Mustang defenceman Lucas Ochitwa (Right), fights Broncos forward Justin Jamer in the team's last meeting. (Facebook/Broad Leaf Media)

By Mat Barrett

Mustangs Broncos Weekend

Mustangs looking to get back in win column with home and home versus Broncos

Jan 17, 2020 | 3:00 AM

The Melfort Mustangs are looking to get back to their winning ways this weekend after losing three straight games for the first time in regular season play since mid-January of last season.

Melfort fell to Nipawin in the second game of 2020 in overtime to start their losing skid. That was followed by a 9-0 drubbing at the hands of the Flin Flon Bombers on Saturday, Jan. 11. Most recently, it was a 3-2 loss to the La Ronge Ice Wolves at home on Wednesday. However, the Mustangs still sit fifth in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) standings with a 22-14-3-1 record, and have games in hand on mostly every team around them.

One contributor to the Mustangs small skid could be the injury bug. Some key veterans including Alex Rondeau, and Tian Rask were gone for multiple weeks, while others like Tyson Meyers and Zach Anderson have missed a couple of games as well. Top it off with the Mustangs adding a couple of new defencemen at the SJHL’s trade deadline, there hasn’t been much consistency in the Mustangs lineup over the last month. Forward Ben Tkachuk said with Rondeau having returned on Wednesday, and Rask getting back on Saturday, along with some other veterans getting close to returning, things should be on the uptick.

“We’ll be firing on all cylinders sooner rather than later with our big guys back,” Tkachuk told northeastNOW. “But until then, some of the other guys got to pick it up, and I think we’ve been doing a decent job, but we’ll bounce back and we’ll be fine.”

Tkachuk has been stepping up with injuries plaguing the roster. He’s gotten some extended minutes, and some looks on the powerplay in recent games, and scored his first SJHL powerplay goal on Wednesday.

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The Humboldt Broncos are the next ones to stand in the Mustangs way, a matchup that usually sees some theatrics one way or another. In the four games leading up to the Jan. 17 and 18 home and home, two of the four have gone to overtime, and there’s been a total of 32 goals scored in the contests. Melfort has won three out of four. Tkachuk said with their recent slide, a couple games against Humboldt could be just what the doctor ordered.

“We got to zone some of the stuff out, but for the most part playing in Humboldt, Humboldt playing here is always fun,” he said. “A little rivalry with those guys.”

He added even though they’ve been bit by a bit of a bug, only scoring twice in their last two games, there’s no panic.

“We just got to find a way,” Tkachuk said. “We’ve been on the schneid lately but I think we’ll be good.”

Humboldt comes into the weekend seventh in league standings with a 19-16-4-2 record, and are only four points back of Nipawin and Melfort for the next two spots. The Broncos are 3-1-1-0 in the month of January and seemed to be finding offence very easily, scoring 25 goals over that stretch.

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mat.barrett@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @matbarrett6

by Mat Barrett

Mustangs looking to get back in win column with home and home versus Broncos

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