units with the powerplay ranked at 3rd and the penalty kill at 4th. Battlefords is a team that comes at you in waves, with depth on a roster not seen anywhere else in Saskatchewan. The only downside for the North Stars might be the absence of their head coach Brayden Klimosko, who is off at the World Jr A Challenge in Cornwall, Ontario, but Garry Childerhose is a more than capable replacement who has plenty of experience in the SJHL.
Groovy Baby:
To take down the top team in the league, you need a joint effort from the entire team. With a high powered offence like the North Stars, Yorkton needs all of their defenders to step up their game. One of those defenders is the newly acquired Ashton Funk. Since coming over from Blackfalds, Funk has shown flashes of his potential, on a defense core that could quickly become one of the most underrated in the SJHL. The Athabasca, Alberta product is a smooth skater, intelligent, and while he may not have any points so far, he can contribute on both ends of the ice. The best thing, he’s only 18 and will grow into an even better player as time goes on. Right now, Funk is paired with Quintin Unreiner, which gives Yorkton a strong 1-2 punch between those two and Perkins and Strasky. If everyone steps up their game, then the Terriers will have a chance to put a one in the regulation loss column for Battlefords.
Stats Leaders For Yorkton:
Goals: Ruptash (13)
Assists: Hall (11)
Points: Ruptash (22)
PIM: Mayes (121)
Goalie: Allen 12-13-0, 3.65, 0.901% 1SO 1G