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By Martin Martinson

North Stars send Ice Wolves packing

Oct 30, 2018 | 11:37 PM

The Battlefords North Stars snapped their three-game losing streak in style Tuesday night, bouncing back to their winning ways with an 8-3 thrashing of the La Ronge Ice Wolves.

After a terrific showing in limited minutes over his last couple of games, North Stars’ forward, Tanner Robin entered action Tuesday being given an opportunity for more ice time. Moving up to the third line to play alongside Brett Gammer and Regan Doig, the 18-year-old, Robin made the most of his opportunity early, scoring a goal just over five minutes into the contest.

The goal marked the second of the year for Robin, and the first of two points on the night for the Saskatoon product.

Just over three minutes later, the North Stars would strike again, this time off the stick of Ryan Gil, who saw his snapshot beat the goaltender clean from about 15 feet out just to the right of the mid slot. Matthias Urbanski and Adam Weiner picked up the assists.

Then, as if set on a timer, just over three minutes after the Stars’ second goal, MacGregor Sinclair, coming off only his fourth game all season being held scoreless for a full 60 (minutes), and hungry to get back on the scorecard, fired a missile of a shot off his patented wrister to the top corner to make it 3-0 Stars, just passed the half-way mark of the first.

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La Ronge, desperate to not get trampled in the first third of the game, would muster up some sort of answer before the end of the period, thanks to their leading scorer, Mitch Zambon. Zambon’s tally, a wrist shot from the far side in tight, would be the final indentation in the first period score card.

At the end of 20 minutes, it was the hometown North Stars leading 3-1.

Coming out for the second, the Battlefords’ black and silver would pick up right where they left off – firing on all cylanders.

Thanks to tenacious pressure and dogged puck pursuit, Elijah Loon-Stewardson made it 4-1 when he stripped the goaltender of the puck behind the net, wrapping it around the side of the goal on the near-side post and throwing a bow on it for good measure like an early Christmas gift. It was the kind of gift the La Ronge goaltender, Davidson, wished he could return.

Exactly one minute later, Sinclair once again would impose his will on the visitors, proving that not witches, ghosts or ghouls, but he would be the scariest thing for the Ice Wolves on the eve of Halloween.

Not wanting to miss a piece of the action, North Battleford native, Owen Lamb, also jumped on board the scoring parade, potting his ninth goal of the season, tying his career-high from two seasons ago, while doing so in 33 fewer games.

Despite Max Kleiner’s effort at the 6:06 mark, the game was already too out of reach for the Wolves, only proven more-so by the marker to follow, coming courtesy of former Okatoks Oiler, Regan Doig to close out the period. The goal was Doig’s third of the season.

7-2 was the score to end the second.

After Dalton Dosko tried to salvage something positive on the night, depositing his first goal of the season, Matthias Urbanski did his best to taint the memory with Stars’ residue, closing out the third period for the home side with one more goal, just for good measure.

Urbanski’s team-leading eleventh of the year was set up thanks to a great passing play by his two linemates.

Ryan Gil started things off by batting a puck out of mid-air, bunting it down, then rimming it around the side boards in behind the net to keep the play alive. There to pick up the relay feed from the California Kid, Dylan Esau then slowed the play down and surveyed his options, finding Urbanski in front of the La Ronge goal. One perfectly telegraphed pass later and the Stars’ sniper had deposited the puck and already received his receipt before the hapless goaltender could even blink.  

As if serving as an exclamation mark, Urbanski’s goal would ultimately top off the night, sealing the victory for his team, 8-3 the final score.

The North Stars will now get some time to rest and regroup before heading back into action for their first of three games in three nights to kick off the new month, starting Friday, Nov. 2 against Estevan.

 

Scoring summary

First period:

5:18 BAT Tanner Robin (2) ASST: Brett Gammer (2), Regan Doig (7)

7:52 BAT Ryan Gil (6) ASST: Matthias Urbanski (13), Adam Weiner (1)

11:19 BAT MacGregor Sinclair (8) ASST: Ryan Gil (9), Matthias Urbanski (14)

14:00 LAR Mitch Zambon (10) ASST: Zach Bannister (12), Jordan Mish (10)

Second period:

0:23 BAT Elijah Loon-Stewardson (7) ASST: Owen Lamb (7)

1:53 BAT MacGregor Sinclair (9) ASST: Ryan Gil (10), Matthias Urbanski (15)

2:22 BAT Owen Lamb (9) ASST: Elijah Loon-Stewardson (8), Braydon Buziak (8)

6:06 LAR Max Kleiner (3) ASST: Joshua Poon (4), Shane Housell (4)

10:10 BAT Regan Doig (3) ASST: Brett Gammer (3), Tanner Robin (4)

Third period:

0:36 LAR Dalton Dosko (1) ASST: Jake Chartier (1)

17:54 BAT Matthias Urbanski (11) ASST: Dylan Esau (3), Ryan Gil (11)

8-3 North Stars’ final

 

Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1 

by Martin Martinson

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