Dryden has a six-point lead in the standings, and a six-game unbeaten streak heading into Christmas break. McLaren Paulsen leads the team in points with 50 (21G 29A), followed by Carson Devine with 43 and Max Roby with 42. Payton Hu has 40 points, one of nine players who has have reached that level. Roby with 22 goals, and Paulsen are among the four players who have reached 20 or more. Eli Antoine, 32, and Emmanuel Nkombou, 30, are among the 19 players who have 30 points or more.
Dryden is the only team to have reached 150 team goals. Their plus-67 goal differential is number one. The Ice Dogs are number two in power play proficiency at 28.9%. They were supplanted in Week 15 by Fort Frances at 31.0%. The ‘Dogs are tied for second with Kam River in penalty kill rate–83.1.
Kellan Mooney is among the league leaders in goaltending wins, 13, goals against average, 2.23, and save percentage, .928. Braxton Castagno is 9-3-1 in a support role.
The GM Ice Dogs are ranked 11th in the CJHL rankings released December 23rd.
Nkombou leads the SIJHL in penalty minutes at 106. Dryden’s penalty minute total is 669, three behind Kenora’s league-leading 672.
Kam River lost a pair over the weekend but still retain sole possession of second place. Daxton Lang’s 56 points leads the league, as does his 23 goals. Jett Mintenko’s 53 points (19G 34A) places him second. Mintenko’s 34 helpers are number one in that category. Kaden Goodwin’s 39 points (16G 23A) places in 10th place. The Fighting Walleye have 148 goals in 30 games and lead the league in GAA average, 2.73. Kam River is plus-66 on the year.
Ashton Sadauskas has 14 goaltending wins (14-7-0) and 1,247 minutes played, both number one. Sam Keene is 4-4-0, all four wins coming with the Walleye. Keene has not lost since joining the team. The Walleye are 7-3-0 in their last 10.
Kam River has not played a minute of overtime.
Sioux Lookout captured weekend home wins against Red Lake and Kam River in Week 15. The reigning SIJHL champions are 5-4-1 in their last 10.
The Bombers are fourth in league scoring with 116 goals in 30 games. Alex Lucas leads the team with 41 points (21G 20A). Jonah Smith has nine markers and 23 assists for 32 points.
Owen Carter and Tait Howell have 20 and 19 points respectively. The Bombers have allowed 84 goals in 30 games. Matthew Ofukany, 12-3-0/2.59/.908, and Matthew Spencer-Dahl, 6-6-1/2.85/.918, hold the fort in net.
The power play ranks seventh at 13.3%. The penalty kill is fourth at 82.2%. The Bombers have been on the power play 21 more times than killing a penalty, four behind Ironwood’s plus-25 differential.
Thunder Bay is in fourth place in points, but in second place in winning percentage, .679. They’re plus-62 in goal differential, on a three-game winning streak, and are 7-2-1 in their last 10.
Tyler Jordan has 42 points (19G 23A). Beau Helmeczi, 38, Evan Simeoni, 33, Alex Remenda, 32, and defenceman Tag Bryson, 32 gives Thunder Bay five 30-point men, and Marcellus Francis’ 29 points in 19 games is number one on the top in points per game at 1.53. Bryson’s 31 helpers is fourth in the league. He leads all blue liners in points.
The Stars still have a penalty kill above 90 per cent (90.2).
Keenan Marks has a 7-5-2 record. Rylan Benner replaces Ben Laurette. He allowed two goals in his loan start against Kenora.
Fort Frances is 5-4-1 in their last 10, plus-6 in goal differential. Captain Brady Krentz is having a year in his age-20 season with 42 points (17G 25A). Jack Wood has 26 points, Evan Kabel, 23, and Pierce Gouin, 22. Ian Ness has 19 points in 20 games.
Gunner Paradis has a SV% of .935, improved his record to 7-3-0, and is enjoying increased playing time. Nolan Koethler is 7-7-1 with 1,098 minutes to Paradis’ 729. Either way, the Lakers are solid in net.
As mentioned above, the Lakers have a PP% of 31.0. The penalty kill is a league average 80.9%.
Red Lake is currently on a four-game slide, slipping below .500, going 3-5-2 in their last 10. Nathan Dann’s 32 points and 17 goals lead the team offensively. Rookie Quinn Szpak, 28 points, and Bryson Carlyle and Gabe Tanton, 20 points each, round out the top-four.
