SIJHL Week #6 Set-Up

Preview Week 6

By Gary Moskalyk, SIJHL

The SIJHL will have completed 42 of its 189 games at the of this week, two-ninths of the regular season. Eight games are on tap.

Red Lake 4-5-2 GF 33 GA 34 @ Sioux Lookout 5-3-0 GF 34 GA 25, Wed. Oct. 26

Red Lake was not present at the SIJHL Showcase event due to illness.

The Miners enter week six on a three-game winless stretch.  Since they last played, they moved their top scorer–R.J. Dickie–to the Blind River Beavers of the NOJHL via trade.  Jacob Lamoureux now leads the team in scoring with seven goals and nine points. Tied with him is Kam River import Colton Crysler with four goals and five assists. Aiden Corbett and Dayvan Bull have eight and seven points respectively.

They acquired two players: Dobie Unruh from the Winkler Flyers (MJHL) and Matthew MacPherson from Nipawin Hawks (SJHL).

Rookie Jack Osmond continues to lead all qualified goalies with a 1.97 GAA and .942 save percentage.

On special teams it’s a tale of two units. The powerplay is clicking at 12.3% but the penalty kill is a league-leading 95.3%.

Red Lake is the least penalized team in the league at 13.9 minutes per game.

Sioux Lookout quickly established themselves in the SIJHL. And they’ve maintained a .500 record since a 3-1-0 start. They’re +9 as a team and on a two-game winning streak.

The Burke boys, Connor and Blake from Thorold, ON, have 10 points each. Defenceman Tyler Decoff has eight and Lucas Trimarchi seven.

The Bombers 18.0% PP is a tick above league average, and their PK is at 90.2% efficiency–second best in the SI.

Jake Manners has established himself as the number one goaltender–bringing a 2.61 GAA and .912 SV% between the pipes.

Red Lake acquired Tegan Neuman from Winkler on Oct. 7. He has four points in four games.

Sioux Lookout averages 20.5 minutes in the box.

Kam River 9-2-1 GF 46 GA 36 @ Red Lake

The Fighting Walleye have a 7-point lead in the standings, but hard charging Dryden is in second with three games in hand.

Ethan Lang has 12 points in the early going. Holden Woodcroft has sniped seven with four assists. Jeremy Dunmore and Carson Gorst have 10 points each.

Their powerplay remains a work in progress. Only four of the 46 goals have come with the man advantage. The Walleye have killed penalties at a 85.2% clip.

Eric Vanska has carried the freight in net, logging 490 minutes with a 2.94 GAA, .911 SV% and six wins. Jack Orchard has the other three FW victories with a 2.74 GAA.

Kam River added defenceman Benjamin Thornley-Hall to their roster on Oct. 4.

The Fighting Walleye average 20.13 minutes in the bin, under a minute over league average.

Thunder Bay 5-4-1 GF 27 GA 31 @ Wisconsin 4-5-1 GF 39 GA 38 Fri/Sat Oct. 28/29

The North Stars head to the Forward State for a second consecutive weekend. Last weekend they snatched a 4-3 win from the Lumberjacks with three third period goals. Sioux Lookout snapped a four-game Thunder Bay winning streak with a 9-2 romp.

Edison Weeks is the prime mover on offense with 13 points (6-7) in 10 games. Bobby Doukov and Dylan Winsor have eight apiece.

Conner Lemieux is the man in net. He’s 4-1-1 with a 2.16 GAA and .935 SV%.

Thunder Bay has a potent powerplay at 27.5%. Their PK is a league average 83.3%.

They lead the league with 23.3 minutes per game in the penalty box.

Wisconsin has a single point in its last four games.

They still dominate the top-20 scoring list. Ryder McMillen has cooled off a little but still leads the circuit with eight goals, 13 assists and 21 points. He’s the only two-points-a-game player in the league. Dillon Phillips is second at 15. Salvatore Poggiali (6-4-10), defenceman Dylan Jouppi (1-9-10), defenceman Zach Carson (seven goals, two assists) and Brandon McDonald (2-7-9) make it six players on the charts.

Kyler Lowden has 444 minutes in goal, second in the league, with a solid .920 SV%.

Wisconsin has a 19.1% PP rating but their PK is at 75.0%. Their 15.8 penalty minutes ranks second lowest in the league.

Fort Frances 1-7-0 GF 15 GA 43 @ Dryden 6-3-0 GF 38 GA 25 Fri/Sat Oct. 28/29

Fort Frances needs a win, and they’re on the road playing a Dryden team on a six-game tear.

Brandon Rossetti leads the Lakers charge with seven points in eight games. Clark Scaddan has three goals and an assist while Ian Snooks has four points on a goal and three helpers.

Ryan Tanner is 0-4 in five games with a 5.58 GAA. Kaden King has a 5.50 goals against in two full games.

The Lakers 16.1 PP% is average for the league, but the PK% is at 68.8.

Fort sits at 17.4 penalty minutes per game.

The Lakers obtained Dominique Cyr from the OCN Blizzard of the MJHL in early October, and Branden Hill from Dryden from Dryden on October, 6.

Dryden has four scorers in the top-20. Bryce Benfield leads the parade with 12 points (3-9). Ryland Maier has 11 (5-6) in just seven games. Jordan Pfoh sits at 10 (5-5) while Landen Stromme leads the team with seven goals with two assists. The Ice Dogs lead the league at +13.

Eric Clark’s five wins (against a loss) is second in the league. He brings a 2.47 GAA and .924 SV% to the crease. Zac MacDonald sits at 3.03 and .900 in three games.

Dryden’s PP is second in the league at 21.6% while the penalty kill is 83.7%. The league is averaging 83.6% in that stat.

The Ice Dogs accumulate 19.71 penalty minutes per game–fourth in the league.

In recent transactions, Dryden acquired Keagan Abbott from the Selkirk Steelers (MJHL). On October 11 they secured the services of Jonah Fournier from the Nipawin Hawks (SJHL).

On October 6 they acquired Christian Umpherville from Red Lake for Gavin McIntosh.