The Melfort Mustangs were the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League's top team all season long, and cemented their status as one of the top Junior A teams in Canada on Sunday night with a 3-0 shutout win over the Weyburn Redwings to take home their second straight SJHL league title.
The Mustangs won the series in five games after dropping the opener back on April 19. Melfort responded after the 2-1 loss by only allowing one goal the rest of the series, outscoring the Red Wings 12-1 on route to the championship.
Two mainstays with the Mustangs during their championship runs have been Kerrobert native and third line centre for the Mustangs Austin Shepherd, and Macklin's Tye Scherger behind the bench as an assistant coach, capping off the team's amazing 2024-25 campaign last night by hoisting the Canterra Seeds Cup for the second year in a row.
Shepherd is one of six Mustangs on the team this year that ran the table to the finals last season. The team didn't miss a beat during the regular season finishing 46-8-0-2, and then Melfort went 12-2 during the SJHL postseason, their other loss outside of Game 1 coming to the Kindersley Jr. Klippers in a first round OT thriller.
Now the Mustangs will get set for their second straight appearance at the Centennial Cup, taking place in Calgary this year. Melfort will be looking for a similar run to last year in Oakville, Ontario where the Mustangs made a run to the final, losing out in the national championship game to the Collingwood Blues in a 1-0 heartbreaker.
The Mustangs will have a week of practice before heading west. The Centennial Cup runs May 8-18 out of the Max Bell Centre in Calgary.