The goals were coming fast and furious for the AAA Stars, as the team opened their regular season with a 4-0 win over Warman. (submitted photo/Shawn Robinson)

By Martin Martinson

Stars shine bright

AAA Stars start season with a bang, blank Warman 4-0

Nov 2, 2020 | 1:51 PM

Four different goal scorers got on the board, and goaltender Jackson Fellner stopped all 41 shots he faced on the night, as the Battlefords AAA Stars kicked off their regular season with a win in Warman over the weekend.

Kobie Anderson, Daitan Dmytriw, Matthew Henry and Rylan Williams scored for the Stars, to help lead the team to a 4-0 victory over the rival, Warman Wildcats.

Head coach of the Stars, Dale Grayston, said he was proud of his team’s performance. Not just with the goals, but with their heart and hustle shown throughout the contest as well.

“I think we really committed to playing hard together, and you could see that was part of our game plan,” Grayston said. “We were eight-for-eight on the penalty kill, and one-for-five on the power play too, so I think we did some really good things for the first game of the year. We have to keep getting better, but it was a good start for us, for sure.”

Perhaps most impressive about the Stars’ opening win, was the adversity the team had to overcome along the way, due to a shorthanded roster.

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The Stars entered the evening short three skaters, before losing another – forward, Nathan Flodell – midway through the game due to injury, after blocking a shot with his hand.

“Luckily there was no broken bones, and he’s going to be fine, but we missed [Flodell] the last half of the game,” Grayston said. “We were down to 14 skaters and two goalies to finish off the last half of the game, so it’ll be nice when we can get a few more guys back and just have a few more bodies, so everyone’s a little more well-rested too.”

Grayston said Fellner’s performance in goal was especially pivotal to the team’s success. Helping to settle everyone in early, the netminder’s play also provided the foundation for the Stars to stay perfect on the penalty kill and keep a dangerous Warman attack at bay.

“Our goaltender played very well, was one of the game’s [three] stars, and was just really, really solid for us,” Grayston said. “And as the old story goes, your goaltenders got to be your best penalty killer too.”

The AAA Stars will now get a few days off to practice and rest up, before welcoming the Saskatoon Blazers to town Saturday afternoon at the Civic Centre. Puck drop Saturday will be at 4:30 p.m.

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Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On twitter: MartyMartyPxP1