The Power Dodge Estevan Bruins showed their skating, shooting and puckhandling skills for their fans during the team’s inaugural skills competition on Saturday afternoon at Affinity Place.
The event was a fun and relaxed event less than a week before the Black and Gold open their Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League quarter-final series against the Humboldt Broncos. Game 1 of the series is Friday night at 7:30 p.m. at Affinity Place.
Players were divided into two teams, Team Black and Team White, for the competition, which had five different categories: fastest skater, hardest shot, most accurate shot, the puckhandling relay and the shootout.
Team White defeated Team Black 49-41.
The fastest skater contest opened the skills competition, and it proved to be a showdown between the Davis brothers, Jayden and Cody, who hail from Alameda. Cody, who spent the season with the midget AAA Moose Jaw Generals and has joined the Bruins for the postseason, completed a full lap of the ice in 13.86 seconds, and he defeated his brother, who is in his third year with the Bruins and rates among the fastest skaters in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League.
Jayden finished with a time of 13.99 seconds.
Captain Jake Heerspink won the hardest shot contest with a blast at 91 miles per hour.
Johnny Witzke had the most accurate shot, as he needed 22.8 seconds to hit all four targets.
The team relay, which saw skaters stickhandle between cones and around pylons and flip a puck through tires, was won by Team White, with Heerspink, Bronson Adams, Aigne McGeady-Bruce, Jayden Davis, Kolton Leslie and Turner Ripplinger completing the circuit in two minutes and 36.36 seconds.
The shootout was won by Team Black, as they went 2-for-10 in the penalty shot contest, while Team White was 1-for-10. Five skaters each had two shots each, with Michael McChesney scoring on both of his shootout attempts. McMillen, Pierson, Tanner Manz and Will Koop were also on Team Black. Grant Boldt was their goaltender.
Young fans created posters to support the team in the playoffs, and there was a fat-head auction, in which fans could bid on photos of oversized player heads attached to sticks.
A community skate with the team followed the skills competition.
The day wrapped up with a pasta supper at the Beefeater Plaza.
