The Bombers' good run just keeps on going. It's now twenty-three straight games without a regulation loss, bumping the streak up again with a 4-0 road win over Estevan.
Flin Flon built on a strong start for their latest southern swing, getting not only their second straight win but their second straight shutout win.
The first period produced little worth reporting, but the Bombers established the offence early, putting 13 shots on Estevan goalie Zach Shaughnessy. Things picked up big time for the maroon and white in the second, with the Bombers finding paydirt three times to get the lead and pull away.
Keefe Gruener entered Wednesday's game red-hot and he kept that up, opening the scoring 1:35 into the second by walking into the zone and blasting a slapshot past Shaughnessy. Later in the frame, Ryder Ringor - also coming into the game hot, having scored twice on Melville a night before - extended the lead, working a give-and-go with Carter Cormier and beating Shaughnessy with a wrap-around. Ringor, playing his second game this season against his twin brother Rylan - acquired by Estevan at the trade deadline - would get family bragging rights on the evening, outscoring Rylan.
Gruener made it 3-0 on another rush into the zone, looking off Liam Hunks on a two-on-one and doing it himself, beating Shaughnessy high glove. Flin Flon may have entered the second tied, but they left it with a big lead.
The Bomber offence cooled off in the third, but the defence stayed strong, allowing few quality chances on Kieper. Both teams got physical, sometimes running afoul of the rules - Brady Wilson nailed Anthony Piccininno with a hit from behind that sprawled the Bomber forward out on the ice. Landon Alexander laid out Estevan's Kanye Huang with a big hit that got him a kneeing penalty, one that got him a shot from Bruin Bo Doxtator for his troubles - Doxtator got a crosschecking penalty on the play as well. Emerson Clark got in trouble late with a check on the Bruins' Steven Steranka, getting a call for head contact before getting another one for tangling up with Estevan's Owen Simmons.
Cooler heads eventually prevailed though and the Bombers rode the game out to the finish. With Shaughnessy pulled late in the game and the Bruins trying to work a 6-on-4 advantage, Joey Lies iced the game from way downtown, scoring an empty-netter almost from Midale that landed in the yawning cage.
Kieper earned his second straight shutout in another relatively quiet night in goal, stopping 22 all Bruin shots he faced. Shaughnessy was busier, saving 36 Bomber shots.
The Bombers' streak has now advanced to 23 straight games with at least one point, racking up 44 of 46 possible points in that time. The Bombers now have more consecutive games during the point streak than all but two other SJHL teams have total wins this season.
The Bombers are now just five points behind Melfort for first place in the SJHL standings, but Melfort now has a whopping three games in hand on Flin Flon.
Flin Flon will have a day off before the third game of the swing, likely the toughest of the set - a Friday night match against third-place Weyburn. The Wings are now seven points behind the Bombers in the standings with two games in hand on Flin Flon.
