ESTEVAN - The Estevan Bruins finished with a split in their season-opening home and home with the Melville Millionaires.
Estevan fell 5-0 to the Mills Saturday night in Melville, just 24 hours after the Black and Gold edged the Mills 3-2 in Estevan.
The Bruins came out strong and had a number of chances to score early in the game, but Melville had the lone goal of the first period when Caden Drury, a former captain of the Estevan Great North U18 AAA Bears, scored on a power play midway through the frame.
The Black and Gold thought they had tied the game a short time later when a dump-in took a funny hop off of a stanchion and went in the Melville net, but the goal was called off due to an offside.
Melville's Brendan Olson had the lone goal of the second period.
The Mills pulled away with three goals in the third. Liam Cox-Smith tallied 5:20 into the frame, Preston Tauter scored a short-handed goal into an empty net six minutes later, and Payton Kostyshyn finished the scoring with 65 seconds to play.
The Bruins played most of the game with just four defencemen, as Tyler Guy was injured in the first period and Michael Gallant went down in the second.
Jackson Miller stopped 23 of the 27 shots he faced for the Bruins. William Dyke made 31 saves for Melville.
The Bruins will be back on the ice Friday night when they host the Weyburn Red Wings at Affinity Place. Game time will be at 7 p.m.
