The Flin Flon Bombers posted back to back wins on the opening weekend of the SJHL regular season at the expense of their division rivals from Nipawin.
Friday the Bombers opened up the season with a 4-3 win in ot in front of 1,200 strong at the Whitney Forum.
The Bombers started strong when Brandon Lesko opened up the scoring 2 minutes into the second period. Nipawin answered with a 3 on 5 short handed goal from Baetson to tie the game. Flin Flon was able to respond just a minute later on the same powerplay when Nik Shumlanski buried his first of the season.
Flin Flon took a 2-1 lead into the third before the Hawks scored 2 goals midway through the period to quiet the crowd at 3-2.
It looked like the Hawks might hang on but with less than 2 minutes remaining, new comer Keegin Mathew scored the only even strength goal of the game placing a nice wrist shot past rookie netminder Visscher to tie the game and send it to ot.
Just like the NHL, the SJHL will decide ot games this year 3 on 3. I haven't been a big fan of a lot of the moves the SJ have made recently, but I really do like this. It is fun for the players and really exciting for the fans.
It didn't take the Bombers long to win it in the extra frame. Another newcomer Dondre Watson picked up the puck in front of the Hawk net during a mad scramble which saw the Hawk goalie Visscher lose his mask, but play continued and Watson fired it up into the empty net.
Everybody expected the play to be whistled down, but the referee signalled goal and the Bombers celebrated the victory in front of the Whitney Forum faithful. No explanation was given for why the official never blew this play dead.
Final shots Flin Flon 39, Nipawin 25 and powerplays saw The Bombers 2 for 7 while the Hawks were 2 for 4.
The two teams would head to Nipawin to complete the home and home Saturday and it took the Bombers only 1:13 to decide this one on a fluke goal that fooled the usually steady Kristian Stead.
Joseph Leonidas flipped a harmless looking shot on goal that caught the top of Stead's glove and dropped in behind him to put Flin Flon on the board before some fans had found their way to their seats.
That would hold up til early in the third when Kristian St.Onge tapped in a perfect pass from Hooper in behind the Hawk net to pad the lead 2-0.
No more goals were needed as the Bombers held the Hawks to just 18 shots and picked up their second straight victory 2-0. Brenden Newton was in net for the second straight night and was sharp when he had to be to pick up his second career shutout.
Stead made his first start of the year and stopped 27 out of 29 shots.
Neither team capitalized on the powerplay as the Bombers were 0 for 2, and Nipawin went 0 for 4.
Next up for the Bombers is another division opponent the Laronge Ive Wolves, who they will play in a home and home this weekend. We will broadcast the second game from Laronge Saturday with the Murray GM Coach's Show at 7:45 and play by play at 8 MB time.
