The Melville Millionaires opened the 2026-27 SJHL regular season on a winning note Friday night, defeating the Weyburn Red Wings 4-2 on the road.
Melville built a 2-0 lead through the first two periods before scoring twice early in the third to take control.
Hudson Closson opened the scoring at 15:07 of the first period, scoring his first SJHL goal after taking a feed from Leo Jewitt and Deegan Petruska.
Jewitt, playing in his first regular-season game since November 2025, doubled the lead late in the second period, with Closson picking up the assist.
Grady Carmichael made it 3-0 just 2:43 into the third before Rylan Oatman added a power-play goal at 7:44.
Weyburn made things interesting late, as Trennen Redlick scored his first of the season at 16:02 before Aidan Mohan pulled the Red Wings within two with 1:17 remaining.
That was as close as Weyburn would get.
Noah Kraus made 35 saves on 37 shots to earn his first SJHL victory. Weyburn held a 37-25 advantage in shots, while Melville went 1-for-2 on the power play compared to 1-for-6 for the Red Wings.
Broncos Hold Off Wolverines Rally
The Humboldt Broncos also opened the season with a road victory, holding off a late Warman comeback for a 4-3 win.
Cody Farrell and Connor Miller gave Humboldt a 2-0 lead in the opening period, with Miller also setting up Farrell on the game's opening goal.
Miller added his second of the night in the second period to make it 3-0 before Warman started its comeback.
Ezekiel Lambert got the Wolverines on the board late in the second, while Bennet Leibel and Brett Woodard scored just over a minute apart in the third to tie the game.
Oliver Phillips restored Humboldt's lead with just 1:44 remaining, giving the Broncos the victory.
Humboldt was outshot 41-29, but Matthew Bradley turned aside 38 shots to preserve the win.
Klippers Spoil Battlefords Opener
The Kindersley Klippers opened their season with a 3-1 victory over the Battlefords North Stars.
Cobe Perlinger opened the scoring before newcomer Konnor Watson scored his first goal as a Klipper early in the second period.
Battlefords responded with a power-play goal from Finlay Klippenstein, but Keagan Lowe restored Kindersley's two-goal advantage with a shorthanded marker late in the second.
Neither team found the net in the third period, with Kindersley goaltender Mattias Radke making 37 saves.
The North Stars held a 38-34 edge in shots.
McCaig Earns First Win as Bombers Head Coach
The defending champion Flin Flon Bombers overcame an early deficit to defeat the La Ronge Ice Wolves 6-2, giving new head coach Cole McCaig his first SJHL victory behind the bench.
La Ronge's Grayden Perozni opened the scoring just 27 seconds into the game, but Flin Flon answered later in the first through Leo Seitz.
The Ice Wolves regained the lead early in the second when William Knox found the net, but the Bombers responded with four unanswered goals to take control.
Wade Franks, Seitz and Rhett Ewen helped Flin Flon take the lead before Jack Martin and Lalumiere added third-period goals.
The Bombers outshot La Ronge 38-21 and went 2-for-6 on the power play.
The victory marked the first SJHL win for McCaig as Flin Flon's head coach after taking over the defending champions following Mike Reagan's departure for the WHL's Kelowna Rockets.
Mustangs Rally Past Hawks
The Melfort Mustangs opened their season with a 6-3 victory over the Nipawin Hawks.
Twenty-year-old Dru Mushumanski scored twice in the opening period to give Melfort an early 2-0 lead before Nipawin's Austin Mori-Goodman cut the deficit late in the frame.
Mason Karakochuk tied the game early in the second, but Luke Dekay restored Melfort's lead with a power-play goal.
The Mustangs pulled away in the third, with Luke MacKenzie, Erik Grandberg and Matthew Bertolin finding the net.
Nipawin's Porter Nickason added a late goal, but Melfort held on for the three-goal victory.
Mushumanski and Dekay each finished with three points, while MacKenzie scored the shorthanded winner. Luke McKechnie made 24 saves to earn his first SJHL victory.
Five more games are on the SJHL schedule Saturday, including rematches between Weyburn and Melville and Humboldt and Warman. Battlefords will host Nipawin, La Ronge travels to Melfort, and the Yorkton Terriers open their regular season at home against the Estevan Bruins.
