The U18 AAA Great North Estevan Bears faced off against the Yorkton Maulers in two intense, hard-fought games last week. The series was marked by high-scoring drama and relentless competition, as the Bears experienced both a tough overtime setback and a thrilling comeback win.
Thursday’s game ended in a 4-3 overtime loss for the Bears, but head coach Ryan Pilon said he was pleased with how the team started.
“We came out really strong in the first period, were creating a lot of scoring opportunities. I thought their goalie played really well, made a lot of good saves.” While the final result wasn’t what the Bears wanted, Pilon believed they played well overall.
“I think we probably could have done a better job at, you know, bearing down on some of our scoring chances we had, but I thought their goalie played really well and probably deserved to get the win in that game.”
The team rebounded on Saturday with a victory, a game that showcased both offensive firepower and defensive concerns. “Not the way that we want to be playing coming into the last month into our playoff push and into playoffs. It was nice to see that we could score some goals again, but obviously, we need to shore up the defensive side of things,” Pilon said.
“I guess the saving grace in that was that we ended up winning. So, we got the two points.” He noted that while their ability to capitalize on scoring chances helped them in that game, the team will need to tighten up defensively moving forward. “Luckily, in that game, we were able to score on some chances, so it didn’t get magnified as much. But as we get down into our stretch and play some of the top teams, we’re going to have to defend a lot harder on our end to keep pucks out of the net because we aren’t going to be able to score that much against all the teams in the league.”
Pilon said he was happy with the team’s offensive execution, particularly on the power play. “I thought our power play has really started to click in the last few games. Just with puck movement, and now we’re getting the same scoring chances, but now we’re finishing on them,” he said. “So probably the highlight for me would be our power play unit has really started to take off, and that’s what we’re going to need going into this next stretch.”
Pilon credited the Maulers for their effort and physicality, noting that they made the Bears work for every opportunity. “They work extremely hard, and they never quit. That’s kind of what their DNA has been for the last few years. They work extremely hard, defend really hard, and they are very physical. They’re big, and so that poses the threat that we need a massive work ethic,” he said.
He added that some of the Bears’ skilled players stepped up when they matched Yorkton’s intensity. “I thought that the second game on Saturday, some of our top-end skilled guys kind of took over the game with their creativity and their skill when we do match their work ethic.”
This week, the Bears have a tough stretch with three games against three different teams. They’ll start at home on Wednesday against the Notre Dame Hounds, who Pilon said play a high-effort style similar to Yorkton. That same day, the U18 AAA Weyburn Goldwing's team will also play Notre Dame in Estevan. “It will be a good day of hockey, and then I think it will be beneficial for our team to get out on the road again, up north, with Warman and then the Saskatoon Blazers too, so get those road games out of the way and kind of get back into that mentality.”
As the team nears playoffs, Pilon said they are focusing on sharpening their defensive play. “We’re going to shore up a little bit our defensive side of the game, playing hard in our end will then lead to offensive opportunities. So making sure that we’re shoring that up in our practices.” “It’s been a grind, but now the fun hockey starts.”