(Photo courtesy/Broad Leaf Media, Facebook)

By Ben Tompkins

Until Next Year

Mustangs say goodbye to 2022-23 SJHL season

Apr 13, 2023 | 12:59 PM

The Melfort Mustangs are now a week removed from their final game of the 2022-23 Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) season.

Last Wednesday, their season officially came to an end, after the league’s top-ranked Battlefords North Stars swept them in the second round of the playoffs.

But after finishing the regular season with a top-four record in the league, and winning their first-round series against the La Ronge Ice Wolves 4-2, it felt like a consensus around the community that the team had a lot to be proud of.

“Overall, very happy with the efforts and how the guys paid the price and really left it all out on the ice,” Mustangs head coach and general manager Trevor Blevins told northeastNOW. “Just very proud of how the players really did all they could, and they left it out there for Melfort and the Mustangs, so they should be very proud of themselves.”

For the group though, it was a bit of a disappointing end to the season, as it felt like this team was so close to playing for the CANTERRA SEEDS Cup, yet so far away.

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Blevins added, with the team that they had, it feels like there’s still unfinished business and that they could have come away with a much better result.

“The expectation is always to win championships, and when you have a team that’s competitive, and in the mix, that’s where you want to be. We had 10 guys really under the weather at the end, so it was bad timing, but it is what it is, and they did all they could, and that’s all you can ask for at the end of the day. We’re extremely grateful for the efforts that the guys put in.”

And this Mustangs team will look a whole lot different next year, as eight players have played their final games in blue and green, after graduating from their 20-year-old seasons.

Captain Ben Tkachuk, assistant captains Clarke Huxley and Dawson Leroux, starting netminder Joel Favreau, three of their top-four defensemen Hayden Tuba, Kevin Minnoch and Leyton Holoien, and spark plug Boston Maxwell have now all finished their SJHL careers.

“We got to celebrate them, for sure, and they deserve it, all eight 20-year-olds brought it every day on and off the ice,” explained Blevins. “They were the core group of leaders, and the core of the play for us, and really was a pleasure to coach probably one of the best groups of 20-year-olds I’ve ever had.”

“It showed with their success, they will be missed, and we wish them all the best in their future. They all have great futures, whether it’s in hockey or in life, so I can’t thank them enough for what they’ve done for this organization.”

Recruiting has already begun for next year, as Blevins has been committing players, since the start of this season.

He mentioned that he believes they are returning with a good core group of players and have a lot to be excited about next year.

“We’re always in the mix here in Melfort and we take pride in that and we’ve always had that kind of winning culture and that’s gonna continue.”

As for one final message he wanted to make sure was heard, was just how much this fanbase is appreciated by the organization, and how much of a difference it makes on the club, day in and day out.

“Really thankful to the fans for coming out in playoffs, I think our attendance was up a huge amount percentage-wise, so thank you Melfort for supporting the team and supporting our group.”

“It’s great to see the energy in the crowd and the boys fed off the atmosphere, it was definitely appreciated by the team, and I know it helped us in our home games to have lots of energy, so thanks again to Melfort for that.”

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Ben.Tompkins@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter @BenTompkins_8