By Mike Stackhouse
The SJHL won two of three games at the SJHL/MJHL Showcase on Tuesday, taking five of the six contests through the two day event.
In the 1999 and younger game played on Tuesday morning, the MJHL Team Garbutt defeated SJHL Team Schwartz 5-2 to earn a split in the two games played between the squads.
Carter Barley had a goal and two assists to lead the winning side, while the youngest player in the event, 16-year-old Joey Moffatt, earned Player Of The Game status by scoring once and setting up another and also by being involved physically as he absorbed a number of bone crunching hits.
Kolton Kanaski, who had a physical game on Monday, found the score sheet; as did Riese Gaber. Gaber, who exhibited tremendous skill in the two games played, was the MJHL Player Of The Game on Monday.
Austin Heidemenn rounded out the scoring with a nice play in which he accepted a pass from Barley and directed it with his foot onto his stick and past goaltender Jack Ryan.
Yorkton’s Cody Bruchkowski had a goal and an assist for the SJHL Team Schwartz. He tipped in an Xavier Labelle point shot and then drew an assist late in the third on a Curtis Wiebe goal.
The most exciting game of the day was the two o’clock contest between MJHL Team Belfour and SJHL Team Mitchell.
The MItchell side had a 3-0 lead with seven minutes to play and Brenden Newton was cruising along with some amazing saves; but the SJHL club got into penalty trouble and played a little too casual in allowing Team Belfour to tie it at 3 and they almost lost to the MJHL team if not for a goal post late in regulation.
The game was, eventually, decided in the first minute of the 3-on-3 overtime as Melfort’s Reed Gunville set up Kalem Zary, who fired a shot upstairs on Riley McVeigh.
Winkler’s Mitchell Dyck started the comeback at 13:21 of the third and then Steinbach’s Daniel McKitrick connected on a breakaway at 17:32. With the extra attacker on in the final minute, Flyer forward Nolan McGuire knotted it up. McGuire, in being named the MJHL Game Star, had numerous chances all game long.
The SJHL had earned a 3-0 lead on three second period goals. Michael McChesney’s Showcase leading 3rd of the week started it and then with Brett Harasmyuk scoring on a giveaway it was 2-0 by the four minute mark. Jake Heerspink finished off a pretty three-way passing play with Nipawin forward Harasmyuk and Flin Flon’s Caleb Moretz.
Newton, despite the late MJHL heroics, was chosen Game Star for the SJHL side.
In the night cap, the SJHL Team Kunitz raced out to a 4-0 lead in the first and won 5-2 over Team Zajac.
Humboldt’s Logan Schatz (Game Star) and Battlefords’ Layne Young were all over the ice creating multiple scoring chances. After Kindersley’s Keillan Olson made it 1-0, Schatz made it 2-0 on a set up from Young. Schatz then made a nice back hand pass to Colby Brandt, who then backhanded one by OCN netminder Dorian Laganiere. Justin Ball scored in the final minute of the first.
Cody Spagrud had other SJHL goal, getting one after the MJHL closed the gap to 4-2 when his point shot had eyes for the back of the net.
Two Neepawa players scored for the MJHL as defenseman Griffin Chwaliboga finished off a nice play with Nico Labossiere and Jeremey Leipsic.
Justin Metcalf also scored and then had one disallowed early in the third when the net came off its pegs. He was the MJHL Game Star.
SJHL teams finished the event 5-and-1, while the MJHL was 1-4-and-1.
SJHL President BIll Chow has already confirmed the intent is for the Showcase to occur again next year in Regina.
Tag(s): Home SJHL / MJHL Showcase
