The La Ronge Ice Wolves found a way to get two points when they solved the Melfort Mustangs 6-5 in overtime Friday at the Mel Hegland Uniplex.
“Going up against Melfort, we know they have a good team, so it was going to take a 60-minute effort,” said Ice Wolves Asst. Coach Kyle Schneider. “We bent in the third, but we didn’t break. Our guys stuck together – we weren’t going to be denied tonight.”
Mason Bueckert ended the game 20 seconds into the extra session when he beat James Venne for his second of the evening. Jacob Hufty also scored twice for the Ice Wolves, while Rylan Silzer and Parker Layton also tallied. Topher Chirico made 23 saves for his eighth win of the season.
Aidyn Hutchinson scored three times for Melfort, while Nolan Patterson and Zac Somers rounded out the attack for the Mustangs. James Venne stopped 37 shots in a losing cause.
“It was a very important game for us,” said Bueckert. “Obviously, this weekend is really important. I think we came prepared and we had a lot of goal-scoring tonight, so that really helped us.”
With the win, the Ice Wolves improved to 10-20-3 on the campaign, which has them sitting 11th in the SJHL standings. After Friday’s action, the Ice Wolves are just five points back of the Estevan Bruins for the final playoff spot.
The Ice Wolves will look for their second straight win Saturday night in Nipawin when they face the Hawks.