The Estevan Bruins faced two very different opponents on the weekend, and the results were not surprising.
The Bruins doubled up the Kindersley Klippers 6-3 on Friday and lost 4-1 to the Battlefords North Stars the next night, both at Spectra Place.
Kindersley is last in the Sherwood Conference, while the Stars occupy the top spot in the SJHL.
Estevan (16-10) remains second in the Sherwood, three points behind Weyburn.
On Saturday, the outcome was in doubt until late in the third period when the Stars added a pair of goals to their lead, including an empty-netter.
Bruins head coach Keith Cassidy said his squad could learn a few things from the first-place North Stars.
"They did the little things right. They sacrificed for one another out there. They gave up the flashy play to make the simple play in order to get things done. That's the hallmark of a true team. We're striving to get there, but right now sometimes we prefer the flash over the team play. That's not acceptable in my books and we better learn that pretty quick," he said.
Braeden Johnson struck first for the visitors less than four minutes in when he took a pass from Blake Tatchell on a 2-on-1 and slipped it past Bruins starter Steven Glass.
The Stars would make it 2-0 midway through the second when Tanner Quinn cashed in a centring pass from Ryne Keller behind the net.
Estevan broke the Stars' shutout bid at 4:38 of the third when Tyler Kauk got a wrister through traffic and under the arm of a screened Connor Creech in the Battlefords net.
With three minutes to play, though, the Bruins failed to get the puck out of their zone and the play ended with Battlefords forward Brett Miller firing the puck just under the bar to give the Stars a 3-1 lead.
Quinn would add an empty-netter with 31 seconds left. Shots on goal were 36-20 for the Stars.
The score could have been higher if not for some missed chances by the Bruins and good goaltending at both ends.
"The chances they got, they buried, and the ones we got didn't go our way, they didn't bounce in," said rookie winger Taylor Reich. "We kept it a close game until the end and then it just slipped away from us."
Cassidy was not impressed with the effort of some of his top players.
"We've got tons of talent in there. Getting that talent to work hard, at points, or do the right thing, at points, sometimes is a little frustrating," he said. "I was impressed with 90 per cent of our guys (Saturday). The guys that I'm supposed to not worry about really get on my nerves."
Regina Pat Canadians forward Brandon Halbgewachs, 17, was called up for both weekend games.
"You could make an argument that he probably could be here this year. He's that determined and disciplined and willing to do the right thing and some guys should take a look at that," Cassidy said.
On Friday, the Bruins rebounded from giving up the first goal to take a 3-1 lead after the first period and a 5-3 edge after two.
Dylan Smith led the home side with a hat trick and Calder Neufeld added a goal and two assists.
The Bruins' other goals, both in the first period, came from Michael Hengen and Reich. Hengen's goal was his second in as many games after scoring his first goal since Feb. 13, 2010 last Tuesday in a 7-2 win over Notre Dame.
"It was just a matter of getting some confidence for him," said Cassidy. "He's coming off a fairly significant injury. We all know the kind of talent he has and what he can bring. He's a great character kid."
Jesse Mysiorek, Tanner Kissick and Austin McDonald scored for the Klippers, who lost their sixth game in a row.
The Bruins fired 40 shots on Klippers goalie Justin McDonald, while Brandon Stone turned aside 23 of 26 in the Bruins' net.
