It won’t take long for forward Dylan Esau and his North Stars' teammates to renew acquaintances with the Red Wings this season, as the clubs will come together to battle it out in Warman Sunday night. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

Making an impression

North Stars look to stay hot against Red Wings as scene shifts to league showcase

Sep 22, 2019 | 2:00 PM

The Battlefords North Stars have exploded out of the gate this season outscoring their opposition 17-6 on their way to a perfect 3-0 record through their opening three games.

The Stars will now look to continue to build on their hot streak, taking on the 1-2 Weyburn Red Wings in Warman Sunday. The game will mark the team’s first of two this week at the league showcase.

The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) Showcase is an annual event featuring all 12 Saskatchewan League teams.

The Showcase is a four-day event held at the Legends Centre (Arena) which allows for a large collection of scouts from various levels of hockey to come and see players from each of the league’s teams.

Per SJHL statement, the primary purpose of the event is to give the players an opportunity to showcase their talents in the hopes of securing a future home to advance their playing or education careers – or both.

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The opportunity comes at a great time for the Battlefords’ black and silver.

Twelve different Stars’ players have scored for the team through their opening three games.

In Saturday night’s 3-1 victory over the Estevan Bruins, the goals came courtesy of three different forward lines.

Perhaps lost a bit in the shadow of the team’s offensive dominance however, has been the stout defensive effort of the group as a whole, led by a solid veteran core on the blue line.

The team’s returning ‘big three’ from last season’s championship team of Matthew Fletcher, Noah Form and Seth Summers, have been as advertised.

In addition to causing headaches for opposition forwards in the defensive end, the trio have also played a pivotal part in engineering the offensive attack through quick puck movement.

The three have also only benefited from the offseason acquisition of fellow veteran stalwart, Dylan McCabe.

Blue liner Dylan McCabe has fit in seamlessly as a dynamic two-way presence on the Stars’ backend. Since opening night, McCabe has played top-end minutes alongside Noah Form, in addition to quarterbacking the team’s first power play unit. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

McCabe, who began his ‘Junior A’ career with the Weyburn Red Wings, will face off against his former team for the first-time Sunday night.

The blue liner played 98 games wearing the winged wheel from 2016 to midway through the 2019 campaign. McCabe picked up 14 points in 22 games with the Wings last season, prior to being traded to Drumheller of the Alberta Junior Hockey League.

Behind the Stars’ blue line comes another of the key storylines heading into Sunday, as soon-to-be 19-year-old goaltender Parker Rey will make his North Stars debut between the pipes.

Standing tall and positionally sound at 6-foot-3, 180 pounds, the Grand Blanc, MI., product, Rey was amongst the team’s most noticeable players through camp. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

Rey played eight games with the Esmark Stars 18U team of the North American Prospects Hockey League last season, posting a 2.36 goals-against average and .905 save percentage with the club.

Sunday night’s game against the Red Wings will be broadcast on 1050 CJNB. The Ultra-Print Pregame Show will begin at 6:45 p.m. with puck drop at 7 p.m. on NAPA North Stars Hockey.

North Stars lineup at a glance

Forwards:

K. Boser, Q. Loon-Stewardson, E. Loon-Stewardson

A. Becker, B. Gammer, R. Nivon

D. Esau, M. Urbanski, S. Kesslering

H. Rambow, P. Sinclair, L. Spence

Defencemen:

D. McCabe, N. Form

S. Summers, M. Fletcher

L. Antoniuk, T. Prexler

Goaltenders:

P. Rey

A. Dmyterko

—

Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1