Forward, Dylan Esau and his North Stars teammates will welcome the Yorkton Terriers to town Friday, in search of their third-straight win. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

In search of third-straight

North Stars open home-stand as Terriers come to town

Nov 5, 2021 | 2:09 PM

The Battlefords North Stars will kick off their first of what will be three-straight – and four of their next five games – on home ice, as they play host to the Yorkton Terriers Friday night at the Access Communications Centre.

Team outlook

The North Stars (10-5-2) enter play second in the Global Ag. Risk Solutions Division and fifth overall in the league standings with 22 points, in search of their third-straight victory.

Yorkton (6-9-0) sit second in the Viterra Division and ninth overall, with 12 points on the campaign.

The Stars are 1-0-1 against the Terriers this season heading into play, as the teams have split the first two games of the season-series, each decided by just a single goal.

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The North Stars’ 73 goals this season are tops in the league, while the Terriers’ 38 allowed are the second fewest of all clubs.

Leading scorers

The North Stars are led offensively by wingers Jake Southgate and Steven Kesslering who – with 20 points apiece – sit tied for fourth overall in the league scoring race. This, while playing all but exclusively on separate lines and power play units.

Forward Dylan Esau, sits third in team scoring with 18 points, including a club-best 14 assists, while captain Ryland McNinch and Dace Prymak round out the top five in team scoring among active players with 13 points apiece (as Holden Doell, who sits fourth with 14 points remains sidelined with an upper body injury).

Yorkton have just a single player to eclipse the double-digit point threshold through 15 games, as rookie forward, Clay Sleeva leads the team with 10 points on the year.

Fellow first-year, Karsten Kruska has nine points, while Terriers’ captain Kishaun Gervais and defenceman Tyson Janzen have eight apiece, with Gervais’ six goals also a team-high.

Special teams

The North Stars and Terriers’ special teams mirror each other nearly perfectly, as the Stars rank seventh on the power play at just-under 18 per cent effectiveness, with a 12^th-ranked penalty kill, at just 74 per cent.

Yorkton’s power play is 12^th, converting at just 9 percent, while their penalty kill ranks sixth at just under 85 per cent.

Goaltending

Ulrik Roussel will get the start for the North Stars. Through his first nine games with the team, Roussel has posted a 5-2 record, with a 2.94 goals-against average and .911 save percentage.

Yorkton’s Kael DePape, who finished runner-up for SJHL MVP of the Month, is likely to get the call for the Terriers. In 10 games this season, DePape has posted a 6-4 record with a 1.69 goals-against average and .935 save percentage.

The NAPA Auto Parts North Stars Hockey Broadcast will be available Friday on 93.3 The Rock. The Ultra Print Pregame Show will begin at 7 p.m., with puck drop to follow at 7:30 p.m.

North Stars lineup

Forwards:

J. Southgate, D. Prymak, R. McNinch

M. Henry, D. Esau, S. Kesslering

K.T. Walters, T. Klimpke, E. Scriven

Z. Florence, E. Wurst, K. Klein

Defencemen:

T. Gold, R. Little

S. Witt, O. Lugowski

T. Ewart, J. Grill

Goaltenders:

U. Roussel

M. Harroch

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1