It appears a long break did the Saskatoon Blades good.

The Blades and Regina Pats met for the first time this year Tuesday evening at the Brandt Centre, it was also the Blades first game in nine days, and they ended up getting the upper hand beating Regina 3-2 in front of 3,206.

It looked like it was going to be a good night for the home team, as Lane Scheidl scored scored his first of two goals of the game not even two minutes into the game on a five on three. After that though, the Blades dominated the rest of the period.

"That's something we got to work on, we've had some good starts in the past, and we haven't followed them up with exactly the best shifts," said Scheidl. "That's just another learning curve for the team we have to take."

The Blades would finally get on the board almost four minutes into the second as Josh Nicholls would score his first of two on the evening, he also scored about 10 minutes later to the give Saskatoon a 2-1 lead heading into the third period.

"It's nice for me to keep playing my game, that's all I can worry about," said Nicholls, who was asked if it would be nice for someone else to score for a change. "Those other guys will get going, they've been working hard."

The second period also featured a dust up Colton Jobke and Duncan Siemens, after Jobke was called for boarding. Three fights nearly broke out at the same time, but cooler heads prevailed in the other scrums with each side getting an extra roughing call.

Scheidl would score his second of the night at the 12 minute mark of the third period in a 4 on 4 situation , but the tie didn't last long, as Colton Mayor would take a goalie interference penalty 12 seconds later giving the Blades a four on three power play . Not long after Shane McColgan would score what would end up being the game winning goal.

"I understand that players have to take responsibility for that," said Pats head coach Pat Conacher. "We're not going to blame anyone for that one, but it's tough."

As mentioned it was the first game for the Blades in roughly a week and a half, a long break for a hockey team, especially this early in the season. It could be even tougher for a junior hockey team, where distractions can certainly creep in more often during that time.

"Hard work, we needed to get back to the basics, and regain some confidence," said Blades head coach Lorne Molleken, when he was asked how he kept his group focused for so long. "We had some fun too. The guys understand that to be successful in this league, you have to come prepared to play every night."

Molleken admitted that they didn't want to take that many days off this early in the season, but considering the start they had, it might end up being a turning point for the team.

The Blades ended up outshooting the Pats 35-26, both teams were one for five on the power play .

The Pats next host Calgary on Friday evening, while the Blades continue a road trip Friday in Kootenay.