The Prince Albert Mintos found themselves on the wrong side of a historic outcome in the Saskatchewan Male Under-18 AAA Hockey League.
The Warman Wildcats picked up their first-ever win on Sunday afternoon as they picked up a 5-2 triumph over the Mintos at The Legends Centre.
“Give full credit to Warman as they played a great game, but that wasn’t one of our better efforts today,” Mintos head coach Danton Danielson said. “They were the hungrier team today and we should have been better today.
“Aside from our special teams play, there wasn’t much that we liked from our game, especially with how we competed. The guys are learning that we need to have a consistent high level of play and hopefully they can take some things from today’s game as we go forward.”
Rookie forward Tanner Howe led the way for the 1-3 Mintos as the Prince Albert product scored a pair of power play goals.
“Tanner’s a skilled player with a high hockey IQ,” Danielson said of the Regina Pats draft pick, who will turn 15 on Saturday. “He fits in nicely to the type of team that we want to put on the ice every night and it’s good to see him get on the scoresheet already.”
Curren Wintonyk-Pilot had assists on both of Howe’s goals and Ty Shumanski made 43 saves for the visitors.
Former Beardy’s Blackhawks forward Cobe Delaney had an excellent afternoon for the 1-3 Wildcats as he scored three goals and picked up an assist.
Owen Slugoski had a goal and three assists in the triumph, which saw Alex Worthington stop 25 shots and Aiden Arnold record a goal and two assists.
Sunday’s matchup came less than 48 hours after Friday’s encounter between the two clubs at the Art Hauser Centre was called off an hour before puck drop due to the league’s COVID-19 protocols.
“It’s always strange when a game gets called off just before it starts, but the decision was made by the league to cancel the game for precautionary safety reasons and we accepted that,” Danielson said. “We got back at it with practice on Saturday and moved on ahead.”
The Mintos are scheduled to return to action on Friday night as they are slated to host the Saskatoon Contacts at 7 p.m.
The 5-1 Contacts were supposed to play the Saskatoon Blazers on Sunday afternoon, but that game was cancelled due to the league’s COVID-19 protocols.
“We are taking everything day-by-day at the moment,” Danielson said. “A lot can change ahead of Friday, but we’re preparing like we normally do until we hear otherwise.”
Saturday’s Scores
- Notre Dame 5 Estevan 1 (Jhett Larson (Red Deer Rebels prospect) – Two Goals and One Assist)
- Swift Current 3 Yorkton 2 (Carter Wickenheiser Shootout Winner – Carter Cormier – Two Assists)
- Regina 4 Moose Jaw 3 (Dazza Mitchell – 33 Saves)
Sunday’s Scores
- Swift Current 6 Yorkton 4 (Carter Cormier – Four Goals – Connor Hvidtson – Three Goals)
- Notre Dame 9 Estevan 3 (Jhett Larson – One Goal and Two Assists)
