One win – 11 more to paydirt. The Flin Flon Bombers started their playoffs strong with a 5-2 Game 1 win over Humboldt.
Friday's game started with some extra fun at the end of the pregame skate. A Humboldt player shot a puck at a Bomber while both were leaving the ice sheet, prompting some heated words and gestures. Cooler heads eventually prevailed and the game got underway as planned.
Alec Malo, Cole Rafuse and Tristan Lemyre were each honoured before the game for winning awards for their play this season. Rafuse was honoured as Sherwood division MVP and Malo received a plaque as Sherwood division player of the year. Lemyre received his own plaque for winning the SJHL's rookie of the year crown.
Following puck drop, Easton Haygarth opened the scoring six minutes in off a lucky bounce in the slot. A very physical first period also included a second Flin Flon goal, courtesy of Donavan Houle-Villeneuve who got open in the high slot and didn't miss.
The Bombers also had a set of near-misses from both Houle-Villeneuve and rookie Tristan Lemyre, who each missed paydirt by mere inches. Another possible goal was waved off after officials determined Houle-Villeneuve had made contact with Humboldt goalie Michael Harroch.
After a period full of hits and scrums, the Bombers' finesse took over in the second. With the Broncos taking a quartet of penalties, the Bomber PP made the visitors pay, first from a sneaky wrister by Mason Martin, then with a slippery handle in close by Houle-Villeneuve. Tristan Shewchuk got Humboldt on the board with a deflection that snuck past Bomber goalie Jacob Delorme, cutting the Bombers' lead to 4-1 after two. The Bombers chased Harroch from the net after goal number four, with backup Brendan Forman coming in to relieve.
The Bombers let off the gas slightly in the third, but Billy Klymchuk, back in the lineup after a bout with mono, potted a shorthanded rebound to give Flin Flon a 5-1 cushion. A late goal from Shewchuk, complete with extracurriculars after Shewchuk shoved a Bomber player into the net, made no difference.
Delorme earned the victory with a 35 save performance, while Harroch and Forman split 35 saves between them in the loss.
Elsewhere in the SJ, Estevan took a quick lead on Melfort with a 4-1 win, while La Ronge routed the Yorkton Terriers 6-1 in the first game of their series. The league-leading Battlefords North Stars didn't give Nipawin any room to breathe, beating the Hawks 3-0.
All teams, including the Bombers, will continue their series' Saturday night. Puck drop for Game 2 at the Whitney is at 7:30 p.m. Manitoba time.
