Beaver Blues captain, Kevin Bendall (#29) scored a pair of goals in a three-point night with the season on the line Sunday, to lead his team to a Game 2 victory and force a Game 3 versus Glaslyn Wednesday. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

Weekend recap

Beaver Blues take Glaslyn the distance in busy weekend for SPHL playoffs

Feb 12, 2024 | 3:43 PM

It was a busy weekend across the Saskatchewan Prairie Hockey League (SPHL), with all four first-round best-of-three series in action for a total of six games Friday through Sunday across the league.

Battlefords Beaver Blues (#4) vs Glaslyn North Stars (#5) – Series tied 1-1

Headlining the weekend slate was the four-five matchup, which saw the Battlefords Beaver Blues bounce back from a 5-2 loss in their opening game with Glaslyn Saturday in Battleford, to take an 8-5 win of their own Sunday in St. Walburg, as the lone series to go the distance, setting up a third-and-deciding game this week.

Regan Yew registered a pair of goals and an assist in Glaslyn’s opening win, though the Beaver Blues’ response featured big performances from their captain Kevin Bendall (two goals, one assist), Blake Oborowsky (two goals), and Josh Shynkaruk (three assists), to knot the series at a game apiece.

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Shynkaruk said the key to the team’s quick rebound was their adjustments made to limit Glaslyn’s time and space through the middle of the ice.

“I think the biggest thing in Game 2 was just shutting them down in the neutral zone,” the veteran defenceman said. “It was a lot more physical, and once we started shutting them down in the neutral zone we started getting more turnovers, the shots kept coming, and with that, the goals. We’ll have to keep doing that to win Game 3.”

The deciding Game 3 will be played Wednesday night (Feb. 14) at 8 p.m. at Battleford Arena. The winner will advance to play top-seeded Neilburg in the semi-finals.

Neilburg Monarchs (1) vs Maidstone Jets (8) – Neiburg win series 2-0

Entering the weekend already up 1-0 in their best-of-three showdown with Maidstone, the Neilburg Monarchs continued their sizzling play, building off an 11-3 win to open the series, with an 8-1 victory Friday in Neilburg, to punch their ticket to the semis.

Forward Reed Putnam led the way with four points (two goals, two assists) in the series-clinching win, while Tegan Peters (two goals, one assist), Lindsay Gibbons (one goal, two assists), and Chase Smith (three assists) also posted three points apiece.

Neilburg will play the winner of the four-five matchup between the Battlefords and Glaslyn in the semi-finals.

Meota Combines (2) vs Redberry Raiders (7) – Meota win series 2-0

The Combines also swept their first-round series with back-to-back wins over Redberry Friday and Saturday night. Game 1 was a 6-1 win in North Battleford, with Game 2 of the series a 6-4 final in Blaine Lake.

Combines’ defenceman, Connor Neave scored four points (two goals, two assists) in the opening game win, while Jake McMillen netted a pair and Bo Gervais added a goal and a helper, to lead the way on night two.

With the series win, Meota will advance to the semi-finals against third-seeded Turtleford.

Turtleford Tigers (3) vs Radisson Wheatkings (6) – Turtleford win series 2-0

The closest of the three first-round sweeps, Turtleford entered the weekend up 1-0 in their series with Radisson, after taking the opening game in OT back on Wednesday night.

The Tigers completed the series sweep this weekend with another down-to-the-wire victory by a single-goal margin, topping the Wheatkings 3-2 in Radisson to advance to the semis against Meota.

The full semi-final schedule will be available shortly after Wednesday’s final game of the quarters when it is determined which of Battlefords or Glaslyn will advance to the next round.

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @MartyMartyPxP1