The Highway 10 rivalry between the Yorkton Terriers and Melville Millionaires is alive-and-well in this year's Sherwood Conference final in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League.
The Terriers sit in the driver's seat of the series after winning the first two games, both by a 3-1 score.
The Millionaires struck first Saturday on home ice as Michael Sagan scored 7:46 into the opening period.
The Terriers tied the game when Tayler Thompson scored on the powerplay 15:57 into the first period.
Yorkton's Brady Norrish scored early in the second period (3:05), a marker which proved the only goal of the frame.
Patrick Martens made it 3-1 Terriers with a powerplay goal 9:52 into the third period.
Dawson MacAuley was in the Terrier net facing 28 shots in the win.
Alex Wakaluk took the loss in the Melville net facing 32 shots.
The series opener was Friday at the Farrell Agencies Arena in Yorkton.
Jeremy Johnson started the series scoring 3:22 into the first period, giving the Terriers a 1-0 lead which they held until 2:32 of the second when Nathan Boyer knotted the score 1-1.
In the third Johnson was back to score his second at 7:03, then finished a natural hat trick at 12:31 to complete a 3-1 win for the home side.
MacAuley faced 25-shots in the Terrier net for the win, while Wakaluk faced 27 in the loss for the Mills.
For Johnson, who was the Terriers leading goal scorer in the regular season, it was a break-out game following only one goal in the series against Estevan.
"I know last series I wasn't at my best," he said.
However, Johnson said he is always up to play Melville.
"When we play Melville I'm always ready to play against them," he said.
Johnson got into the game with a few hits early and that seemed to push his offence.
"When I play physical I play at my best," he said.
The first two goals by Johnson were both a combination of strength and speed.
"They were basically the same goal," he said, noting he went around the defence and hard to the net.
"We know their defence is not the fastest in the league so we want to try to get around them," he said.
The two goals also went through Wakaluk's legs.
Johnson said as a smaller netminder Wakaluk has to push off the post hard to get across the net.
"He opens up pretty wide when he slides over," he said.
Terrier head coach Trent Cassan liked what he saw on home ice.
"It was a good start. There was good energy from the guys," he said.
Cassan said early in the game, facing some six-minutes short-handed in the first period, MacAuley again came up big keeping the Millionaires off the scoreboard.
"He made some big saves," he said.
Cassan said in a situation where you are short-handed for a four-minute span a team is likely to get some good chances, adding in those situations "you need your goaltender to make some big saves."
The one goal which eluded MacAuley Cassan said "it was a pretty good shot It was a big time shot."
As for Johnson's hat trick, Cassan smiles.
"When he gets speed and gets going to the outside he's able to cut in and go to the net," he said.
Up next
Game 3 of the best-of-seven was scheduled for Monday in Yorkton, but results were not available at press time.
Game 4 goes tonight (Wednesday) in Melville.
If necessary Game 5 will be played at the Farrell Agencies Friday, with Game 6, again if needed in Melville Saturday.
Game 7, if required will be played in Yorkton, but the date has not been posted at www.sjhl.ca
