(Image Credit: sasksportsphotography.com)

By Ryan Flaherty

overtime loss

Late penalties loom large as Wolverines fall to Mustangs

Feb 16, 2026 | 7:54 PM

The Warman Wolverines ran into late penalty trouble and the Melfort Mustangs made them pay with a pair of power play goals en route to a 4-3 overtime win on Monday afternoon in Warman.

Noel Englot scored the equalizer on a two-man advantage with under five minutes left in regulation and Zayden Sadlemyer tallied the winner on a 4-on-3 power play 33 seconds into the extra session to lift the Mustangs to a sixth consecutive victory and hand the Wolverines their third straight loss.

The Family Day matinee began with a pre-game ceremony to honour Warman’s graduating captain, Vincent Palmarin, who was joined on the ice by his mother, father, brother and billet parents for a series of presentations. But the visitors soon spoiled the party as Nolan Patterson opened the scoring less than four minutes into the contest to give Melfort a 1-0 lead that they would maintain through one period of play.

The Wolverines roared back in the second. Playing in his 100th career SJHL game, Pherson Loehndorf knotted the score at one with his 12th goal of the season early in the frame, then Oliver Nottingham and Cam Sarna found the net 41 seconds apart midway through the period to give Warman a 3-1 lead. Sarna’s goal presented a milestone moment for affiliate player Brady Keith, who recorded an assist on the play for his first career SJHL point.

The home side appeared to be headed to the second intermission with its two-goal lead intact but Austin Shepherd had other ideas, firing home his ninth goal of the season with just four seconds left in the period to cut the deficit in half for Melfort.

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The Mustangs pushed for the equalizer in the third but the Wolverines held firm until running afoul of the law in the closing minutes, when Bennett Leibel and Loehndorf were whistled for separate infractions nine seconds apart. Warman’s penalty killers made a valiant effort but late in the five-on-three, Englot converted a centering pass to tie the game at three.

The Wolverines found themselves on the wrong side of the whistle again in the dying seconds of regulation when Owen Parks took a Mustangs player down along the boards, resulting in a four-minute double minor for slew footing. Sadlemyer than capped the comeback, wristing home his team-leading 16th goal of the season on Melfort’s second shot of the overtime period.

The Mustangs finished the day two-for-seven on the power play while the Wolverines were held scoreless on three man advantage chances. Melfort outshot Warman 39-23 in improving to 22-20-4, one point out of the league’s final playoff spot. The Wolverines are now 12-30-6 and have officially been eliminated from playoff contention.

The Wolverines return to action on February 20 when they visit the Battlefords North Stars in a Nutrien Division showdown at Access Communications Centre. Every Wolverines home and away game can be heard live on SaskNow.com.

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