The Swift Current Broncos certainly had the look and rhythm of a team fixated on snapping a five-game slide Wednesday night at the Innovation Credit Union iPlex. But, another late burst of scoring from their opponent - this time the Winnipeg ICE - spelled a one-sided loss.

Swift Current racked up quality scoring chances in the first period and controlled the play, though couldn't translate that into offense.

The ICE struck first, scoring 14:04 into the game, though the Broncos did manage a response 2:21 later via the captain, Jaxan Kaluski.

"We knew we had to come out and work against these guys," said Kaluski. "We're on home ice, we want to give our fans a reason to come. We're trying to do that right now."

"We were working hard and throwing pucks on net. A couple bad bounces [the other way] and they jump in front."

The ICE carried a 2-1 lead into the first intermission, scoring the go-ahead goal with 1:21 to go.

From there, the ICE added another three unanswered to open the second period to take a commanding 5-1 lead over the Broncos - a stretch that Swift's captain chalked up to a lack of self-discipline on the team.

"We kind of got away from our game there for a bit. We stopped moving our feet," Kaluski said. "They're a quick team, so once we stopped, they just pounced on us. We'd like to get a few of those back and it could be a different game."

Though the three-goal stretch over the first 12:06 of the second period proved to be insurmountable in hindsight, the Broncos still managed a steady push that lifted them right back in the game.

Matthew Benson and Hayden Ostir both crashed the net to bury loose pucks, as Swift Current made it a 5-3 game through 40 minutes.

"Things aren't always going our way, but we battled back there," said Kaluski on his team's flash of resiliency to close the second period.

"We could have had a few more go in just as easily, and it could have been a tie game - who knows what happens from there."

It was the ICE that put their foot on the gas in the third period though, as another three unanswered handed the Broncos an 8-3 loss.

"All in all, there were some positives early, and we just have to keep pushing hard and do that for a more complete game," Kaluski said. "We've just got to take the positives, not get too negative on ourselves here, and build for Friday-Saturday."

The Broncos' losing streak was extended to six games, and another tough opponent stands in the way of Swift as they try to snap their slide.

Swift Current (10-37-1-3) is on the road against the Prince Albert Raiders (28-16-5-4), as the two teams butt heads for the final time this season.

"A quick start against those guys in their own building is huge, especially for us right now when we're battling some confidence issues," said Kaluski.

"They're a quick team, and we've got to match their speed the whole game."