After a 12 day break, the Flin Flon Bombers will hit the ice for the first time in the new year, welcoming a familliar foe to the Whitney Forum tonight.
The resurgent Laronge Ice Wolves, who have moved to within 5 points of the first place Bombers in the Sherwood Division thanks to a dramatic come from behind 7 to 6 overtime thriller on December the 21st.
Laronge is the hottest team in the league, with points in 8 straight games and have beaten the Bombers in their last three meetings.
Their latest battle is the one that really stings, as Flin Flon had a 6 to 3 lead entering the third period in their own building before the wheels fell off.
Saying that, the Bombers have been a top tier team all season and should be well rested.
There isn't a better team in the league offensively, as the Maroon and White continue to score a lot with 166 goals in 36 games.
Flin Flon has 6 players in the top 20 in league scoring including Cole Rafuse and Alec Malo who are second and third overall with 125 points combined.
Tristan Lemyre tore it up in December, firing 15 points in 7 games and was awarded the SJHL Rookie Of The Month for the second time this season.
On the back end this is a veteran group with the likes of Mason Martin, Dane Hirst and Troy Quinn. Throw in a healthy Jack Michell and this as deep as any group in the league.
The big question entering the stretch drive will be goaltending? Flin Flon as of today only have one capable starter in Jacob Delorme who got hurt just before Christmas.
It looks like Delorme will be ready to go tonight as Flin Flon continue to try and bolster the position after the Matt Sankner trade and Kyle Jessiman electing to go back to the CIS.
Delorme has played a lot, starting 25 games and has had to be counted on every game with out an experienced back up.
I was talking with Head Coach and GM Mike Reagan earlier today and he mentioned that they have a lot of irons in the fire and expect to add a very capable goaltender by the January 10th deadline.
No broadcast tonight, but we will have tomorrow's game from Laronge with the Great North GM Coach's Show kicking things off at 7:10.
