Stars forward Colby Bear tangles off a faceoff with Yorkton's JD Hall. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

First stop, Yorkton

Stars open final road swing of 2022 in search of ninth straight win

Dec 15, 2022 | 12:41 PM

With the soft sound of jingle bells already faintly heard in the distance, the Battlefords North Stars take to the road Thursday to kick off their final road trip ahead of the holidays.

Thursday’s game in Yorkton will mark the third of six meetings of the season series between the Stars and the hosting Terriers (Stars lead 2-0-0-0) and the first of what will be three games in three nights for the Battlefords Thursday through Saturday.

The North Stars (25-0-2-1) enter play as the top team in all of Canada for an eighth straight week. Having played their best hockey of late, the Stars are coming off a weekend sweep of Nipawin, and have won eight straight, looking to stay hot.

Yorkton sits second in the Viterra Division and ninth overall, just two games back of the final playoff spot. The Terriers will be looking for their third straight win, after edging the division-leading Estevan Bruins 4-3 Tuesday night in their home barn.

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Offensively, the North Stars are led into play by SJHL MVP of the Week Kian Bell, while on the backend, the team will receive a real boost with the return of two of their top six defencemen.

Bell leads the SJHL in goals (25) and points (45) this season in just 25 games, with seven multi-point outings in his last eight for 10 goals, and 16 points over the span.

The Battlefords’ blue line will see both Jordan Grill (upper body) and Wilson Steele (lower body) return to the lineup to solidify the league’s stingiest backend once again, which has allowed just 2.1 goals against/game this season.

Yorkton is led offensively by Dylan Ruptash who paces the team with 13 goals and 22 points. Forwards Clay Sleeva (nine goals, 16 points) and JD Hall (five goals, 16 points) are also among the players to watch on the Terriers.

Sleeva is a shifty forward with good speed and quick hands who is the Terriers’ primary puck carrier into the zone on the power play. Hall is a big body at 6’2, just under 200 pounds, that uses his size well to lean on the opposition’s top players and bring a physical edge.

Hall’s unit is likely to see the bulk of their time matching up against the Stars’ big line of Bell, Holden Doell (43 points) and Jake Southgate (42 points), who have remained 1-2-3 in league scoring for the last month.

In goal, the North Stars will see Justen Maric make his return between the pipes. Maric is coming off a 39-save victory last Friday, and has been lights out this season with a 7-0-0-0 record, 2.14 goals against average and .943 save percentage.

At the other end, Terriers’ goalie Caleb Allen is likely to get the nod for his eighth straight start. Allen is 12-13-0-0 in 25 games, with a 3.65 goals against average and .901 save percentage.

Thursday’s game will be available on 1050 CJNB. The Ultra Print Pregame Show will begin at 6:30 p.m., with puck drop at 7 on the NAPA Auto Parts North Stars Hockey Broadcast.

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1