#1 Melfort Mustangs vs. #4 Yorkton Terriers
The storylines here are many.
The defending champion Mustangs are coached by Trevor Blevins, the reigning SCSA Coach of the Year. Blevins has played a big part in building Melfort into the machine it has been for as long as anyone can remember.
Yorkton, a club with a very rich tradition, fell on hard times two years ago but has seen a revival under Coach Emery Olauson. Olauson is in his 10th year as a high-level hockey head coach but only his second as a bench boss in the SJHL and in this current Terriers’ project.
At the centre of the series is one of the best, most even trades the SJHL has ever seen. Last year, Yorkton sent its captain Clay Sleeva to Melfort, in exchange for centreman David Coyle, prospect defenceman Thomas Ries and prospect forward Kale Johns.
Sleeva was instrumental in the Mustangs’ championship last year, but has since aged out, while Coyle and Ries are as important as any players on the Terriers this time around.
Melfort’s core includes 12 men who won the league a year ago and were within a goal of a national championship gold medal. Yorkton did not make the playoffs last year.
But the Terriers have refused to consider themselves underdogs all year despite more than their fair share of adversity. Given their impressive five-game win over their rivals of Melville in Round 1, perhaps they deserve to be considered a top dog, too.
Still, Melfort finished the year as the CJHL’s No. 5 team and clinched the No. 1 seed in the SJHL post-season with plenty of time to spare in the regular season.
Here is how this series breaks down.
Series Schedule
Game 1: Apr. 4 – Yorkton Terriers @ Melfort Mustangs, 7:30 P.M. ST
Game 2: Apr. 5 – Yorkton Terriers @ Melfort Mustangs, 7:30 P.M. ST
Game 3: Apr. 8 – Melfort Mustangs @ Yorkton Terriers, 7:00 P.M. ST
Game 4: Apr. 9 – Melfort Mustangs @ Yorkton Terriers, 7:00 P.M. ST
Game 5: Apr. 12 – Yorkton Terriers @ Melfort Mustangs, 7:30 P.M. ST*
Game 6: Apr. 14 – Melfort Mustangs @ Yorkton Terriers, 7:00 P.M. ST*
Game 7: Apr. 16 – Yorkton Terriers @ Melfort Mustangs, 7:30 P.M. ST*
*If necessary
Burning Questions:
- Young Callum Creig grabbed the No. 1 job in net for Yorkton in Game 4 of a pressure-packed Round 1, and didn’t relinquish it the rest of the way. How will he hold up against the defending champs in Round 2?
- How will the young Terriers’ defence corps match up against the veteran, heavy, and deep Mustangs forward group?
- Yorkton’s power play was sizzling in Round 1, but can the Terriers generate enough offence 5-on-5 if the officiating tightens up further?
- Given their Round 1 dominance, how much are the Mustangs the clear championship favourite right now?
#2 Flin Flon Bombers vs. #3 Weyburn Red Wings
Approximately 800 kilometres separate these two clubs, but the possibility for drama in this series is tantalizing.
Only Melfort scored more goals than Weyburn, gave up fewer goals, and had a better goal difference than Flin Flon.
Although the No. 2 seeded Bombers posted nine more points in the standings than the No. 3 seeded Wings, Weyburn were actually the only club in the league this year with a winning record against Flin Flon and the first team since the 2023 final to sweep a pair at the Whitney Forum in northern Manitoba (the Wings were also the first to do it in the regular season since the Kindersley Klippers in 2018).
While Flin Flon has been in the last three SJHL finals, Weyburn has not been in the second round since 2015.
These two clubs have not played in the postseason since the 2019 survivor series and not in a Best-of-7 series since 2016, when Flin Flon won in five games.
Here is how this series breaks down.
Series Schedule
Game 1: Apr. 4 – Weyburn Red Wings @ Flin Flon Bombers, 7:30 P.M. CDT
Game 2: Apr. 5 – Weyburn Red Wings @ Flin Flon Bombers, 7:30 P.M. CDT
Game 3: Apr. 8 – Flin Flon Bombers @ Weyburn Red Wings, 7:00 P.M. ST
Game 4: Apr. 9 – Flin Flon Bombers @ Weyburn Red Wings, 7:00 P.M. ST
Game 5: Apr. 12 – Weyburn Red Wings @ Flin Flon Bombers, 7:30 P.M. CDT*
Game 6: Apr. 14 – Flin Flon Bombers @ Weyburn Red Wings, 7:00 P.M. ST*
Game 7: Apr. 16 – Weyburn Red Wings @ Flin Flon Bombers, 7:30 P.M. CDT*
*If necessary
Burning Questions:
- Matthew Kieper of Flin Flon had an incredible three shutouts in Round 1 but did not face a ton of rubber overall. Angelo Zol of Weyburn had an up-and-down Round 1 but showed up when it counted. Who has the edge?
- The Liam Hunks-Cole Tanchuk pairing was dominant for the Bombers in Round 1. Will they match up with the Maharaj-Ruthven line or the Dekay line?
- Can the Red Wings improve on a power play that created many chances but couldn’t score in Round 1?
- How much did Weyburn’s success vs Flin Flon in the regular season matter?
