North Stars to run with the Mustangs tonight

The Battlefords North Stars are back in action tonight, as they welcome the Melfort Mustangs to town.

The North Stars are 3-0-1 over their last four games and sit just one point back of Kindersley for second place in the Global Ag. Risk Solutions Division.

Melfort meanwhile, boasts the top power play percentage in the league, while riding high, entering play on the strength of a three-game winning streak.

The Stars are the owners of the third-best offence league-wide having put up 84 goals through their first 22 games, thanks to elite scoring numbers from their key cogs up front, along with consistent depth of scoring throughout the lineup.  

Quintin Loon-Stewardson, who was given an opportunity alongside MacGregor Sinclair and Ryan Gil on the team’s top line Saturday night, will reprise his role there once again this evening, after scoring his fourth goal of the season in the contest and fourth in his last five games.

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The North Stars’ second line, proved to lead the way Saturday, with Braydon Buziak getting a hattrick and two assists, while Owen Lamb bookended the scoring with tallies coming within the first minute of play and final minute of action. Elijah Loon Stewardson also had an assist on the night. The unit will hope to bring an encore performance for the Stars’ hometown crowd this evening.  

Brett Gammer brings a solid two-way presence to anchor line three, with Regan Doig to his right and Matthias Urbanski on his left. Urbanski, who leads the team with 11 goals on the season, was moved alongside Gammer and Doig last ahead of last game, in a move that provides another scoring threat on this unit, with speed to burn and savvy playmaking chops also within his repertoire.  

Kaden Boser, Dylan Esau and Logan Spence on line four bring equal parts speed and grit to the fold, providing the Stars’ coaching staff another conglomerate capable of chipping in with some offensive spark when needed.

On the blue line, defenceman Cody Spagrud is coming off a game that saw the defender pick up three assists along with 17 minutes in penalties, thanks to a show of leadership that saw the Stars’ captain stand up for his teammate, after a fellow Star was caught on the receiving end of a knee-on-knee collision.

Spagrud will be joined by Noah Form on the team’s top pairing, with the duo having established themselves as an elite force in the SJHL.

Seth Summers and Matthew Fletcher on pair two are coming off a game that saw the pair long a ton of ice time after both Spagrud and Shumanski were escorted out of game action for separate fighting majors.

Austin Shumanski’s scrap last game served as the Hafford, Sask., product’s first of the season and put the opposition on notice that when an altercation does ensue, the tower of strength wearing number 20 on the backend for the Stars, will be no shortage of a handful and then some. Shumanski will be joined by Ryan Granville to make up pair three.

Goaltender Joel Grzybowski will return between the pipes tonight for his team, after getting a game’s rest on Saturday. Grzybowski will enter play having played spectacular as of late, posting a .947 save percentage over his last two starts.

Fans of the North Stars can catch all the action at the North Battleford Civic Centre and on 1050 CJNB with pregame starting at 7:15 p.m. and puck drop to follow at 7:30 p.m.

North Stars lineup

Forwards:

Q. Loon-Stewardson, M. Sinclair, R. Gil

E. Loon-Stewardson, B. Buziak, O. Lamb

M. Urbanski, B. Gammer, R. Doig

K. Boser, D. Esau, L. Spence

Defencemen:

N. Form, C. Spagrud

S. Summers, M. Fletcher

A. Shumanski, R. Granville  

Goaltenders:

J. Grzybowski

A. Dmyterko

Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1