The Melfort Mustangs celebrate after a 3-0 shutout over the Humboldt Broncos at Northern Lights Palace. (Aaron Schulze/northeastNOW Staff)

By Aaron Schulze

Commanding Win

Mustangs win latest horse race, shut out Broncos 3-0

Dec 7, 2019 | 11:27 AM

It’s parent/billet weekend for the Melfort Mustangs, and there was no other fitting way for the players to say “thank you” than a 3-0 shutout over the Humboldt Broncos.

The first half of the showdown between horse-themed teams was scoreless on Friday at Northern Lights Palace. Captain Tyson Meyers eventually struck first for the Mustangs after banking in Zach Anderson’s sharp angle shot.

Going forward from the first period, Mustangs Head Coach Trevor Blevins felt his squad played more confident with possession of the puck, even with a 26-11 shots on goal advantage after two periods.

“It was pretty bouncy for us in the first period but we were decent defensively,” Blevins said. “I’m pretty proud of how we stuck with it tonight. It’s a carryover from (the 2-1 win in) Melville, with the fact we didn’t get frustrated when the puck wasn’t going in the net for us.”

Tian Rask, a 20-year-old forward who was recently acquired from the Canmore Eagles in Alberta, scored his first career Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) goal by jumping on a loose puck in front of the Broncos’ crease.

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He scored one assist in seven games for the Broncos before spending three seasons with Canmore from 2017 to 2019.

northeastNOW asked Rask if it felt odd to score against his former team.

“The last time I played for the Broncos I was 15 or 16 years old. It feels like a long time ago, so no,” Rask laughed. “If anything I wanted to give it to them a little bit.”

Friday marked Rask’s second game with the Mustangs since he was acquired.

“The guys took me in like one of their own,” he said. “I know a few guys like (Nolan) Kadachuk and (Tyson) Meyers, but coming in here I love all of them. They’re all great guys and we’re having a blast. Winning makes it that much better.”

Forward Kenzie Arnold scored an empty net goal with 26 seconds remaining in the third period to seal the 3-0 win.

With 21 saves, Tanner Martin recorded his second SJHL shutout of the 2019-20 season. Blevins called the 18-year-old goaltender excellent and Rask said prevented the Broncos from gaining momentum.

Martin knew he wouldn’t face many shots on net throughout the game after only making 11 saves through two periods, saying his team played well defensively all night. But he tracked the puck and stayed focus whenever the Broncos had an odd man rush or point-blank scoring chance.

“One thing I always say to myself is there will be times their team steps up and gets chances,” Martin said. “I just have to be prepared to stop those. It’s really tough when you’re not getting many shots. I zone out so many times in games like this, I don’t even know what to do.”

The shutout leaves Martin with a 0.912 save percentage, 2.28 goals against average, and a 6-2-1 record through 10 games of his first season of Junior A hockey. The former Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League goaltender with the Tisdale Trojans credits his assistant coach Trevor Logan and fellow netminder Shawn Parkinson for helping him transition to the SJHL.

Looking ahead

Following the win against the Broncos, the Mustangs sit third in the overall SJHL standings with a 19-8-2-1 record. They trail the Flin Flon Bombers by three points for the Sherwood Division lead.

Next up, the Mustangs conclude parent/billet weekend when they host the Yorkton Terriers on Saturday, Dec. 7 at Northern Lights Palace with puck drop at 7:30 p.m.

Blevins knows it’ll be tough to shutdown the SJHL’s best offence, especially with the league’s leading scorer Chantz Petruic (33 goals and 33 assists in 33 games).

“We have to pay attention to him when he’s on the ice,” he said. “They made some changes and look like a much different team than when we played them last. The big key is going to play hard against their forwards and take away their time and space.”

Rask might take it upon himself to shut down Petruic and the Terriers offence.

“I think I’m the guy to get in his head a little bit,” he laughed. “I like to muck it up a little bit, throw some chirps here and there. It’s why I love hockey.”

Scoring Summary

First Period

No score.

Second Period

1-0, Mustangs, Tyson Meyers (8) from Zach Anderson (12) and Colton Schell (11), 12:15

Third Period

2-0, Mustangs, Tian Rask (1) from Kenzie Arnold (12) and Kyle Bosch (19), 4:58

3-0, Mustangs, Kenzie Arnold (3) from Kyle Bosch (20), 19:34

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aaron.schulze@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @SchulzePANow