The U18 AAA Estevan Great North Bears had an up-and-down weekend at Affinity Place, delivering a dominant 9-2 win over the Moose Jaw Winmar Warriors on Saturday before falling 7-1 in Sunday’s rematch.
Saturday’s game started with a goal from Cameron Allard, giving the Bears a 1-0 lead after the first period. The second period remained scoreless before the Bears erupted for eight goals in the third. Jase McNichol, Will Nicholson, DJ Brass (2), Boston Schmidt, Roan Burgess, and Cooper Flath (2) all found the back of the net to seal the win.
“We were moving our feet and working smart,” said Bears head coach Ryan Pilon. “We weren’t able to keep the score close for the first and second periods, but the work ethic paid off in the third, and we scored a couple goals to build a good lead and get some empty netters.”
Sunday’s game was much closer early on. Brendan Jones scored for the Bears in the first period, leaving the game tied 1-1 after 20 minutes. The Warriors took a 2-1 lead in the second period before pulling away in the third, scoring five unanswered goals for a 7-1 victory.
Pilon said the Bears still played well despite the final score.
“The second game we played well too. It was a close game up until the third period,” he said. “Then we were able to work on some of our six-on-five stuff live.”
With playoffs approaching, Pilon believes the team is trending in the right direction.
“I think for both teams, in the third period, once everyone got worn down a little bit, it was a good opportunity to get our six-on-five moving,” he said. “We don’t practice it as much in a regular setting, so it was good to work on it live and have that pressure for the players.”
The Warriors currently sit second in the league standings.
“They’re in second place for a reason,” Pilon said. “They play hard, they play physical, they’re in your face all the time. They play fast, and they have a good goaltender, so they come as advertised.”
Pilon said the team is focused on continual improvement as the regular season winds down.
“We talk about always wanting to get better each day, and I thought we did that,” he said. “We want to be playing our best hockey in this stretch heading into playoffs, and I thought we took the right steps.”
The Bears have a busy schedule this week, with three rescheduled games in three days.
“We’ve got Regina tonight, and then the Blazers on Wednesday and Thursday in Oxbow,” Pilon said. “It’ll be good to get out there and get some fans from the community, and hopefully, it’ll be a good couple of games.”
The Bears are still battling for playoff positioning, with a chance to move up to seventh place.
“I want our players to continue playing hard,” Pilon said. “We still have an opportunity to get up into seventh spot and face Moose Jaw, so we need to make sure we’re playing the right way and not taking any steps back.”
Pilon noted the significance of the Bears making the playoffs again.
“Last year was the first time we made playoffs, and it came down to the very last game of the season,” he said. “It means a ton to our program, our staff, and our players. Being an outside team, not close to any big centers, it’s huge to make the playoffs two years in a row.”
The Bears won a playoff game last year against the Blazers, who went on to win the league championship.
“We just want to take another step,” Pilon said. “Whether we’re playing Moose Jaw or Regina, we want to try and make some noise in playoffs.”
He said the team will lean on returning players who have postseason experience.
“We’ll need to rely on those guys to push the bus in playoffs because the pressures are different,” he said. “The mentality of the games, the pressure of each and every shift is so much more magnified. So having that experience will be important for us.”