Sign up for the battlefordsNOW newsletter
Stars’ forward Kaden Boser, pictured here digging in on the faceoff with defending SJHL Rookie of the Week, Kyle Ford. The Stars and Ice Wolves have had a heated opening two games of the season-series, s trend likely to continue Wednesday between the two blue collar clubs. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)
Fire and ice

Red-hot North Stars take 12-1 record to La Ronge to battle Ice Wolves

Oct 16, 2019 | 2:17 PM

While the temperature may be getting cooler, the Battlefords North Stars have remained red-hot.

The team enters play Wednesday with a league-best 12-1 record through their opening 13 games.

Back on the road, the Stars hit the ice Wednesday in La Ronge, looking to expand their sizzling streak against the Ice Wolves at the Mel Hegland Uniplex.

While the Ice Wolves may not quite have the sparkle of the Stars’ record, the team will welcome the Battlefords to town on an upward trend in their own right.

The Ice Wolves have won six of their last 10, and are led by a few of the league’s brightest through the early going this season. Forwards Daylon Mannon and Kyle Ford, and goalie Liam McGarva will need to be at their best.

Mannon was recently named SJHL Player of the Week after posting three goals and nine points over his last four games. Thanks to his hot play of late, the 20-year-old now leads the league in points with 24 through just 14 games played.

Ford meanwhile has been one of the top goal-scoring threats, having collected six goals, 10 points over his last five games. His play of late has been more than enough to earn the 19-year-old SJHL Rookie of the Week standing.

Not to be outdone by the two scoring phenoms, McGarva took home top goaltender honours, posting three-straight victories for his team last week, including back-to-back shutout wins over Notre Dame and Estevan.

On the season McGarva has posted a 5-3 record, along with a 2.51 goals-against average and .926 save percentage. The North Stars will look to get pucks and traffic to the front of the goal early, as has been a common theme for the team this year. The Stars have averaged a league-high 41.3 shots per game through their first 13 games.

Offensively, crafty forward Austin Becker leads the Stars with 18 points through 13 contests. Becker will be joined on a line Wednesday by his usual running mate, Rylan Nivon (14 points) and Brett Gammer (11 points), who joined the dynamic duo last game.

The three have been electric together when assembled this season, providing relentless pressure on the opposition, and dogged puck pursuit at both ends of the ice for their team.

Coming off back-to-back two-point outings, the Wisconsin Wonder, Austin Becker, has already surpassed his goal total from last season (seven) with eight tallies, while sitting just two points back of the 20 points he scored last season in 48 games. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

On the backend, defenceman Matthew Fletcher leads an elite Stars’ blue line, which has played a huge role in the team’s stinginess defensively.

In addition to the Battlefords’ well-documented offensive punch this season, the Stars have also allowed the second-fewest goals-against in the league.

Fletcher leads all SJHL rearguards with 14 points through 13 games. Having won Defenceman of the Week honours two of the last three weeks, the Saskatoon, Sask., product could have very well taken the distinction for a third-straight week, having picked up points in three-straight games.

In addition to the offensive numbers, Fletcher is one-half of the team’s top shutdown pair, alongside his partner from much of last season, Seth Summers. Summers, has also been a standout as a two-way force, having collected 10 points through 12 Stars’ games this year.

In goal, 18-year-old Austin Schwab will make his second career start for the Stars. Schwab stopped 18 of 19 shots against in his debut with the team this season against Melville back on Oct. 2.

The Snohomish, WA., product has a perfect 1-0 record to go along with a 1.00 goals-against average and .947 save percentage heading into Wednesday.

Wednesday’s game will be broadcast on 1050 CJNB-CJNS. The Ultra Print Pregame Show will begin at 7:15 p.m. with puck drop at 7:30 p.m. on the NAPA North Stars Hockey Broadcast.

North Stars lineup

Forwards:

M. Urbanski, Q. Loon-Stewardson, E. Loon-Stewardson

A. Becker, B. Gammer, R. Nivon

K. Boser, D. Prymak, D. Esau

P. Sinclair, H. Rambow, L. Spence

Defencemen:

N. Form, D. McCabe

S. Summers, M. Fletcher

L. Antoniuk, T. Prexler

Goaltenders:

A. Schwab

A. Dmyterko

Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1

View Comments