Broncos forward Matthew Van Blaricom and Estevan's Turner McMillen battle it out in the Broncos' zone during a tight game on Oct. 25. The overtime loss at home was only one of three losses in October for the green and gold. (Submitted photo/Becky Zimmer)

By Becky Zimmer

October Action

Extra time a challenge for Broncos, strong showing in standings with road game dominating November

Oct 30, 2023 | 11:07 AM

The Humboldt Broncos are maintaining another strong season as they capped off October action with some thrilling games.

Although that was the story across the league with 13 games going into either overtime or shootout action in October, the Broncos were not immune to close calls. Even sitting first in the league’s new Nutrien Division with 23 points, as well as second overall behind the Flin Flon Bombers, the green and gold took one win out of four of their overtime and shootout chances.

Assistant coach Carter Hansen said that is just a testament to how tight the league is with not a lot of disparity between the top of the standings and the bottom at the moment.

“We prefer to just get the two points the easy way, but when this many teams are going into overtime and a shootout, I think it’s…exciting for the league, exciting for the people that are here.”

The home and home series against the Battleford North Stars ended with two games that were practically mirror images of each other, in both cases with the away team taking the W in shootout wins. Taking three points against last year’s second place Canadian Junior Hockey League team is nothing to frown at, said Hansen and with this being the first regular season series against Battleford, it was also a good lesson for the many new Broncos on the roster.

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“This is the upper echelon of the SJHL and it’s fast. It’s a fast game, it’s a good game, and we got to be able to adapt and think at a higher pace and I think they’ve slowly started to figure that out as we went against Battleford.”

The honeymoon phase of the season is now over, said Hansen, and he’s already seen a lot of players making some adjustments. But it’s going to be a long season with more bumps and bruises expected along the way. Bronco rookies have been getting their chances for ice time, he said, with veteran players Tristan Serrao, Daylan Weigel, and Matthew Van Blaricom all facing some injuries in October leaving the rookies to pick up the slack.

One consistency this season has been their veteran netminder, Benjamin Motew. With 11 games and a few minutes of extra time under his pads, he is currently sitting at a 0.932 save percentage and 675 minutes in net for the Broncos. With the lowest goals against average in the league at 1.78, Motew is only one of three netminders who are under the two-goal average.

With 11 games in October, offensively the Broncos have been making their mark with 59 goals so far this season while holding all their opponents to under three goals per game.

Six players are now over that 10-point threshold as well, including rookie Connor Thue and captain Cage Newans topping the Broncos list at 18 points while sitting among the league’s best in the SJHL top 10 skaters list. Among them, and the team’s leading scorer right now, is Matthew Van Blaricom with 11 goals to his name so far this season.

The 17-year-old Southey product is coming off a high this week after being named to the National Hockey League Central Scouting (NHLCS) preliminary ‘Players to Watch’ list as a possible sixth or seventh-round pick in the upcoming 2024 NHL draft.

With nine away games coming up in November, being on the road will help build the chemistry among the players, he said, but those games, including two against the first place Flin Flon Bombers, are going to be mentally challenging on each individual player.

“Just focus on yourself, just get ready for every game the same way and just have a mindset where you’re going into a building that’s not yours, but it doesn’t matter. Got to play the same way either way.”

Hansen said, the road trip slog through November will be a lesson for new players. Even though it’s a long way away, when it comes playoff time players will remember their lessons learned from these long months on the road, he said.

Two games in November will be on home ice as the Broncos take on the Nipawin Hawks on Nov. 4 and Melfort Mustangs on Nov. 25. The second week in November will also be a time to shine as the Broncos head to the Legends Centre in Warman for the SJHL Showcase.

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becky.zimmer@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @bex_zim