Riley Girod has eight points (two goals, six assists) through his first five games against the Terriers this season, heading into Friday's final instalment of the season series. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

Friday night hockey

North Stars kick off final road swing of season in Yorkton

Feb 23, 2024 | 3:17 PM

The Battlefords North Stars will kick off their final three-game road swing of the season Friday night, as the team returns to action off a six-day layoff, in Yorkton.

Marking the sixth and final matchup of the season series between the two sides, the Battlefords hold a 3-2 edge through the opening five meetings, though Yorkton won the most recent installment, 5-4 earlier this month.

The North Stars enter play first in the Nutrien Division and second overall in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) standings with a 33-10-4 record through 47 games. With just nine games to go in their regular season schedule, the team is coming off a weekend split in Flin Flon, with a 4-2-0 record through their first six games of the month.

Yorkton is fourth in the Viterra Division and 10^th overall, with a 17-26-4 record through 47 games. Currently six points back of Weyburn for the eighth-and-final playoff spot, the Terriers will be desperate to snap a two-game skid to stay in the post-season race.

The North Stars’ dynamic duo of Kian Bell and Ben Portner are each coming off huge multi-point games versus Flin Flon, which saw Bell score a goal and three assists and Portner notch a goal and two helpers, to lead the team to their biggest win yet this season.

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On the year, the pair have combined for a league-high 142 total points – the most of any two teammates. Bell enters the weekend first in SJHL scoring with 78 points (32 goals, 46 assists) in just 33 games, while Portner is fifth with 64 points (25 goals, 39 assists) in 43 games.

While the Terriers may not possess the offensive firepower of the North Stars up front, the team does deploy one of the biggest center-ice tandems in the league, with Anthony Domina (6-foot-4, 205 pounds) and Aiden Knutson (6-foot-5, 195 pounds), who have been amongst the team’s best so far in the season series.

Domina has 39 points in 41 games this year, having scored a big goal in the team’s last game against the Battlefords. Knutson has 26 points in 44 games, and had two goals in the last meeting of the season series, with five of his 15 this year coming against the North Stars.

Friday’s NAPA Auto Parts North Stars Broadcast will be available on 1050 CJNB with the Ultra Print Pregame Show at 6:30 p.m. and puck drop to follow at 7 p.m.

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

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