The Yorkton Terriers are on to the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League semi finals.
The Terriers, who will face Humboldt in the next round, advanced by defeating Notre Dame four-games-to-one in the Terriers first playoff action of the season.
The deciding game came Friday at the Farrell Agencies Arena with a 7-1 effort in the series winner.
Brett Boehm scored in the first to give the Terriers a lead after the opening frame.
Tayler Thompson and Brady Norrish would make it 3-0 before Brandon Kuse registered the lone Notre Dame goal of the contest.
Tyler Giebel would score later in the second to restore a three-goal Terrier lead.
Daylan Gatzke, Dylan Johnson, and Jordan Ross added goals in the third to complete the 7-1 win.
Kale Thomson faced 26-shots in the Terrier net for the win, while Alexi Thibaudeau faced 39 in the loss.
Boehm said finally scoring in Game Five was big for him.
"It definitely feels good," he said after the contest.
With the goals not coming earlier in the series Boehm said he just focused on doing whatever else he could to help the team.
"I just stayed positive. I knew they would come eventually if I kept working hard," he said.
Boehm said as a player, especially one known for his offence, things don't always go your way, but ultimately a bounce will swing your way.
Terrier head coach Trent Cassan said he liked that in the deciding game the Terriers had seven goals from seven different scorers. He said a big part of the team's success "is getting scoring from all four of our lines."
Cassan said there are times a team's top line won't score, so you need secondary sources of offence.
"We want to come at teams with four lines," he said, adding in the series that was a big part of winning in five games.
Wrapping up the series in five gives the Terriers a week off before semi final action starts.
Cassan said it was a physical series with the Hounds.
"Both teams played hard. We took a lot of hits. We gave a lot of hits," he said, adding such play means having a few days to heal some bruises is necessary.
Game Four
The Hounds proved pesky hosts in Game four of the series Friday.
After a scoreless first period Riley Hunt scored a short-handed effort 3:11 into the second to give the Terriers the lead, only to have Hounds star Sam Aulie knot the score 12:12 into the stanza.
Andrew Cummings then gave the home team its first lead of the contest 7:50 into the third.
Then, exactly 10-minutes later at 17:50 Tanner Lishchynsky tied the game for Yorkton.
The tie stuck through regulation time, forcing the decision to overtime, where Jordan Ross won the game for the Terriers 6:17 into the first extra frame.
Thomson had the win in the Terrier net facing 32-shots, with Thibaudeau having the loss in the Hounds net facing 39.
Boehm said a win like the one in Game Four was big for the Terriers, needing a late goal just to force OT.
"You come together as a team that way," he said, adding it gives the team the added confidence to know they can fight back late in a game.
Cassan said having a close battle in Wilcox did not come as a surprise.
"You look at their scores during the regular season on home ice, there were a lot of 2-1 games," he offered. "It's a big ice surface and you can be forced to the outside a lot of the time."
Once outside shots have to cover more ice, allowing shot blockers and goaltenders more time to react, said the Terrier coach.
"They (the Hounds) block a lot of shots," he added.
So to win in overtime was gratifying.
"It was a good character builder," echoed Cassan, adding a game like the OT win was a good test of the Terrier's intensity.
Game Three
The Terriers allowed the Hounds only three shots in each of the first and third periods at the Farrell Agencies Arena last Tuesday, and 12-shots overall, as they weaved a 5-2 win.
Dylan Johnson scored the only goal of the first period 24-seconds into the game to give Yorkton a lead it would not relinquish.
In the second the teams traded two-goal efforts.
Ryan Donovan knotted the game 1-1 for the Hounds 2:27 into the frame.
Chase Norrish would then notch both Yorkton goals before Dylan McIntosh scored the Hounds last goal of the night.
Derek Falloon would score 8:47 into the third to extend the Terrier lead before Norrish completed a hat trick effort with a powerplay marker in the final minute of play.
The Terriers were 2-for-11 with the man advantage as the Hounds took 20 penalties overall on the night.
Thomson had the win in the Terrier net allowing two goals on only 12-shots, while Thibaudeau took the loss facing 40.
Broncos next
Humboldt is next for the defending SJHL-champion Terriers, as the Broncos eliminated Melfort in game six Sunday.
The Broncos will be in Yorkton Friday for Game One of the best-of-seven, with the Terriers in Humboldt for Game Two on Sunday.
The Terriers will host Game Three Tuesday.
Melville and North Battleford square off the league's other semi final.
