They're ba-ack!The Humboldt Broncos took off on the right skate with a win at home in their first game of the season.The Broncos opened their season at home on September 22 with a game against the Notre Dame Hounds. Things were quiet in the first period, with no goals and just two penalties to break up the action - both minor, and split between the teams. The first goal of the game wasn't scored until 17:01 of the second period, by Hound Sam Aulie. Assist went to Josh Bruha. There was no answering goal from the Broncos in that frame, though each team earned another penalty. The Broncos were able to tie the game at 4:25 of the third, with a goal by Ryan Aubertin. Though the third was rife with penalties and power plays, neither team was able to score, and the game went into a five minute overtime. When overtime ended with the game still at a draw, a shoot-out began. Jon Lawrence got the game-winner for the Broncos at his turn with the puck, giving Humboldt a 2-1 victory over the Hounds. Matt Hrynkiw was in net for the Broncos, stopping all but one of the 25 shots on goal he faced. At the other end of the ice, Michael Salmon denied all but two of the Broncos' 31 shots on net. Both teams failed to score on the power play. The Broncos were zero for three, and the Hounds zero for four.The next night, the Broncos faced the Hounds again, this time on Notre Dame's turf, and it was about as different a game from the previous night as possible. Scoring started very early in the game when Bronco Joey Davies got a hold of the puck and sunk it past Hound goaltender Ty Reichenbach just 27 seconds into the first period. Assists on that point went to Cody Pogracz and Logan Sproule. The Hounds answered back before the end of the period, with a goal by Sam Aulie at 17:30.The penalty box was busy in the first as well, right off the first faceoff. Hound Dillon Schwartzenberger was ejected from the game just one minute in for checking from behind, and that just led off a flurry of minor penalties in the frame. In the second, the Broncos again got off to a flying start, with a goal by Adam Antkowiak, assisted by Tyler Morwick and Braeden Laroque at 2:58.The Hounds answered back quickly this time, with a point at 5:34, but the Broncos took back the lead with a powerplay goal at 10:50, scored by Pogracz and assisted by Davies and Cody Pettapiece, to make it a 3-2 game.Penalties abounded again in this frame, with calls for hooking, elbowing, slashing and roughing split between the teams. In the third, the Hounds came on strong, scoring two goals in the first five minutes to take a 4-3 lead. The Broncos tied it up at four with a power-play goal at 8:47, scored by Jon Lawrence and assisted by Davies and Pogracz.It was Notre Dame who had the last word, with a goal at 11:47 to put them up 5-4 and give them a victory. But the game actually ended with a very busy penalty box. At the 19:43 mark, a brawl broke out between the two teams. Humboldt's Antkowiak was ejected from the game and got a five-minute major for fighting with Hound Blaine Thomson, who was also ejected and received a major penalty.Broncos Davies and Lawrence got two-minute minors for cross-checking and roughing. Hound Carson Grolla got two minutes for roughing as well. The Broncos played the Klippers in Kindersley on September 25, and will play in Yorkton on Sept. 28 before coming home to face the Estevan Bruins on September 30.
