The Bombers couldn't complete the weekend sweep against league-leading Battlefords Saturday night, falling short 4-2.
A trio of second-period goals by the visiting Stars killed the Bombers' chances of doubling up on Canada's top junior A team.
Both teams came into the game missing players from the previous night - Battlefords forward Colby Bear sat out serving a one-game suspension, while Bomber Jeremi Tremblay was out of the lineup with an upper-body injury suffered during the game. With Tremblay out, the Bombers entered the game down two of their top three scorers.
Shortly after the opening faceoff, Riley Girod got the Stars' offence going, getting a wide-open chance that Harmon Laser-Hume barely got away from the net. The Bombers would gather some momentum of their own as the period went on, but most of the first period would be a chess match, with both teams taking few risks and reaping few benefits. The game entered the first intermission scoreless.
Battleford opened up the scoresheet two minutes into the second, with Jackson Allan tipping in a Steven Kesslering shot and making it 1-0 Stars. A few moments later, Bradley Blake made good on a one-timer attempt to put the Stars up 2-0. The Stars would, moments later, catch the Bomber D napping and get a two-on-one - Kian Bell fed Allan, who beat Laser-Hume once more.
Unlike the officiating Friday between the two teams, where three and a half hours' worth of penalties were called, the officials swallowed their whistles until halfway through the second, when the Bombers got - and squandered - a powerplay. When the Bombers took a penalty of their own, Stars D-man Tanner Gold almost gave the Bombers their best chance of the night to that point, stumbling near his own empty net and knocking the puck toward it, but he recovered and the Stars would get - and squander - their own powerplay.
Late in the frame, the Bombers finally broke through - Zach Cain got a stick on a point shot near the net and knocked the puck past Stars goalie Josh Kotai, cutting the lead to two. Despite a couple of last-second chance, the Bombers would still head into the break with a 3-1 deficit.
The third period started out as all Bombers, all the time - Ethan Mercer, Cain and Alexi Sylvestre each had great chances, but Kotai was up to the task. When Stars forward Evan Waldie took an interference call, the Bomber powerplay showed up, with Jacob Vockler snapping a shot home, bringing Flin Flon within one.
The Bombers pushed on, getting 11 shots on Kotai in the first half of the third, but the Stars fought back just as hard, keeping shots outside and pinning the puck against the boards to kill large swaths of time. Despite that momentum, the Bomber's offensive enthusiasm would bite them. With five minutes to go, Bell would pick Reece Richmond's pocket, motor down the ice on a breakaway and score his league-leading 44th goal of the season, celebrating with the Hulk Hogan hand-to-the-ear to taunt a suddenly silent Whitney Forum crowd.
Flin Flon tried to even the score late, pulling Laser-Hume with a minute and a half to go, but couldn't establish themselves in the zone. At the final whistle, Matt Egan and Zane Florence almost went for a rematch of their fight from the night before, but were held back. The Stars celebrated a hard-fought win and the Bombers took a tough but fair loss.
Kotai got a win after making 38 saves in the Stars' net, while Laser-Hume stopped 20 shots in a losing cause.
The loss had an impact on the Bombers' spot in the SJHL standings - Humboldt picked up a 4-1 win over Estevan Saturday night, pushing them back ahead of the Bombers in the race for second place overall. The Bombers now sit third in the league with 65 points, while the Broncos have climbed ahead with 67 points and a game in hand. The Bombers now sit two points up on fourth-place La Ronge and three up on fifth-place Melfort, with both within striking distance of both a Sherwood division title and playoff home-ice advantage - though Flin Flon has two games in hand on the 'Stangs and four on the Ice Wolves.
Going by overall point percentage, the Bombers sit third in the league behind only the Stars and Broncos. If current trends continue, the Bombers' most likely opponents would be either the Estevan Bruins or Weyburn Red Wings.
The Bombers will be back in action Tuesday in Nipawin against the Hawks, then will play a Friday and Saturday home set against the Red Wings at the Forum.
