The Terriers got goals from four different players as Yorkton kicked off 2022 with a 4-1 victory over the Melville Millionaires. Kael DePape was sharp in goal, once again, making 30 saves in the win.
The Terriers scored two goals in the first period, 47 seconds apart. Erik Boers notched his 7th goal of the season, deflecting a point shot from Parker Jasper past Jared Thompson, making it 1-0. The Terriers quickly made it 2-0 when a centering feed from Greg Nelson found Tanner Sklaruk, who threw a backhander over the shoulder of Thompson. For Sklaruk, it was his 6th goal of the campaign.
DePape preserved the lead in the second period. While on the power-play, the puck squirted to Jonathan Krahn, who was staring at a wide open cage and an opportunity to cut the Terrier lead in half. However, DePape shot out the right leg, denying the Millionaire captain, keeping it a two goal game. Yorkton then increased their lead to 3-0. Nelson entered Melville’s zone on a 2-on-1 with Maddux Nollski. Nelson elected to go shot, sliding the puck through the legs of Thompson for his first goal as a Terrier.
The third period saw Yorkton strike again. Kishaun Gervais picked up a feed from JD Hall and flew in the Melville zone. Cutting into the slot, the 20-year-old from the Keeseekoose First Nation placed a perfect shot over the blocker of Thompson for his team leading 12th goal of the season, and a 4-0 Yorkton lead. The Mils got one goal back courtesy of Krahn. The Mils captain blanked home a rebound through DePape for his 11th goal of the campaign, but it was too little too late for Melville.
With the win, Yorkton extends their points streak to six games, while snapping the Millionaires three game winning streak. Yorkton will continue their four game road trip on Tuesday where they face another Viterra Division foe in the Weyburn Red Wings. The game will be broadcast on GX 94 with the pre-game show at 7:20pm and play-by-play beginning at 7:30pm.
