By Martin Martinson

North Stars clash with Bombers again tonight

Nov 17, 2018 | 12:06 PM

The Battlefords North Stars are coming off a big 3-1 win over the Flin Flon Bombers Friday night at the Civic Centre.

Tonight, the black and silver will again play the Bombers, for the second of three games for the team this weekend.

Coming into the North Stars’ back-to-back, conventional wisdom would suggest the team would need their defensemen to be at their best in order for the team to find success. After all, Flin Flon entered play leading all teams in scoring by a greater than 10-goal margin over second place.

Friday night, the Stars’ defence corps not only answered the bell on the defensive side of the puck but showed great offensive instincts as well, as two of the team’s three goals were scored by the back end.

Cody Spagrud, who tied his previous career-high, notching his fifth goal of the season Friday, will once again be relied upon heavily to set the tone for his club and log a great number of minutes on the team’s top pairing. Spagrud will be joined by blue line savant, Noah Form to his left, who draws back into the lineup and rejoins the captain.

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Matthew Fletcher will lineup by Seth Summers on the second pair tonight, looking to pick up their evident chemistry without skipping a beat. The duo will surely play an invaluable role in limiting the Bombers’ scoring chances, playing big minutes against the Flin Flon top-six forward units.

Jacob Bayne, who chipped in on the offence, scoring his second goal of the season last night, will shift to the right side to play with Austin Shumanski on a unit capable of locking it down at critical points in games.

Up front, MacGregor Sinclair will line up tonight, flanked by Ryan Gil and Quintin Loon-Stewardson on the team’s top line. This rendition of the number one scoring unit will hope to continue to build on the chemistry that has seen the trio combine for five points through their first three games together.

The mix of Elijah Loon-Stewardson, Braydon Buziak and Owen Lamb make up the Stars’ second line and most consistently intact conglomerate. From penalty kill to power play and being used as a matchup line at even strength, this forward contingent plays in all game situations for their team.

Line three is where the Stars really start to showcase their depth of scoring up front, with centreman Brett Gammer, the engine that never stops, between the likes of Regan Doig and Matthias Urbanski.

Urbanski co-leads the Battlefords in scoring, with 27 points, and is one back of Lamb for the club’s goal lead as well, with 12 on the season, thanks to an empty net goal last game to seal the victory for his team.

Dylan Esau is the lone member of the fourth line from the Stars’ last game to remain in the lineup tonight, as the versatile forward will shift from the centre position to the right wing, along with Tanner Robin and Austin Becker, each drawing back into the lineup to provide some added spark and playmaking ability within the bottom six.

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

North Stars lineup at a glance

Forwards:

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

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

M. Urbanski, B. Gammer, R. Doig

A. Becker, T. Robin, D. Esau

Defensemen:

N. Form, C. Spagrud

S. Summers, M. Fletcher

A. Shumanski, J. Bayne

Goaltenders:

J. Grzybowski

A. Dmyterko

Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1