Talk about a busy Family Day weekend for the Humboldt Broncos - and a great one for their fans. A trio of games packed the Elgar Petersen Arena, and despite some moments of high drama, the Broncos came out with three solid wins. 

The weekend kicked off with the Friday night matchup against the Estevan Bruins. The Horsemen got off to a roaring start with five goals by the halfway mark in the second period. Spencer Bell potted a pair in the opening frame and a third to bookend Humboldt’s scoring. Matt Van Blaricom and Ethan Zielke contributed the other two. The only interruption in the first was a lone goal by the Bruins’ Mitch Kohner. 

The Broncos saw a comfortable 5-1 lead in jeopardy as Estevan started a march back at 12:07 in the second. Salvatore Collora got the ball rolling for the Bruins. Kade Runke and Cody Davis rounded out the Bruins scoring, but goalie Jared Picklyk weathered the storm and the Broncos grabbed the opener 5-4.

The rematch came the following night as the lumber and shoulders flew in a great matchup. Both the Broncos’ power play and penalty kill proved effective through the course of the game. Ben Kotylak launched the scoring with a short handed goal from Samuel Marburge in the first. Then Tim Kim notched a power play goal three-quarters of the way through the second thanks to assists from Noah Barlage and Spencer Bell. 

Matt Van Blaricom proved why he landed Rookie of the Week honours in the SJHL with a goal, thanks to some help from Zielke and Kim. When the Bruins tried to force the issue with a sixth attacker midway in the third, the Broncos’ Lucas Ceccarelli punished them with an empty netter. The lone Estevan goal came in the last minute when Gabriel Filion sneaked one past Benjamin Motew. The Broncos ended up 2 for 2 against the Bruins with a 4-1 win.

It was deja vu in the Family Day Monday matinee game as the Broncos established a solid lead and watched the tenacious Kindersley Klippers chip away at it. Humboldt was up 4-0 at the midway point of the second period when Kindersley began to climb back into it. By the end of the second it was 4-3 for the Broncos. The defense and goaltender Picklyk shut down the Kindersley offense in the third to maintain the one goal margin and the win.

The Broncos head to Nipawin on Friday to face the Hawks, and then it’s back to the EPA for the return match on Saturday.