The Battlefords North Stars dropped their sixth consecutive game with a 6-2 loss to the Warman Wolverines in Warman.
“It’s frustrating. I’m at a bit of a loss right now,” said North Stars assistant coach Owen Lamb after the game.
“It feels like we start off with a good start. Things could be going our way if we capitalize on some of our opportunities, and we’re struggling with that right now. Things just slowly deteriorate and fall apart, and we’re just kind of stuck in this loop right now.”
The Wolverines opened the scoring when Owen Parks collected the puck during a scramble in front after North Stars goaltender Chase Kettles made a pair of saves. Parks scored his second goal in as many games to give Warman a 1-0 lead at 5:57 of the first period.
Despite multiple chances for the North Stars in the opening period, Warman carried the lead into the second.
After one: 1-0 Wolverines, shots 16-15 Wolverines
As in previous games, the second period proved troublesome for the North Stars.
Warman took a 2-0 lead on the power play at 2:01 of the second period when Ashton Lee snapped the puck past Kettles from the slot.
Finlay Klippenstein quickly answered for the North Stars, taking a pass from Grady Hodgins on the left side of the slot and firing it past a sliding Luke Brunen. Klippenstein’s fourth goal of the season cut the Wolverines’ lead to 2-1 and gave Hodgins his first Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League point.
The Wolverines restored their two-goal lead a couple of minutes later at 4:34 when Charlie Morton’s dump-in bounced off a stanchion and onto the stick of Noah Derouin. Alone in front, Derouin scored his first goal as a Wolverine to make it 3-1.
Trey Markus scored the Wolverines’ second power-play goal of the game at 11:54. Kettles moved across the crease to stop Markus’ initial shot from in close, then stopped the rebound attempt as well.
Markus stayed with the puck and tucked it past a sprawling Kettles on the Wolverines’ third chance to make it 4-1.
“We need to pick up those sticks. We need to be hard and clear those rebounds so that Kettles can cover those pucks and really take control of the game. It really just wasn’t good enough tonight,” said Lamb.
Warman wasn’t done in the second period. Peyton Allard found Nate Crashley in front of the net, but Kettles stopped Crashley’s initial shot. Allard slipped around the net to bury the rebound for his fourth goal of the season and a 5-1 lead.
The North Stars have now allowed 15 goals in the second period in their last three games.
After two: 5-1 Wolverines, shots 22-10 Wolverines, 38-25 Wolverines total
The North Stars got one back at 6:07 of the third period when Cole Hines scored his second goal of the season on a two-on-one.
Before the midway point of the period, Crashley scored shorthanded on his own rebound to restore the Wolverines’ four-goal lead and round out the scoring.
Final score: 6-2 Wolverines, shots 12-8 North Stars, 46-37 Wolverines total
In each of their last two games, the North Stars have had a retaliatory play result in four-on-four hockey instead of a power play.
“It’s key moments where we’re shooting ourselves in the foot,” Lamb said.
“We’ve got an opportunity to come back in a game with a power play goal, end up making it four-on-four and obviously a little more difficult to put one in the back end in that situation. So we really got to clean that up.”
The North Stars’ first overnight trip of the season is this weekend, something Lamb thinks could benefit the team.
“It can be good for that team camaraderie and getting a little bit further away from home,” he said. “So maybe it’ll be a good change for us.”
The North Stars visit the Melville Millionaires on Friday as they look to snap their six-game losing streak.
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