The La Ronge Ice Wolves continued their week with a tough 5-2 loss at home Friday to the Humboldt Broncos.
“I thought we played a very exceptional 55 minutes tonight,” said Ice Wolves Head Coach/GM Kevin Kaminski. “We took a nap and they capitalized on some puck watching.”
Karl Soneff turned away 34 shots in a losing cause in the La Ronge net. It was Soneff’s first start since Nov. 14 when he faced the Humboldt Broncos at the SJHL Showcase in Warman.
Raine Hodge and Dayton Deschamps scored for the Ice Wolves. For Deschamps, it was his first goal in the SJHL. The Saskatoon, SK product was called up from the Saskatoon Blazers of the U18 AAA ranks.
“I thought Dayton played a fantastic game,” said Kaminski. “He’s a heads-up hockey player. He knows what he’s going to do before he gets the puck, he knows his options. He made some great plays.”
Ben Costantino, Patrick Lanthier, Cage Newans, Connor Miller and Spencer Bell scored for the Broncos. Ben Motew returned to the Humboldt crease and made 24 saves for the win.
With the loss, the Ice Wolves slipped to 7-17-3 on the campaign, which has them ranked 11th in the SJHL standings. La Ronge is currently seven points back of Estevan for the final playoff spot.
The Ice Wolves will look to end a two-game slide Saturday night on home ice when they welcome the Yorkton Terriers to town for a 7:30 p.m. puck drop.