The Battlefords Barons have seen a lot of young blood inserted into the lineup this year, with just three returning players from last season's team. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff) : Martin Martinson

By Martin Martinson

Back at home

Battlefords Barons return home for game two of post season tomorrow

Mar 6, 2019 | 5:02 PM

The Battlefords Barons return to action tomorrow night for game two of their first round playoff series with the Martensville Marauders at Battleford Arena.

The Marauders lead the series 1-0 after a 2-1 overtime win in game one, Tuesday in Martensville.

Trailing by a goal heading into the third period, the Barons tied the game just under three minutes into the final regulation frame, thanks to a power play marker from forward, Matthew Dament. Ultimately though, the home side would once again pull ahead, this time for good in overtime, 2-1 the final.

Despite the loss, head coach of the Barons, Boyd Wakelin, said he can’t help but be proud of his team for their never-say-die approach.

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“We were down one going into the third period, fought back, and just really showed that we can play with the top teams in this league, which I think is a testament to our guys’ belief in themselves, and to sticking together as a team.”

The eighth seed against Martensville in top spot, the Battlefords Barons punched their ticket to the playoffs in the proverbial eleventh hour, clinching the final post season position by winning two games in their final weekend of regular season play to just narrowly edge out P.A by only two points.

The Barons’ post season hopes didn’t look all too promising for the team just a couple of months ago, with the club carrying a sub-.500 record through the first-half of the year.

After the New Year, however, the Barons managed to pull a complete 180. That led to a sizzling stretch-run of the season that saw the team bounce back to finish the year taking home at least a point in 10 of their final 14 games of the regular season to finish with a 13-12-6 record.

Wakelin said he believes the key to the team’s turnaround came down to a winning mindset amongst the group.

“It was just a strong belief in our dressing room,” the coach said. “It’s having a positive, dominant thought [process] all the time. It didn’t matter what the situation [was] in a game; we knew something good was going to happen for us.”

“All year we’ve just had a very resilient group of young men who just work hard for 60 minutes every game,” he added.

The Barons will aim to continue their hot play through the post season, as the team returns to the Battleford Arena tomorrow (Thursday) for game two of their first round match-up with Martensville. Puck drop Thursday will be at 7 p.m.

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Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1