Two down, 10 to go. The Bombers won Game 2 of their first round series Saturday, dealing Humboldt a 6-3 loss.
Cole Rafuse got the scoring going three minutes in, being sprung on a partial break by Tristan Lemyre and Hayden Clayton. Lemyre got his own goal moments later, beating Humboldt's Brendan Forman over his glove. Humboldt did respond later in the frame, with Reid Arnold stripping Dane Hirst on a Bomber powerplay and beating Jacob Delorme on a breakaway.
The hijinks kicked off following the last whistle of the first period, as Donavan Houle-Villeneuve, en route to the Bronco net, shot the puck past Forman after the period ended. That caused a brouhaha in the corner, ending in several penalties.
Rafuse continued the scoring in the second, popping a powerplay goal past Forman on the far side. Humboldt cut the lead to one with a Logan Foster one-timer that blooped through Delorme's five-hole, but the Bombers kept up pressure. A two-and-10 for a head check and a high-sticking double minor for Humboldt led to the Bombers getting a pair of goals. Easton Haygarth scored, then Houle-Villeneuve scored a minute later, both on the powerplay.
Houle-Villeneuve and Foster got into it after the whistle, with Foster throwing a couple blows at Houle-Villeneuve. The Bomber got two for unsportsmanlike conduct, while Foster got a two-and-10 for his actions.
Cooler heads prevailed in the third. Humboldt got another goal to give them three on the night, but a Cole Rafuse empty-netter iced it for the Bombers, giving him a hat-trick and the Bombers a big second win.
Delorme made 27 saves for the win, while Forman stopped 37 pucks.
The series will shift to Humboldt for the next two games, set for Tuesday and Wednesday night.
Elsewhere in the SJ, Melfort dealt Estevan a 4-1 loss, tying their series at one all, while the Battlefords North Stars snagged a 4-1 win to go 2-0 up against Nipawin. Yorkton and La Ronge battled out a 4-3 Terriers win, tying the series going back to La Ronge.
