The La Ronge Ice Wolves picked up their second straight win on Wednesday in Estevan when they dumped the Bruins 2-1.
Following a scoreless first period, the Ice Wolves opened the scoring 12:04 into the second when Jordan Mish tallied his second of the campaign on the doorstep.
Chad Duran got the start in net for the Ice Wolves and recorded the win with a 32-save performance. Duran made some big stops in the second, as the Wolves were outshot 13-5 in that stanza.
“It was definitely a complete effort, 60 minutes is what we need to do to win hockey games,” said Ice Wolves Assistant Coach Gaelan Patterson. “We came out of the gates pretty hot, we kept going. It wasn’t perfect, but we got the win, so that’s the important thing.”
The Bruins tied the game at one 12:04 into the third when Bryce Platt walked into the La Ronge zone and launched a rocket past Duran.
The Estevan goal did not seem to phase the Ice Wolves though, they kept battling and were rewarded late with the eventual game-winner. With just under three minutes left in the third frame, Josh Poon made a big hit near the Estevan net and then fed Max Kleiner, who wired home his first SJHL goal in the slot.
“Max — he’s a been a guy from day one, we really liked everything he’s been doing,” said Ice Wolves Assistant Coach Gaelan Patterson. “It’s just really good to see him (Kleiner) get rewarded there.”
MacRae Setoguchi and Peyton Malcolm both played their first game with the Ice Wolves on Wednesday. Antonio Di Paolo and Zach Bannister returned to the lineup.
With the win, the Ice Wolves improved to 3-6 on the campaign, which has them in tenth in the overall standings. La Ronge has now won three of its past four games.
The Ice Wolves search for their third straight win on Friday in Weyburn against the Red Wings. You can catch Friday’s game on MBC, the pre-game show starts at 7:15 p.m. with Braden Malsbury.
(PHOTO: The Ice Wolves started a trip in Estevan on Wednesday. Photo by Braden Malsbury.)