The Miners, like Fort Frances, are plus-six on the year. The Miners are seven points back of the Lakers and 13 points ahead of Ironwood, with two games in hand on each.
Rookie Koen Webber leads the team in net time with 868 minutes while sporting a winning 8-5-1 record. Recent addition Ilan Walny dropped a 5-4 decision to Dryden in his first start.
The Miners have a 16.8% power play and 78.7% penalty kill. They are the only team to have not allowed a short-handed goal against.
Ironwood’s Marshall Thomas is 11th in league scoring, with 15 goals and 23 assists. Josh Gulden and rookie Aidan Charron have 20 points each. Charron has nine points in his last five games. The Lumberjacks’ 90 goals rank seventh in the league. The ‘Jacks are 4-5-1 in their last 10. They are the least penalized team in the league.
The Lumberjacks 22.5% power play ranks 4th in the league. The penalty kill is at 64.4%.
Kenora, the youngest team in the league, is on a seven-game slide. Young captain Tallen Caron feels the franchise is trending in the right direction as experience takes hold.
“We’re a young team. We have zero 20-year-olds, five, six second years. So, you just have to stay positive,” said the 18-year-old captain of the Islanders. The Kenora born and raised Caron picked up a goal and assist on Saturday and a goal Friday to raise his season total to 12 points. Josh Boyko leads the team with 15 points.
Caron will be part of an eight-part series featuring the team captains from each franchise set to begin over the Christmas break.
On behalf of the SIJHL happy and healthy holidays to all. It’s a privilege and honour for me to serve the league. Thank you.
 | AT DRYDEN GM ICE DOGS |  | ||
| Dryden scored three unanswered third period goals for a 6-2 win over visiting Kam River. A crowd of 482 watched the Ice Dogs gain a four point lead atop the SIJHL standings. The 'Dogs snapped Kam River's six-game winning streak, running their own points streak to five games. Payton Hu opened the scoring just 21 seconds in, deflecting a Karson Kerbes point shot past Ashton Sadauskas for a 1-0 Dryden lead. Daxton Lang's 23rd of the year tied it at 3:50, beating Kellan Mooney after Lang collected a Carter Nailen rebound on a Walleye power play. Rylan Oatman's first of two, backhander after a nice feed from Jordan Wales, put Dryden up 2-1 at 9:08 of the first. The teams traded second period goals. Elias Eisenbarth scored for Dryden from the slot on a rebound at 14:02, but Nailen narrowed the lead to 3-2, leaving his defence position and beating Mooney on a backhander on Kam River power play 1:08 later. Dryden scored a power play goal of their own to open the defining third period. Paulsen's shot through traffic found the back of the net at 4:15. Thirty seconds later, Oatman's backhander cleaned up a Wales' rebound for a three-goal lead. Max Roby's empty netter at 15:11, his 21st, was the final nail. Dryden took 42 of the 74 penalty minutes meted out by Chris Stoiber and Whitney Van Horne. The Walleye were 2-10 with the man advantage. Dryden was 1-6. Sadauskas stopped 30 of 35 shots, including Hu's penalty shot attempt in the second period. Mooney upped his record to 13-2-0. Roby and Eisenbarth added assists, and Wales had two apples for Dryden. Nailen and Lang assisted on each other's goals for two points each for Kam River. |
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 | AT RED LAKE MINERS |  | ||
| Matthew Ofukany made 34 saves as the Sioux Lookout Bombers defeated Red Lake 4-1 at Cochenour Arena. Alex Lucas and Michael Casey got the Bombers off to a 2-0 first period lead. Lucas collected his 21st of the year at 15:35 with Sage Roberts assisting. Casey's first of the year was a sharp angle marker unassisted less than two minutes later. After a scoreless second period, Nathan Dann put the home town Miners on the board at 8:50 of the third. Dann's 17th off a power play face-off win closed the gap to 2-1. Roberts' fifth of the year at 19:07 came with Miners' goaltender Koen Webber making his way to the bench for an extra attacker. Roberts scored from his own blue line, beating a scrambling Webber for a much needed insurance marker. Undaunted, the Miners pulled Webber looking for two goals to tie it. Eric Blazino's empty netter with seven seconds left accounted for the 4-1 final. Roberts had the lone two point night. Webber made 34 saves in a losing cause. The teams combined for eight minor penalties. Sioux Lookout was 0-3 with the man advantage. The Miners went 1-2. |
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 | AT THUNDER BAY NORTH STARS |  | ||
