The Flin Flon Bombers will kick off the 2017-18 season with a home-and-home series against the La Ronge Ice Wolves.
The SJHL has released the new season schedule, with opening night set for Friday, September 15.
The Hanson Lake Road rivalry will be rekindled that night at the Whitney Forum. The Bombers and Ice Wolves meet again in La Ronge the following night.
Over the course of the 56-game schedule, Flin Flon will face La Ronge 10 times, more than any other team. Each team will have five home games.
The Bombers will play divisional foes Nipawin and Melfort eight times each, with four home games for both sides.
Flin Flon will play six teams four times each – Estevan, Humboldt, Kindersley, Melville, Yorkton and Battlefords – and face Notre Dame and Weyburn three times each.
Nipawin will visit Flin Flon for the first time on September 22. Last season, the two teams were embroiled in an intense race that saw the Bombers capture the Sherwood Division with a win over the Hawks on the last day of the season.
Flin Flon and Nipawin also shared a spirited series in last season’s semi-finals, with the Bombers overcoming a 3-1 series deficit on home ice to win game 7.
The Melville Millionaires will head to the Whitney Forum on September 29 and 30 for a pair of games. The Millionaires will likely dress ex-Bombers Rylee Zimmer and Troy Williams, who were named Melville’s compensation in the 2016 trade that sent Eric Sinclair to Flin Flon.
The Bombers will face the defending champion Battlefords North Stars for the first time on October 21 in North Battleford. It will be a rematch of last season’s Canalta Cup final.
The Bombers won’t play host to the Stars until 2018, with the two teams facing off in Flin Flon on January 12 and 13.
