The Bombers remained the least busy team in the league with only a single game, also against the La Ronge Ice Wolves. Like Week 1, they started slow and gave up an early goal, but then put their foot on the accelerator and figured it out with a 4-1 win. The ceremonies and events around the Hall of Fame Weekend, by all accounts, were terrific this past week, but now it’s time to get down to real hockey business for Cole McCaig’s men. A four-game, five-day Bunge Division road trip will teach us a lot about where this group is at. Until then, no reason to drop the defending champs from the top.

Five games in and it’s already a bunch of firsts for the Warman franchise. First four-game win streak, first time three games above .500, first time in a home-ice advantage playoff spot, and first time with a league-leading scorer in the dominant-thus-far Trey Markus. A couple of impressive road wins this weekend suggest this group’s ability to turn performances into results has improved exponentially, and reigning SaskTel Goaltender of the Week Luke Brunen has a lot to do with it. Brett Pilkington felt as comfortable as he’s ever been with his roster heading into a year after seven seasons in the league, and he’s been vindicated so far.

Head coach/GM Cody Mapes knows his team didn’t play perfect hockey for 6 periods against their Highway 39 rival Estevan Bruins this past weekend, but 13 goals for in two games is often a recipe for success. Their built-in depth stood them in great stead in both wins of the home-and-home, and it certainly must have been a bit of a sigh of relief for Mapes to see No. 1 goaltender Nate Stevens play well Saturday night in Estevan. There isn’t a shift off against this crew when they’re going.

A 2-1 start is good, and the fact the Klips have five of their next six at home is even better. Kyle Schneider’s men put up a seven-spot on Yorkton Saturday after a tough home opener the night before, and so far the men in green have had a balanced offensive attack. Discipline will be a key thing to watch for the Klips, something they struggled with last year, as they are tied for the most shorthanded minutes per game in the league thus far.

The good news is that the reigning Bunge Division champs have been sensational at their best; the bad news is that they’ve let games slip away at their worst. The ups and downs of an early season are a reality for every team, but they’ve been most pronounced in the Terriers’ results as this campaign gets going. Still, Emery Olauson’s men have already outpaced what those outside the organization expected, so now it’s about finding night-to-night consistency. The breakout duo of Jake Briltz and Austin Horbachewsky look like they are for real.

Four games, three one-goal games so far for Brayden Klimosko and his team. Their home-and-home with Battlefords this past weekend were mirror images of each other; one team came out strong, the other rallied and won in overtime. Big power forward Cody Farrell is showing not just to be one of the best rookies in the league, but one of the best players, period, and that they were able to get three out of four points against the Stars without captain Connor Miller is a great sign of the depth in the future. All eyes are still on the Oct. 1 trade with Flin Flon that will complete the mega deal from the deadline a year ago.

It was a pretty typical Trevor Blevins vs. Doug Johnson weekend between Melfort and Melville, with four total goals scored and space at a premium. The biggest star to emerge was Luke McKechnie in the Mustangs crease, who made 42 saves for his first career SJHL shutout Saturday, staring down his former goalie partner from U18 Kaleb Page in the other net. The line of Tristin Ziola between Dru Mushumanski and Luke Dekay looks dangerous every time they’re out there together, and Matthew Bertolin has added real depth to this crew.

The Mils have started most years under Johnson well, so it’s truly about sustaining that buy-in for this team. Offence hasn’t come as easily as last year to stars Kale Margolis and Rylan Oatman, and as a result, the club has managed only seven goals in four games to date. Noah Kraus looks the answer in net, but this team needs to find some more goals soon. Keep an eye on Cole Brown up front; he looks like he’s about to break out.

Like the Yorkton Terriers, the team they fell to in Round 2 of the playoffs a year ago, the Stars have had a tough time finding consistency so far. Connor Logan’s team was likely hoping to make more hay from a long string of home games early in the campaign, but there is all sorts of talent on this team to turn it all around real fast. Raiden Zacharias looks as good as he ever has in the SJHL, and is off to a hot start. Tough weekend energy-wise for this group, not that Logan is big on excuses, and three games in less than three days did not end well against Warman on Sunday afternoon.

Give it could hardly have been a tougher baptism of fire for the new brain trust of Bob Beatty (GM) and Taylor Harnett (Head Coach); a 1-2 start is not bad at all. They competed with all they had at a full Whitney Forum Friday night, took a lead, and got a stellar performance from Riley Zezel in net in a 4-1 loss. This crew has a big chip on its shoulder and will have to keep proving they are serious, but it’s not a bad start at all.

There are no two ways to dice it: the Hawks’ start has been frustrating. A team that one Hawks fan suggested to the writer “should be in the Centennial Cup” is winless through three games – but that’s just it: it’s just three games. The weight of expectation can be heavy, but nothing can be accomplished through panic or disunion. The best news for the Hawks so far is that veterans Mason Karakochuk and Brock Evans have both been as dangerous and productive as expected, and there is plenty of talent here to figure it out fast.

One thing to keep in mind about the Bruins is that many players haven’t played together before, and the overwhelming theme in watching an Estevan game so far is that they need time to gel. Given the remarkable talent available to Drew Kocur, no nights against this team should be considered easy, and when they find their cohesion, they should be a danger for anybody. Lochlan Tetarenko has been one of the league’s best all-around players so far.