Ice Wolves dump Mustangs 

The La Ronge Ice Wolves kicked off the post-season with a thrilling 3-1 win in Melfort over the Mustangs Friday evening.

“Obviously, starting on the road here, we knew Melfort was going to come out hard, but we answered that really well,” said Ice Wolves Asst. Coach Kyle Schneider. “We had a great first period – second period, we started to chase a little bit. In the third, big goal by Kale Taylor, nice play by Jake Cossette to get that two-goal lead.”

The Mustangs got on the board first at the 5:03 mark of the first when Aidyn Hutchinson beat Dawson Smith, who was brilliant, stopping 35 shots for the victory.

The Ice Wolves tied the game shortly after when Jacob Cossette sent a rocket past Joel Favreau for his first of the series. Cossette was a thorn in the side of Melfort all night long, leading the Ice Wolves in the hits department. 

La Ronge took a 2-1 advantage 17:04 into the opening stanza when Dylan Handel fed Dallyn Peekeekoot, who sent a blistering shot into the back of the cage. 

Neither team scored in the second as both goalies shut the door. The Ice Wolves added some insurance 6:58 into the third after Kale Taylor directed the biscuit upstairs on Favreau. 

“I thought we started off really physical, we got pucks deep, kept it simple and I think the bounces went our way,” said Ice Wolves forward Jacob Cossette. 

The Ice Wolves lead this best-of-seven 1-0 versus the Mustangs following Friday’s victory. La Ronge will try to take a 2-0 series advantage Saturday in Melfort when the series resumes at Northern Lights Palace. 

Games three and four are slated for Tuesday and Wednesday at the Mel Hegland Uniplex in La Ronge.