ESTEVAN - The Estevan Bruins dropped a pair of 4-3 decisions on the weekend.
Up first was a game Friday night against the defending SJHL champion Melfort Mustangs at Affinity Place – the Bruins' first game since Oct. 16.
Reilley Kotai opened the scoring midway through the first period for Melfort, and Zac Somers tallied 2:15 into the second for a 2-0 advantage.
"There was going to be a little bit of rust, but overall we have to be better defensively," said Bruins' head coach and general manager Jason Tatarnic.
Carter Onrait scored for the Bruins 26 seconds after Somers' goal, but Austin Shepherd replied for the Mustangs 62 seconds later to restore the two-goal lead.
The Bruins then had a power play that lasted nearly 10 minutes, after Nicholas Andrusiak was assessed a five-minute major for fighting and a five-minute match penalty for striking the head of a Bruin opponent; Andrusiak has since been assessed a two-game suspension. The Bruins also had a pair of two-minute, two-man advantages during the extended power play, but didn't convert until early in the third when Kieran Ronan scored his first SJHL goal.
"You have to capitalize on those. I thought on the first five-on-three, we just gave it away, and the second one we kind of gave it away, too," said Tatarnic.
Cade Kennedy scored with 6:10 to play in the third period, but Kotai added his second of the game 22 seconds later.
Two of Melfort's goals were a result of not battling in front of the net, Tatarnic said, which resulted in "gimmies" on rebounds, and another was off of a four-on-two rush.
Kyle Kelsey stopped 21 of 25 shots he faced for Estevan. Madden Mulawka had 29 saves for Melfort.
Onrait said it took some time for the players to shake off the rust after a nine-day break.
"We just needed to get back in our mindset that we were playing hard. We were playing a hard team, and we need to compete and play 60 minutes," said Onrait.
Melfort, who has the best record in the league at 10-3, represents a good measuring stick for the club.
"There were a lot of guys on their team last year versus this year, and same with our team, so it's a little more difficult to compare, but I think we're doing well," said Onrait.
The following night, the Bruins lost to the host Melville Millionaires.
Leo Jewitt opened the scoring for Melville midway through the first period, but Kent Moors tied the game a couple minutes later, and Luke Hogan put the Bruins ahead late in the frame. Both goals came on a power play.
Edward Knittig and Ryan Roethke scored with the man advantage in the opening eight minutes of the second to put Melville ahead, but Hogan tied the game again with another power-play goal late in the frame. Matt Kjembus scored with 21 seconds to play in the third period for Melville to break a 3-3 tie.
Benjamin Polhill stopped 29 shots for Estevan, and Luke Brunen had 26 saves for Melville.
For highlights of the games, please visit our provincial news hub at sasktoday.ca
In off-ice news, forward Cole Robertson – a 19-year-old forward from Manitoba whose rights had been acquired from the Kindersley Klippers earlier this month – has yet to join the Bruins. Tatarnic said there are technical issues with Hockey Canada and the Canadian Junior Hockey League that have to be worked. He hopes Robertson will be in Estevan this week.
The Bruins (4-5-1-1) will be back on the ice Nov. 1 when they visit the Yorkton Terriers. The game will be played at the Cote First Nations Arena north of Kamsack.
Videos courtesy of the SJHL's YouTube account. Highlights from the Estevan-Melville game were not immediately available.
