The Prince Albert Mintos’ final meetings with the Notre Dame Argos will go down as two of the most lopsided affairs in recent memory at the Art Hauser Centre.
After cruising to a 12-0 triumph on Saturday, the Mintos followed that up with an 8-0 result on Sunday afternoon as they outshot their opponents by a combined margin of 109-22.
“It was a good weekend for us to work on our offensive zone play, which is something that we have been focusing on during this last stretch of games,” Mintos head coach Danton Danielson said. “There have been some other elements of our game that we’ve been looking to lock down over the previous weeks, so it was good to get some chemistry and some creativity going in that part of the ice.”
Another important aspect of the weekend was to make sure that the Mintos didn’t get into any bad habits against a 2-23 Argos side that is at the bottom of the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League standings and will be leaving the league at the end of the year.
“It was important for us to stick to the way that we were supposed to play and not get away with some things that you can do against a team that’s lower in the standings,” Danielson said.
“There were some times that our neutral zone play was lacking a little bit and we got away with some soft play that we can’t do against some of the top teams, but I thought we did a reasonably good job of sticking to the process in both games.”
Josh Peppler and Ashton Ferster had two goals and an assist on Sunday, with Ferster’s three-point outing being his first offensive contribution after being sidelined with a wrist injury in late October.
“It was definitely nice to be back out there playing again,” said Ferster, who returned to the Mintos lineup on Saturday.
“Our offence was really going in both games. We kept things simple and no one was selfish. Everyone was moving the puck around and we were playing for the good of the team.”
Austin McLean scored twice in the victory, while Tre Fouquette and Dawson Springer also lit the lamp and Spencer Welke got his first shutout of the season by making seven saves.
Springer was dominant on Saturday as he scored three goals and set up two others, while Chase Pauls found the back of the net and had four assists.
“It was nice to get some assists finally as all I had been doing was scoring goals,” Pauls joked.
“Right not we’re focused on building good habits as a team before we go into the Christmas break, especially with the Mac’s Tournament (in Calgary) taking place afterward.”
The offensive contributions were spread around the Mintos lineup Saturday as Dallyn Peekeekoot and Kody Willick had a pair of goals and assists each, Ty Bahm scored once and set up three markers, and Fouquette and Peppler both dished out four helpers.
Willick, who also had three assists on Sunday, made his debut for the team last Tuesday against the Saskatoon Contacts after he started the year with the Saskatoon Midget AA Sabrecats.
“I think he’s been great so far,” Danielson said. “Kody adds an element to our game that was missing a little bit as he’s a hard-nosed player with a lot of work ethic.
“He’s always around the other team’s net and he has a lot of hockey smarts that he brings to our team. We’re pretty lucky to have a player like him join our roster when a spot became open (when Gabe Klassen earned an extended stay with the Portland Winterhawks).”
Chase Friedt-Mohr had a pair of goals in the 12-0 romp, which also saw McLean find the back of the net and pick up an assist.
Joel Favreau stopped 15 shots for his third shutout of the year, which moved him into a tie for the league lead with Jackson Fellner of the Battlefords Stars and Drayden Ramage of the Regina Pat Canadians.
The 15-10 Mintos, who are currently in fifth place in the SMAAHL standings, will be back in action Tuesday evening against the Stars at the North Battleford Civic Centre.
They will then return to the Art Hauser Centre on Saturday and Sunday afternoon to face the Yorkton Maulers.
