The SJHL regular season resumes Friday, with four games on the schedule. The Flin Flon Bombers visit La Ronge, the Nipawin Hawks visit the Mustangs in Melfort, the Yorkton Terriers play host to their rivals the Melville Millionaires, and the Weyburn Red Wings head down Highway 39 to take on the Bruins in Estevan.

With the second half of the season kicking off, the first half has changed drastically from how it originally looked to be playing out. A long winning streak from the Battleford North Stars, and a long losing streak from the La Ronge Ice Wolves. The play of Chris Van Os-Shaw in Humboldt, and the offensive dominance of the Estevan Bruins. Those are some of the storylines that have emerged so far this season.

Starting in the Viterra Division, things don’t look as clear-cut as they did just before the season began. Many were picking the Red Wings to run away with the division this season, with the Bruins, Millionaires, and Terriers all battling for second place. Instead, the Bruins have cruised out to a substantial lead in the division, thanks to a potent offense. They lead the league in goals for. This is a good thing for Estevan, as they are second in goals against in the league. Their 49 points, though, is enough to have a strong lead in the division. They have also run into penalty trouble quite frequently, as they are second in the league in penalties. They will need to play disciplined hockey if they want to keep their level of performance up.

The Red Wings, who were looked at to continue to build on the success of last year, were playing strong at the beginning of the season. This included a nice little streak in the month of October of five straight wins. The team as a whole, though, has struggled with putting the puck into the net. Combined with a rotating defensive corps due to injuries, the Wings have been trying to get back into the stride they had at the beginning of the season. With the time off over Christmas, they can expect many of the players who were a little banged up to return, which will bolster their play for the rest of the season.

The Yorkton Terriers found out at the beginning of the season Casey O’Brien would be the head coach, with Trent Cassan taking a job in the WHL. The Terriers struggled out of the gate, but have since begun to find their stride. They are 5-5 in their last ten games, and have played stronger teams well. They are just four points back of the Wings for second in the division, with two games in hand. After picking up Nathan Hargrave to play between the pipes from the Wings, the Terriers could be a contender as the regular season enters the final stretch.

The Melville Millionaires had a lot to work on from last season. Devin Windle was brought on as head coach, and after some roster changes, has looked good. The team has been steadily climbing up the standings, and while they are currently outside of the playoff picture, there is room to grow for the team, and with just three points to make up, and five game in hand over the current tenth place squad, they could be challenging for a wildcard spot.

In the Finning Division, the Battlefords North Stars are running away with the division. They have already crossed the 30 win plateau for the season, and have a magic number of just 21 points to clinch a playoff spot, with 21 games remaining. The have dropped just one decision in their last ten, and are the favourites to take the whole deal. That wasn’t always the case, though.

After struggling last season, and missing the postseason, the Humboldt Broncos came out of the gate on fire this year. They were playing strong, until the injury bug hit. Since then, they have faltered, going 5-5 in their last ten before the break. They still have a strong lead for second in the division, and with 21 games to go, could make a push to hold the number four seed heading into the postseason.

The Notre Dame Hounds will have a lot of hockey to play in the second half of the year, with 25 games remaining on the schedule for them. They have shown some promise, particularly through the play of Adam Dawe and Ben Duperreault, but they have the Klippers on their heels for the third post on the division, and a possible playoff berth.

Kindersley, though, won’t have a lot of leverage to make up the ground. They have already played 38 games on the year, most of them on the road. This means out of the 20 remaining games for them, they have 14 at home. However, they take a lot of penalties, leading the league by a country mile in the category. This will mean they have to step up offensively if they don’t want to slip back out of the playoffs.

The Sherwood Division, comprised of the four northern teams in the league, is always one of the toughest in the SJHL. The Flin Flon Bombers came out this year with the mission to be the team to beat, and they have done just that. They have a nine point edge over the Nipawin Hawks, and have only lost three of their last ten. The drawback to their position: They have played five more games than the Hawks, and all it will take is a slip, and they are out of the divisional lead.

The Hawks are backed by arguably the best goaltender in the SJHL, and they have been stellar at preventing goals against. Offensively, though, they have struggled, which has hurt them. With the return of Eric Bolden on the horizon, the acquisition of Josh Bly from the Klippers, and rumours of more players coming in time for the trade deadline, the Hawks could see the goals-for increase, which would help them to close the gap with the Bombers.

The Melfort Mustangs are truly in a rebuild year. The defending Canalta Cup champions, they lost their top scoring line from last year, and have struggled when it comes to goaltending. They are a hard-working group, though, and Trevor Blevins should be able to spark his players into making a strong push in the final stretch.

The La Ronge Ice Wolves are struggling to make a go of it this season. They have a new head coach, after Shawn Martin was fired in October. They have struggled offensively, and defensively, but are showing signs of improvement. That said, they will more than likely miss the postseason this year.

Current Standings