| Kenora scored first but Thunder Bay scored the next six as the North Stars defeated the understaffed Islanders 6-1 before 363 fans at Fort William Gardens. Acoyen Fehr had two goals and an assist, Beau Helmeczi a goal and two helpers, and Keenan Marks upped his record to 7-5-2, making 33 saves. The Stars are a point back of third place Sioux Lookout with two games in hand. Kenora captain Tallen Caron converted a Thunder Bay turnover just 41 seconds into the game for a 1-0 Islander lead. Marcellus Francis' wraparound tied it at 14:18 and Fehr's third of the year on a bank shot put the Stars up to stay. Thunder Bay fired in three goals in the latter stages of the second. Fehr got his second of the game at 15:42 on a assists from Helmeczi and Tag Bryson. Alex Remenda got his 14th at 16:58 on a pass from Kendrick Marshall. Marshall checked Islander goaltender Ethan Beattie behind the Islander cage and fed the wide open North Stars forward. Connor Larrett's unassisted slot snipe at 18:32 made it 5-1. Helmeczi closed out the scoring at 6:54 of the third. Thunder Bay outshot Kenora 58-34. Both teams took just two minor penalties each. |
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| Tyler Jordan scored two goals and had two assists and newcomer Rylan Benner debuted in net with his first win as Thunder Bay defeated Kenora 7-2 before 190 fans at Fort William Gardens. The Stars had a 3-0 lead before the midway mark of the first, and scored the last three of the game to keep pace in the tight SIJHL standings. The fourth place Stars are a point behind Sioux Lookout and two points behind Kam River with two games in hand on both teams. Easton Glousher, Zach Lacasse and Jordan beat Kenora's Ethan Beattie to open up the three-goal lead. Glousher deflected Chance Loke's point shot for his ninth. Lacasse got his first of the year, leaving his defence position to cash in a rebound from the slot. Jordan scored his 18th on the power play with Loke and Bryson assisting. Hunter Dingman replied with his fourth to narrow the lead to 3-1 with a top shelfer on Benner at 13:37. The Stars outscored the Islanders 3-1 in the second period as well. Alex Remenda made it 4-1 at 1:26. Tallen Caron tightened the score to 4-2 on an Islander power play, deflecting Josh Boyko's shot. Connor Larrett's sixth and Jordan second goal of the game at 16:37 made it 6-2. Evan Simeoni's 15th at 8:29 of the third closed out the scoring. Larrett and Remenda added assists, and Bryson and Loke had two helpers for Thunder Bay. Bryson raised his assist total to 30. Caron added an assist and Josh Boyko had two helpers for the Islanders. Both teams took three minor penalties. Keegan Jones of Thunder Bay and Casey Lynn of Kenora tangled at the midway point of the third. Thunder Bay outshot the Islanders 61-31. Both teams were 1-2 on the power play. The Stars vaunted penalty kill fell to 90.2 per cent on the year. |
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 | AT IRONWOOD LUMBERJACKS |  | ||
| Brady Krentz scored a pair of first period goals thirty seconds apart and Gunner Paradis stopped 31 of 33 as Fort Frances defeated Ironwood 4-2. Krentz scored off a face-off win, and then sniped his 17th blocker side on Trent Boryszczuk for a 2-0 Lakers' lead. Nolan Barker's shot from a tough angle with four minutes left in the first on a Lakers' power play upped the lead to three. Ian Ness gave Fort Frances a 4-0 lead at 7:36 of the second. The potent Lakers power play was at it again. Ness circled the Ironwood net and drilled in his ninth. A Fort Frances giveaway netted Marshall Thomas' goal 1:05 later. Aiden Charron narrowed the lead to two goals. Charron scored from in close after a nice pass from Chase Krtanjek. There was no scoring in the third. Ness added two assists and Carter Deschamps had two assists for the Lakers. Charron had an assist for Ironwood for a two point night. The Lakers were 2-2 on the power play. Ironwood was 0-1. The Lakers took over first place in the team power play proficiency, edging ahead of Dryden 31.7 to 30.2 per cent overall. Paradis continued his fine season, climbing to 7-3-0 with a 2.39 GAA and .935 SV%. Boryszczuk evened his record at 5-5-1, stopping 37 of 41. |
