The Battlefords North Stars played their first three of seven straight road games and returned with one win.
The North Stars played La Ronge Thursday in Stanley Mission. The game plan was to shoot lots of pucks at Adam Bartko in the La Ronge net and not worry about the star players on the Ice Wolves' roster. That was a good approach, but easier said than done, as the North Stars couldn't stop La Ronge's top three forwards or solve Bartko and lost 8-1.
Travis Eggum had four goals and an assist, Marc Andre Carre had a goal and five assists and Doug Lindensmith had one goal and four assists.
The North Stars took a 1-0 lead when Travis Cech scored his eighth of the season from Boyd Wakelin and Shayne Morrissey. After that it was all Ice Wolves, as they led 2-1 after the first and 6-1 after the second period. The Ice Wolves were 1/5 on the powerplay while the North Stars were 0/4. Graham Hildebrand made 38 saves, as did Bartko, who earned the win.
Friday, the North Stars were in Nipawin in an important four-point game with their division rival, who were chasing them for the fifth spot in the Bauer Confernce.
Kyle Birch opposed former Battlefords Midget Stars goalie Brody Hoffman and it was Birch earning the win.
It was Nipawin scoring the game's first goal halfway through the second.
Three minutes later, Daniel Franks scored his first goal as a North Star. Robbie Newton and Chris Neurauter had the helpers.
In the final minute of the second, the North Stars' powerplay converted, as Colin Phaneuf netted his 11th of the season from Keith Grondin and Blake Tatchell.
After 40 minutes the North Stars held a 2-1 lead. They extended that lead 10 minutes into the third period, again on the powerplay. This time, it was Tatchell from Phaneuf and Brody Luhning. The goal was Tatchell's 15th of the season putting his five goals ahead of his 2009-10 goal total.
Nipawin's Mathew Spafford pulled his team to within a goal, but two minutes later, Grondin added some insurance, as line mates Tatchell and Phaneuf assisted on his 19th of the season.
The game ended 4-2 with Birch making 33 saves for the win. Hoffman took the loss after making 29 saves.
After over 80 penalty minutes between the two teams Friday night, the North Stars penalty killers answered the bell, as they killed off 8/8 and the powerplay unit was 2/7.
Saturday, it was a burst from the Bombers' offence in the first period, which was enough to launch them to a 5-3 win in Flin Flon.
Jay Young scored twice while Eric Millisor and Devan Stillar scored once in the first period and the North Stars trailed 4-0 after one.
Tatchell got the North Stars on the board four minutes into the second, as Wakelin drew an assist.
That was all the scoring in the second frame and the North Stars trailed three goals heading into the third period.
Five minutes in, Neurauter scored his fifth of the season from Folstad to make it a two-goal game. That score lasted just a minute, as Brandt Weldon scored for the Bombers to retake their three-goal lead.
Luhning scored his eighth of the season from Woody Klassen later in the third, but that was all the offence from the North Stars, who took the 5-3 loss.
Birch stopped 29 shots while P.J. Musico stopped 32 in the win.
Once again, the North Stars special teams were better than their opponent's numbers, but that still didn't lead to a win. The North Stars were 3/7 on the powerplay while Flin Flon was 1/4.
The road action continued for the 13-15-1-1 North Stars with a Tuesday evening game in Yorkton. Wednesday, they will be in Melville and Friday and Saturday the North Stars are in Weyburn for the SJHL Showcase and will play Kindersley and La Ronge.
