BY Jonathan Huntington
SASKATOON – Two periods don’t make a season, but two huge third-period comebacks this week have given the Battlefords Stars some critical room to breathe in the playoff race.
The Stars entered this week in the final playoff spot in the SMAAAHL – clinging to a one-point lead over the Prince Albert Mintos and a three-point cushion over the Saskatoon Contacts.
Well, thanks to NINE third-period goals against the Saskatoon Contacts on Tuesday and Wednesday – combined – the Stars have jumped into 7th place and have a five-point cushion on the playoff cut-line with 11 games remaining in the regular season.
“We showed a lot of resilience battling back in both games in the third period to pull-out wins,” said Battlefords head coach Martin Smith on Thursday afternoon.
The Stars were down 3-1 early in the third period on the road Tuesday night in Saskatoon, but roared back with five of the next six goals in the final 17:51 of the final frame to win 6-4.
It was a repeat on Wednesday evening with the Stars trailing 2-1 entering the third stanza but scored four of the next five goals to record a 5-3 victory.
Maybe the most impressive stat is that seven Stars combined to score those nine third-period goals. “If our team is to be successful we need to score by committee. It’s nice to see some players who have struggled offensively contribute. It also shows the depth we have when we have a full line-up. The two games against the Contacts was the first time in the past few that we didn’t have five players out with injury,” continued Smith.
The Stars are now on a seven-day break before returning to action on Jan. 29th for a high-stakes run to the wire. Battlefords will play 11 games in 23 days to finish the regular season on Feb. 20th.
“There is so much parity in the league this year you can’t take a night off. Every game is huge, especially when you are fighting for a playoff spot,” added Smith. “For us, every game is like a playoff game.”
