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Bomber Game Report: Division duel with Nipawin ends with 4-3 Flin Flon win

Flin Flon's division foes didn't give the Bombers an easy matchup at the Forum Saturday night, but the home team would get away with a 4-3 win.
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Bomber Game Report

Flin Flon's division foes didn't give the Bombers an easy matchup at the Forum Saturday night, but the home team would get away with a 4-3 win.

The Bombers moved ahead 3-1 in the season series between them and the Hawks and earned their third straight victory, riding high on a wave of second period offence, quality goaltending and solid defence.

Nipawin entered the game having recently gone on a heater, going 7-2-1-0 in the team's last 10 games. It would be those same upstart Hawks who opened the scoring, with Braxton Buckberger getting a powerplay marker by pouncing on a Harmon Laser-Hume rebound.

That lead wouldn't last, as the Bombers' powerplay unit got their own chance to go up a man about seven minutes in. Flin Flon would tie it up thanks to Cory King's best Jaeden Mercier impression, swinging down from the point to pot a wrister over Nipawin 'tender Damon Cunningham's shoulder.

Heading into the second period tied at one, Nipawin would once again take the lead, this time from rookie Finley Radloff. The forward, after a long scrum in front of Laser-Hume, found the puck loose in the slot and fired it home with a spinning backhand. The Bombers, moments later, would end up stoking controversy as Alexi Sylvestre knocked the puck into an empty net following an offside call, sending him, teammate Alex Von Sprecken and Nipawin's Reese Malkewich to the box.

Despite not having the advantage early, the Bombers took control of the second half of the period, putting up no fewer than three goals in less than seven minutes of game time to end the frame. First, Cole Duperreault scored his 33rd of the season, picking up a pass after Von Sprecken tried to convert a breakaway, missed but gathered his rebound and fed it outfront. Moments later on a powerplay, a Reece Richmond point shot was tipped in front of Cunningham by Zach Cain and into the goal, giving the Bombers the lead - one they wouldn't relinquish.

Jeremi Tremblay ended the goal fiesta with less than a minute left in the period. Cain picked off a Hawks turnover, finding Tremblay in the slot and leaving the Quebec City native to do the rest, dangling out Cunningham and scoring his 26th of the year to send the Bombers into the break with a 4-2 lead.

The Hawks did their best to mount a comeback in the third, outshooting the Bombers 16-4, but only one of those 16 shots made it past Laser-Hume - a powerplay marker midway through the period by Joel Mabin. Nipawin pulled Cunningham with about a minute and 20 seconds to go, but it made no effect - the Bombers stood tall and earned their 27th win of the year.

Laser-Hume got the win against the same team that traded him to Flin Flon for a bag of cash earlier this season, having a 37-save showing, 15 of which were made in the third period. Cunningham was saddled with the L, having stopped 32 pucks.

The victory did come at a cost though - defenceman Cole Tanchuk took an awkward hit off the dasher board late in the third and was later taken to the dressing room. He did not return to the game.

The Bombers are currently tied with Humboldt for third in the league standings - both teams have played 41 games and have 57 points. Battlefords stays on top with 81 points, while La Ronge remains both second in the league and tops in the Sherwood division with 59 points - two up on the Bombers and Broncos, despite the Ice Wolves having played a whopping six more games than either team.

The home win was the chaser for the shot that will be the Bombers' next week of play - the team's final four-games-in-five-nights southern road swing starts Wednesday, with the Bombers facing Yorkton Feb. 8, Weyburn Feb. 9, Estevan Feb. 11 and Notre Dame Feb. 12.

Once that wraps up, Flin Flon and the Bomber faithful will face their biggest test of the year - a weekend set at the Whitney Forum against the league-leading Battlefords North Stars, the Stars' first and only regular season games in Flin Flon this regular season, set for Feb. 17 and 18.

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