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| Trent Boryszczuk made 49 saves and Matteo Salvatore had two goals and an assist as the Ironwood Lumberjacks skated to a 6-2 win before 284 fans at the Pat O'Donnell Civic Center. Aidan Charron and Timothy Hanulik scored 38 seconds apart in the first to get Ironwood off and running. Charron sniped stick side on Nolan Koethler for his 11th. Hanulik's top shelf backhander, his second of the year, made it 2-0. In the second, back-to-back goals by Salvatore and Jack Croghan upped the lead to 4-0. Salvatore struck on the power play for his seventh. Croghan scored at 14:28. Pierce Gouin finally solved Boryszczuk on a wrap around at 16:18 to make the score 4-1. Josh Gulden's point shot re-established the four-goal Ironwood spread before the period was out. Carter Deschamps scored shorthanded as the Lakers made it 5-2 with 13:36 left in regulation. Laker head coach Tyler Miller pulled Koethler down by three goals with 2:19 left. Salvatore scored an empty net goal at 19:25 to put the polish off the scoring. Koethler stopped 26 of 31 in a losing cause. Boryszczuk improved his record to 6-5-1 and raised his league-leading save percentage to .938. Gulden and Charron added assists, and Thomas Marshall had two helpers to give him 38 points on the year. Ironwood was 1-4 on the power play and killed off three Laker power plays. Fort Frances had seven minor penalties to Ironwood's six. The Lumberjacks' are the last team still below 400 penalty minutes (382). |
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| AT SIOUX LOOKOUT BOMBERS | | ||
| Jonah Smith scored at 8:57 of the third to break a 2-2 tie and give the Bombers a 3-2 win over Kam River at the Hangar. The win drew the Bombers to within a point of the Walleye, and kept them a point ahead of the North Stars. Sioux Lookout skated out to a 2-0 first period lead, outshooting the Walleye 24-6 in the process. Sage Roberts collected his own rebound to beat Ashton Sadauskas top shelf at 5:53. Roberts is currently on a four-game points streak. Tait Howell cashed in his 11th on a rebound at 18:26 on a Sioux Lookout power play. Carter Nailen answered 39 seconds later, when his glove side point shot beat Matthew Ofukany. Caleb Labelle tied the game at 10:58 of the second, beating Ofukany glove side with a wrister for his first goal of the year. Smith scored his game-winner unassisted, turning a Kam River bobble into his ninth goal of the campaign. Sioux Lookout's Cedrik Robidoux took a boarding major at 14:39 of the third with the outcome in doubt. The Walleye were assessed a minor penalty to kill off two minutes of it. Sadauskas left the net for an extra attacker with a minute left but the Walleye couldn't find the equalizer. Roberts was the only two-point man, adding an assist. The Bombers outshot the Walleye 43-29 overall. Kam River was 0-4 on the power play, while Sioux Lookout was 1-4. Both teams had 22 minutes in penalties. |
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| AT RED LAKE MINERS | | ||
| Rylan Oatman scored at 16:40 of the third period as the Dryden Ice Dogs squeaked out a 5-4 win at Cochenour Arena. Dryden roared out to a 4-0 first period lead, only to see Red Lake chip their way back to tie it 4-4 late in the third. Max Roby, McKale Paul, Karson Kerbes and Brandon Gustafson all scored on goaltender Ilan Walny, making his first start for Red Lake. Roby's 22nd was from the slot. Paul's fourth goal of the year was controversial. Walny took a hit but play continued and Paul eventually scored on the play. Kerbes got his fourth at 14:49 on a 4-on-4, and Gustafson's point shot rang off the post and in for his fourth of the year. Down, but not out, the Miners rallied for three goals in an 18-shot second period. Noah Tenney re-directed a shot blocker side past Braxton Castagno at 9:11. Just 38 seconds later, Euan Morrison, stationed wide open in the slot, made it 4-2. With less than a minute left in the middle frame, Justin Gelderland's second of the year on a Red Lake power play, cut the lead to one. Red Lake outshot Dryden 18-8 in the third. Matthew MacPherson tied the game at 16:17, beating Castagno from the slot for his fourth of the year. Oatman deflected Paul's point shot just 23 seconds later to put the Ice Dogs back in the lead to stay. Walny was pulled for an extra man with 2:08 left but the Miners could not tie it up. Castagno stopped 40 of 44 to move his record to 9-3-1. Walny faced 19 Dryden shots in the first period, 37 overall. A total of 64 penalty minutes were called, with the Miners taking 38 of them. Red Lake was 1-4 on the power play, while killing off all six Dryden power plays. Paul had a three-point night and Kerbes added an assist for Dryden. MacPherson had two assists for Red Lake. |
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