The La Ronge Ice Wolves showed resilience early but couldn’t contain a surging Melfort Mustangs attack, falling 8–1 on Saturday night at Northern Lights Palace.
Melfort struck first at 14:59 of the opening frame when Bryson Aikens found a loose puck and pushed it past traffic to give the Mustangs the early lead. La Ronge responded well, regrouping and generating a strong shift that paid off when Justin Berezniuk snapped home his first of the season off a clean setup from Connor Hoemsen and William Knox. The Wolves carried good energy out of that tying goal, but Melfort’s pressure was building, outshooting La Ronge 15–6 in the opening period.
The game swung sharply in the second, where the Mustangs erupted for three quick strikes in under two minutes. Logan Peskett regained the lead for Melfort on a solo effort, followed less than a minute later by Austin Shepherd and then by Reis Nyland converting after a broken play to make it 4–1.
Moments later, Melfort was awarded a penalty shot, but Graham Brown shut the door on Dru Mushumanski to keep La Ronge’s hopes alive. Still, the Ice Wolves struggled to generate any consistent offensive pressure, managing only four shots in the period.
Melfort added four more goals in the final frame. Nyland scored again just before the halfway point, Bo Eisner added a pair—including a power-play marker in the final seconds—and Danton Cox also struck on the man advantage.
The Wolves were shorthanded five times on the night, and the Mustangs made them pay with two late power-play goals. La Ronge managed seven shots in the third but couldn’t find a way to break through Melfort’s structure.
Graham Brown faced 40 shots making 31 saves on the night.
