The Soo North Stars tightened their stranglehold on first place in the Great North Midget League, avenging a home ice loss one week earlier with a 5-3 win over the Sudbury Nickel Capital Wolves Wednesday night at the Countryside Arena. Regular season champions in four of the last five seasons, the Stars raced out to a 3-1 first period lead, increased it to 5-1 early in the second and tightened things up defensively through a scoreless third period.

The contest started well enough for the Nickel Capital Wolves, kicking off the scoring less than four minutes in when Peter Poulin-Roy is rewarded on an aggressive forecheck as his centering pass bounces on to the stick of Gabriel Rodrigues who hits nothing but net in potting his 20th goal of the year.

The Stars answer quickly, first with a lovely tic-tac-toe passing play with the man advantage, capped off by Justin Cooke, and then with goals from both Matt Zalewski and Davis Boyer (shorthanded) over the final five minutes. Derek Battagin and Connor Cassavia strike 18 seconds apart in the opening minute of the middle stanza and despite power play goals from Rodrigues and Tyler Shaw, Sudbury could not overcome the hole they had dug themselves.

The loss leaves head coach Bob Johnston's team four points back of the New Liskeard Cubs with two games in hand and just five regular season encounters remaining. The Wolves travel to Timmins for a pair of games this weekend against the Majors, returning home on the 30th and 31st to face the Kirkland Lake Legion 87's and closing out the 2009-2010 campaign on February 6th against the Nickel City Sons.

Sudbury remains without the services of forward Kyle Stasiuk who sustained a fractured shoulder at the Gatineau Kiwanis Tournament earlier this month.