North Stars forward, Colby Bear scored a goal and set up another in Thursday night's 9-3 victory over Yorkton. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

Nine-goal night

Surging North Stars stay hot, triple Terriers 9-3

Oct 21, 2022 | 12:14 AM

It was a one-goal game to the third period, when the Battlefords North Stars blew the lid of the Access Communications Centre, scoring five unanswered on their way to a 9-3 victory over the Yorkton Terriers, Thursday.

Holden Doell and Kian Bell led the way in the win with a pair of goals apiece, while Marshall Light added the first of his SJHL career. Jackson Allan, Colby Bear, Zane Florence and Steven Kesslering also pitched in a goal apiece, with a 31-save effort between the pipes from goaltender Josh Kotai.

With another two goals Thursday, Holden Doell has now scored eight goals through his first nine games played this season, with five in his last two games. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

Light’s first SJHL goal opened the scoring on a breakaway, sprung off a pass from his linemate, Bear. Breaking in alone on-goal, the 17-year-old faked to the backhand before tucking the puck around the outstretched pad of the Terriers’ netminder, to make it a 1-0 game on the lone goal of the first period.

In the second, Allan made it 2-0 Stars on his third of the season just 29 seconds into the frame, again taking the puck hard to the net and converting on his own rebound to earn his team an insurance marker.

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Bear’s third was a heavy shot off a quick-release wrister, serving as his second point of the night, to stretch the lead to 3-0 Battlefords just 3:30 later.

However, just when it looked like the Stars would run away with things early, the Terriers answered back in quick succession with a flurry of goals of their own.

Yorkton forwards Cade Kennedy, Dylan Ruptash, and Clay Sleeva ripped off back-to-back-to-back goals within a two minute span midway through the middle period, to knot the score in the blink of an eye at 3-3.

While the Stars bent, they wouldn’t break. Kian Bell righted the ship on a 4-3 go-ahead marker with just under seven minutes to go in the period, converting on a Keiton Klein rebound to re-establish the Stars’ lead heading into the third.

Doell’s pair then came just five minutes apart, early in the regulation time period to stretch the advantage to 6-3, and truly break the game open.

Bell’s second of the game made it 7-3, followed by a wrister from the high-slot by Florence for his first of the year. A finishing touch by Kesslering for his team-leading 10^th of the year capped the scoring at 9-3 Stars with just 16 seconds to go, to be the first on the club to crack double-digits in goals.

With the win, the North Stars extend their scorching start to the season with a 12-0-1 record through their opening 13 games. Yorkton are now 6-5 through their first 11.

The teams will meet again for the second-half of their back-to-back series this week, Friday night at the ACC. Friday’s game will be available on 1050 CJNB, with the Ultra Print Pregame Show at 7 p.m., and puck drop at 7:30 p.m. on the NAPA Auto Parts North Stars Hockey Broadcast.

Scoring summary

First period:

13:38 BAT Marshall Light (1) ASST: Colby Bear (7) 1-0 Stars

Second period:

0:29 BAT Jackson Allan (3) ASST: Evan Waldie (4), Tanner Gold (7) 2-0 Stars

4:02 BAT Colby Bear (3) ASST: Jordan Grill (4), Riley Girod (2) 3-0 Stars

6:03 YOR Cade Kennedy (2) ASST: Jackson McDonnell (2), Pavel McKenzie (3) 3-1 Stars

7:01 YOR Dylan Ruptash (5) ASST: Aiden Knutson (3), Kody Norberg (1) 3-2 Stars

7:52 YOR Clay Sleeva (3) ASST: Logan Cyca (1), Greg Nelson (5) 3-3 tie

13:15 BAT Kian Bell (7) ASST: Keiton Klein (5), Tanner Gold (8) 4-3 Stars

Third period:

1:15 BAT Holden Doell (7) ASST: None 5-3 Stars

5:09 BAT Holden Doell (8) ASST: Jake Southgate (12), Kian Bell (9) 6-3 Stars

10:17 BAT Kian Bell (8) ASST: Jake Southgate (13), Emmett Wurst (3) 7-3 Stars

10:45 BAT Zane Florence ASST: None 8-3 Stars

19:44 BAT Steven Kesslering ASST: Evan Waldie (5) 9-3 Stars

9-3 North Stars, the final

—

Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1