The Hawks and Broncos will face-off agaisnt each other in a home-and-home series this weekend. (Clark Stork/northeastNOW Staff)

By Clark Stork

Friday Night Lights

Hawks and Humboldt set for home-and-home series

Feb 24, 2023 | 12:29 PM

The Hawks will host Humboldt Friday at the Centennial Arena for the first time since October.

Nipawin is battling for the final couple Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) playoff positions while the Broncos are poised to lockdown second place behind the Battlefords North Stars. Nipawin head coach Tad Kozun said his club needs to prove itself against the top teams in the league.

“We’re being realistic and we’re going to have to play one of these teams first round of the playoffs so we have to show we can play with them and compete with them every night,” Kozun said.

Humboldt hammered the Hawks 11-4 earlier this season in Nipawin before the Hawks put up a much better fight the next night at the Elgar Petersen Arena falling 4-3. Humboldt has just an overtime loss to Nipawin in the last couple years, Kozun said the team can’t focus on previous results heading into Friday’s matchup.

“We just have to make sure we take care of what we can control,” he added. “We just need to focus on our own locker room and make sure we’re ready and focused on the game tonight.”

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Nipawin has been collecting points of late despite losing three of their last four games. The Hawks picked up points in overtime losses to Estevan and Kindersley, sandwiched a win over the Weyburn Red Wings between those contests. The Hawks were declawed 6-4 by Flin Flon Tuesday at the ‘Cage.’

Since wining seven of ten games in January the Hawks have sputtered in February winning just once in six games. Kozun said the Hawks need everyone playing their best going into this weekend’s home-and-home against the Broncos.

“We definitely need some guys to step up,” Kozun admitted. “There is some guys that are snake-bit and things aren’t going their way. We need them to work hard and get their groove back because we’re going to need everybody down the stretch.”

Friday’s game faces off at 7 p.m., Saturday’s rematch in Humboldt begins at 7:30 p.m. The broadcast of Rona Nipawin Hawks Hockey will start at 7:15 on 750 Beach Radio.

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clark.stork@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @ClarkStork