The Humboldt Broncos bench cleared just 32 seconds into Saturday night's matchup against the Melville Millionaires at the EPA.
That's because a couple hundred teddy bears hit the ice following the opening goal in the Teddy Bear toss. Broncos help gather up the fuzzy bruins all bound for homes thanks to the Humboldt Community Soup Kitchen.
That early goal, courtesy of Spencer Bell, was the opener on the way to a 5-3 victory for the Broncos.
Dylan Nazareth followed up at 16:10 for an all Broncos first period. Melville started the march back early in the second, but Marik Mamic cancelled it out with an unassisted one timer a minute later.
There were penalty woes on both sides as the two teams exchanged power play goals. The Broncos were caught killing a 5 on 3, but near the close of the second Ben Constantino exacted some revenge with a power play marker.
Constantino continued his season drive with his second of the night and eighth of the season just three minutes into the third. The Mils wouldn’t go away though, and Broncos netminder Ben Motew had his busiest moments as Melville applied pressure right to the final horn. A lone Millionaires goal halfway through the third rounded out the scoring for the 5-2 finish and the W.
The Broncos go up against the Weyburn Red Wings on Friday back at the Uniplex. The Broncos send out thanks to all who brought bears for Humboldt and area families at the Teddy Bear Toss.
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