North Stars forward Jake Southgate lines up opposite Nipawin defenceman Zander Stewart, in a matchup likely to take place often Tuesday night in North Battleford. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

Second last home game

North Stars host Hawks for potential first round playoff preview

Mar 7, 2023 | 1:55 PM

The Battlefords North Stars return to play Tuesday night at the ACC, as the team welcome the Nipawin Hawks to town, for their second-last home game of the regular season.

With just three games to go in the 56-game schedule, the North Stars enter play 45-5-2-1 on the season through 53 games. With 93 points, the team are just four points back of the franchise-record 97, set back in 2016-17 during a 58-game season.

Having won eight of their last 10 overall, the North Stars enter play coming off a heavy home-and-home split with Humboldt over the weekend, that concluded Saturday night with a 5-3 win in the Broncos’ home barn.

Head coach of the Stars, Brayden Klimosko said Tuesday’s game will be another great test, as Nipawin is one of the two possibilities – with the Weyburn Red Wings the other – for whom the Stars will meet in the opening round of the playoffs.

“There’s almost I’d say a 50-50 chance of that happening (meeting them in the first round), so we’ve got to be ready for it, and this is a big one here tonight,” Klimosko said.

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The Hawks are 26-23-4-1 on the season, and with 57 points, sit seventh overall in the league standings. Nipawin is just four points up on eighth-place Weyburn (53 points) while the Red Wings hold a single game in hand, making for a tight race to the finish line for seventh and eighth seeding.

Nipawin have five wins, and at least a single point in seven of their last 10, coming off a 3-2 shootout win Sunday over the division-rival Mustangs in Melfort.

Tuesday’s matchup will be headlined by a showdown of two of the elite defenceman in the league, as North Stars’ blue liner Tynan Ewart and the Hawks’ Zander Stewart are two of the three nominees for SJHL Defenceman of the Year.

Ewart paces all defencemen with 53 points in 52 games this season, while playing the most minutes for the league’s stingiest team defensively, as the Stars have averaged just 2.5 goals against per contest.

Stewart is fourth in blue line scoring with 41 points in 49 games, while being a cornerstone piece of the Hawks’ top-five penalty kill, clicking at over 83 per cent.

Up front, the two teams also boast no shortage of star power, with five of the top eight in league scoring, including four of the top five on the Battlefords.

Stars’ forward Kian Bell leads the league with 52 goals and 94 points in just 48 games, having scored nine goals and 18 points on his current six-game point streak. Holden Doell is second overall with 91 points in 46 games, including a league-best 62 assists and 1.98 points per game, with three goals and 12 points over his last five games.

Jake Southgate, who has five goals and nine points over his last five games, sits third in league scoring with 76 points (23 goals, 53 assists) in 51 games; while Steven Kesslering rounds out the top five in league points with 62 (35 goals, 27 assists) in 51, including seven goals and 13 points over his last six.

Nipawin are led offensively by Alex Johnson, whose 55 points (13 goals, 42 assists) in 52 games are tied for seventh in scoring, having tallied three goals and 15 points over his last 10 games.

Braxton Buckberger (45 points) and Carson Dobson (44 points) sit second and third in Hawks’ scoring, as Buckberger enters play with two goals and five points over his last four games, while Dobson – a former Battlefords AAA Stars captain – has four goals and 11 points over his last 10 games.

Between the pipes, the North Stars will give the nod to goalie Justen Maric, to make his first start since returning from his call-up with the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League. In 15 games this season, Maric is 14-1-0-0 with a 2.52 goals against average and .932 save percentage.

At the other end, the Hawks are likely to call on starting netminder Jackson Fellner. The 19-year-old Regina product also has ties to the Battlefords, having played two seasons with the AAA Stars from ’19-21. In 31 games this year, Fellner is 18-11-1-0 with a 2.97 goals against average and .899 save percentage.

Tuesday’s game will be available on 1050 CJNB. The Ultra Print Pregame Show will begin at 7 p.m., with puck drop at 7:30 p.m. on the NAPA Auto Parts North Stars Hockey Broadcast.

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1