It was a rollercoaster, it had deep lows and intense highs, but ultimately, it was a Flin Flon loss. Battlefords gave the Bombers their fourth regulation loss this year in an 8-6 thrill ride.
The first period started in ignominy for Flin Flon, with the Bombers giving up a pair of goals early on. An Evan Waldie shot from just inside the blueline was tipped in front by Treycen Wuttunee and got past Kenny Marquart, just 35 seconds into the game. Minutes later, the Bombers scored with another long shot tipped in front - this time, a Gavin Granger shot deflected by Kian Bell.
Less than five minutes in, with just one shot on the board, the Bombers were behind the eight ball. The Stars heavily outshot the Bombers early on, but Flin Flon slowly started to claw back. Carter Anderson nearly got the Bombers on the board, but while his shot beat goalie Logan Cunningham, Granger came back to stop the loose puck.
Flin Flon got a powerplay late in the first period and Justin Lies took full advantage, blowing a slapper so fast it almost had a vapour trail on it past Cunningham, making it 2-1 - the way the score would be after 20 minutes.
The Stars came out with speed in the second and took advantage of an Alexi Sylvestre double-minor for a kneeing call, extending their lead to two when Jackson Allan picked a corner. The Bombers killed off the remainder of the penalty, but were back to being two goals down.
The maroon tide would start coming in midway through the period. Another powerplay led to the Bombers taking advantage midway through the frame, working four-on-three. Jacob Vockler found the puck in the high slot and burned Cunningham, getting the Bombers back to within one and bringing what had been a quiet Whitney Forum crowd back to life.
Controversy came in the second period when the Bombers thought they had tied the game up with a Noah Houle wrister from the point. The referees waved off the goal immediately and the play continued, despite the Bombers celebrating the goal and the goal judge's light going on. Video of the play showed the puck going through Cunningham's five-hole, into the net and off the back post and in, then bouncing out.
After viewing replay of the goal, the referees reversed their original decision, marking it as a good goal. The Bombers had tied it up, much to the chagrin of Stars coach Brayden Klimosko and his team.
Former heavyweight champion boxer Mike Tyson once said "Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face." The two teams, having done that to each other on the scoreboard, turned the game into an offensive slugfest.
The Stars responded almost immediately, with Josh Karman getting the puck and firing it right past Marquart to give the visitors a 4-3 lead, just 16 seconds after the tying goal was counted. That wouldn't last long either, as 11 seconds after that, the Bombers got on the board again, re-tying the game with a pinpoint blast by Sylvestre.
After a whirlwind of activity, the game was tied again, this time at 4-all. With both teams doing their punches on the scoreboard, the rest of the second was a flailing free-for-all, with both teams seeking every chance they could find.
The Bombers took advantage of the feeding frenzy with two minutes to go. After burying Karman in the corner with a check, Sylvestre walked into the Stars' slot and beat Cunningham in close, giving the Bombers their first lead of the game. Karman was taken to the dressing room hurt, but came back to play in the third.
The Stars would not go gently into that goodnight though, as they would tie the game back up in the final minute of the second. Ben Portner went on a wraparound and squeezed a goal in between Marquart's legs. That goal would end a wild period of hockey, tied 5-all.
Early in the third, the Bombers got another chance with a man advantage and Cunningham robbed Lies in close, then Anthony Bax and Anthony Piccininno both hit the goalpost seconds apart. The Stars killed off the penalty and, midway through the frame, got the lead back. Waldie jumped on a Bomber defensive zone giveaway, fed it to Hunter Burgeson and he slid one underneath Marquart and in the net, putting the visitors up 6-5. Alex Izyk then gave the Stars yet another two-goal lead, beating Marquart with a wrister to both make it 7-5 and chase Marquart from the net, with the Bombers putting in Harmon Laser-Hume.
Another powerplay chance at the midway mark of the period brought out "Go Bombers Go" chants from the Flin Flon faithful, and Justin Lies soon gave them something to cheer for, putting his second PPG of the night in with a wrister in close. The home team, once again, pulled within one.
The Bombers went down a man late and almost got a prime chance shorthanded, with Keefe Gruener getting a shorthanded breakaway - Kian Bell got back just in time to tie up Gruener's stick, giving Cunningham an easy save and a chance to breathe. Flin Flon killed the penalty off, setting up just over five minutes of breakneck play.
Bax nearly got a big slapshot off but his stick shattered, giving the Stars a 3-on-1 the other way, which Cole Tanchuk broke up with a clutch shot block.
Laser-Hume headed to the bench after a late timeout, putting the Bombers on a 6-on-5 with an empty net in the final two minutes. "Go Bombers Go" chants filled the rink, but ultimately the Stars capitalized, getting an empty netter with 1:20 to go courtesy of Josh Medernach. Medernach and Portner each let loud yelps out in front of the Bomber bench and Portner gave Sylvestre a shove on his way to the Stars' celly pile, which got Medernach and Sylvestre both tossed from the game early. The Bombers would go for a few more late rushes, but the hole they'd dug was ultimately too deep to climb out of
Cunningham stopped 39 shots on the night, getting the Stars the win - Marquart was stuck with a 30-save loss, while Laser-Hume saved all three shots he saw in relief.
The Bombers will still take the season series against the Stars, beating them in each one of the previous three meetings. Flin Flon will also still stay atop the SJHL standings with 82 total points and a 40-4-2-0 record - the win let the Stars gain some ground on the Bombers, but they remain 12 points back in second place, having played one more game than the Bombers have.
Back-to-backs remain the Bombers' enemy - all six of the team's losses this season have come on the second leg of back-to-back games. Despite the loss, the Bombers' powerplay was clicking, going four for six on the night.
The Bombers will be back in action three times this week, with all three on the road and all three games coming in three straight nights - first going to Humboldt Feb. 22, then playing two games in Kindersley Feb. 23-24.
