By the time the puck drops on the Melfort Mustangs season on Friday it will have been 308 days since they last played a regular season Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) game.
The Mustangs are set to welcome everyone back to the Northern Lights Palace this evening with a bang as it’ll be a free admission game, with rally towels for the first 800 fans. With the hopes of packing the arena, Mustangs head coach and general manager Trevor Blevins said there’s lots of excitement, but there may also be some nerves playing in front of a packed house.
“The guys have to play with confidence,” Blevins said. “They’re prepared, and I don’t think they need to be nervous, just go out and play the game.”
He added they’ll need to be mentally tough and be able to block out the noise.
As for the Mustangs squad that will be on the ice, Blevins is excited for that as well. He said through their seven pre-season games, the group got better.
“I think we’ve got some speed,” Blevins said. “I really think we’re going to be able to push the pace, be a tenacious group.”
Blevins added they’ve focused on continuous improvement on defence as well through the pre-season in all three zones of the ice.
One of the position groups expected to get a fair deal of news is the goaltenders as Steven Bacovsky, and Joel Favreau are expected to be stallwarts for the Mustangs in net and Blevins had some high praise for his puck stoppers.
“I think they’re the best combo in the league,” he said. “I’m probably a little biased, but it is what it is. We feel Joel has potential to be a number one, and Steven already is one.”
Favreau sported a .944 save percentage in two games last year, while Bacovsky had .914 through three games before the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown the season.
On defence for the Mustangs, Lucas Ochitwa is the only player entering his final year of eligibility, but 2002-born Hayden Tuba from the BCHL, and 2002-born Kevin Minnoch from the AJHL are just a couple of the additions that are expected to make an impact.
The forward group is full of veterans, and plenty of depth for Blevins to use in a plethora of different ways.
The Flin Flon Bombers are first on the docket for the Mustangs with things starting in Melfort on Friday for a free admission home opener, followed by a contest in Flin Flon on Saturday, Sept. 25. That game can be heard on 105 CJVR with Mat Barrett. The pre-game show will begin at 6:15 p.m., the puck drops at 6:30.
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mat.barrett@melfortmustangs.com
On Twitter: @matbarrett6
