It was far from perfect in two come-from-behind shootout losses to Melfort this past weekend, but the guts and belief in this group cannot be denied. A four-goal third-period rally Friday at home keyed by Trey Markus, the man of the hour in the league right now, was followed by a third-period tying goal from rookie Ryan Black the next day to grasp another point from the jaws of defeat. For this team to go from where they were in their inaugural year to where they are now is nothing short of incredible, and Brett Pilkington’s work rebuilding this roster from the ground up has a lot to do with it. They still haven’t lost in regulation since Game 1 of the season (6 straight games, 4-0-0-2), and they were a minute from overtime in that one as well.

It is hard to know what to take from a 2-2 southern swing given the possible upheaval of the big trade with Humboldt smack dab in the middle of it. The trip through the Bunge Division started and ended roughly, with two quality wins in the middle, but even with the Broncos deal and an uneven road trip, this team still has a ton of experienced depth and six of the next seven at home. It will be great for the defending champs to reset for a couple of days after the festivities of the first couple of weeks of the season and the trade, and start fresh with a long run of games at the friendly Whitney Forum. Remember: this team did not lose once in regulation (and only once at all) at home last year.

The Mustangs have been on a steady rise, but with three straight wins, Melfort is the league’s hottest team, and Luke McKeckhnie might be the best goaltender in the SJHL right now. Their last four games have also been one-goal games, including this past weekend’s pair of shootout victories vs. Warman, which shows Trevor Blevins’ defensive style is getting through to his charges. A hot start from Dru Mushumanski is critical to the team’s success, as is his partnership with Tristin Ziola and Luke Dekay.

The big win last Friday over Battlefords was in the middle of a very quiet span of one game in 11 days, and with the next four games in a row at home, watch out for the hungry Klippers. Dylan McCann at the top of the league’s No. 1 power play has been huge, and perhaps a bit of a surprise, while Mattias Radke continues to establish himself as one of the league’s elite goaltenders. That this group continues to play well while investing ice time in talented young players like Sam Failler and Jake Hargrave (among others) is a terrific signpost for the league as a whole.

Good news: they have given up the fewest goals in the league. The tough news: they have the fewest goals per game in the league. It’s not an uncommon outcome for a Doug Johnson team, but he would probably be the first to admit the club is looking for some of its bigger stars to start producing a bit more. They’ve still won two of their last three, including at home against highly talented squads from Flin Flon and Humboldt, so the foundation is there for a team that looks to be tough to beat in the extreme on a given night. Noah Kraus has been the answer in net, and even without much offence, positivity should be high heading into this weekend’s home-and-home with the Yorkton Terriers, their rival from down the road.

Keeping their attention on the ice has to have been tough this past week, given the new additions of no fewer than one goaltender, one defenceman, and four forwards. Brayden Klimosko made a classy move to allow the three new players from the Bombers, Leo Seitz, Ryan Ulmer, and Jack Martin, to miss the Saturday game in Melville and take care of loose ends back in Flin Flon, but the rest of the Broncos were unable to find a way to win, a day after the big three played in Friday’s victory over the same Mils club. Much like the Bombers, the Broncos will likely benefit from a rest and a quieter week, ahead of Friday’s trip to Centennial Arena in Nipawin.

It was a tough week for his club’s attention to detail in the defensive zone, after they allowed 13 goals in their three games, two of them defeats. On Sunday, they outscored their problems at home against Yorkton, but after a decade of long playoff runs, the coaching staff knows they have to get better. It’s still early days, and outside of Melville, likely nobody is satisfied with the team’s defensive structure yet, so there is not much cause for long-term concern in Weyburn. Power forward Trennen Redlick showed flashes of the brilliance he showed last year in the limited time he wasn’t hurt, and he’s shown that ability regularly so far this year.

The sample size is still too small to read into it, but the difference between the Terriers at home (two wins, 12 goals for, five against) vs. the Terriers on the road (1-2-1, -6 goal difference) has been pretty stark. Still, they’ve played only two games at home, and boy did they figure out how to win all sorts of games last year on their run to the final. This past weekend was a microcosm of their year so far – a fantastic win in front of a packed house in a finals rematch from a year ago, and then a not-great loss in Weyburn. However, it looks like the first half of the season; the second half might look pretty different when they play A TON of games at home.

Saturday’s loss to Estevan notwithstanding, this group is starting to show the signs of explosive life we were all expecting. Wins this past week against La Ronge and Weyburn, both on the road, yielded five goals each game, and finally got the Hawks points in the standings. This team, with all its talent, did lose a lot of big leaders from last year, so it shouldn’t be a big surprise they are taking time to get going. Tad Kozun’s team has only played a single game at the Cage so far too, so there’s plenty of home cooking coming up in October. No need to worry in Hawk land! How impressive have youngsters Austin Mori-Goodman and Carson Park been up front? They could be big parts of Team SJHL at the upcoming Martensville Western All-Star Challenge.

The time off after the gruelling three games in three days two weekends ago did not help much in a tough loss on the road in Kindersley this past weekend. Connor Logan and his young staff are searching for answers, really for the first time, after last year went as well and probably even better than it could have. This team is still creating chances, but it’s giving up too much on its own and in transition. Still, they have all sorts of talent and experience to figure it out despite an uneven start to the year, though visits from the red-hot Melfort Mustangs and reinforced Humboldt Broncos won’t be easy this weekend coming up.

The Bruins’ start has been the second-least busy of any team in the league, and despite the frustrations, last Saturday’s win over Nipawin, in which seven goals found the back of the net, must have been cathartic for head coach/GM Drew Kocur. Estevan used the win as a springboard to announce extensions for Kocur and Tucker Neuberger, and the promotion of veteran Drew Beasley up the line-up looks to have paid dividends in terms of a bit of a heavier presence down the middle, as has the newly acquired Alexander Watren, who was stellar in the net in his debut vs. the Hawks.

The Wolves have not played since last Wednesday and won’t again until this Wednesday, so for this young team, time to pause and practice with their new head coach, Taylor Harnett, has to be considered a blessing. They have played only four games, two of which amidst the hysteria of Flin Flon’s 100 year celebrations and return to action after their championship, and one a signature win over Melfort, so it’s been hard to assess this group just yet.