It was another valiant effort from the Humboldt Broncos on Sunday afternoon against the Nipawin Hawks, but a third-period comeback attempt came up short as the Broncos suffered a 3-2 loss.
The Broncos dropped their second straight game but remain tied with the Melville Millionaires for the final playoff spot in the SJHL.
Nipawin opened the scoring late in the first period when Will Whitter’s high-rising shot snuck in under the crossbar to give the Hawks the early lead.
Early in the second period, Nipawin took advantage of a Broncos turnover in their own end. Braeden Jockims finished off an odd-man advantage the other way, extending the Hawks’ lead to 2–0.
Another odd-man advantage for the Hawks led to another goal, as Mason Lowther scored to put Nipawin ahead 3–0 after two periods.
The Broncos battled back in the third period, with Tyce Penrod capitalizing on a shorthanded marker to cut the deficit to two.
Humboldt pulled within one shortly after a power play expired when Oliver Phillips knocked in a loose rebound. Marik Mamic picked up an assist on the goal, the veteran’s first point since returning to the lineup after missing the start of the season while recovering from an offseason injury.
That was as close as the Broncos would get, as they were unable to find the tying goal.
It was another strong night for Humboldt’s penalty kill, successfully killing off nine penalties, including a pair of four-minute power plays. The Broncos were unsuccessful on all six of their power-play opportunities.
Brady Holtvogt made 34 saves in the loss.
With the Broncos and Hawks meeting for the second time in three days, there was plenty of bad blood between the two teams. Broncos forward Kristian Lacelle and Hawks forward Mason Eggen dropped the mitts in the first period. Later, in the third period, Logan Flint and Noah Derouin were each assessed fighting majors.
Following the game, associate coach Carter Hansen was pleased with the Broncos’ effort despite the loss.
“It’s a great effort, and when you look at this weekend as a whole, especially with everything going on here, we definitely deserved at least two points out of this weekend some way, somehow,” said Hansen.
He added, “Now we’ve got to find a way to get results because the effort has been fantastic.”
Even without picking up any points on the weekend, Hansen said the Broncos’ confidence should be boosted by their performance.
“When these guys play hard and play the right way, they can compete with anyone.”
The Broncos return to action Tuesday night when they host at Elgar Petersen Arena.
Pregame coverage on 107.5 Bolt FM begins at 7:15 p.m., with puck drop set for 7:30 p.m
(Blaine Weyland - Discover Humboldt) Photo Credits - Marla Possberg
