(+1) 1st – Winnipeg Blues
This week: 2-0
Overall: 9-1
Impressive Player: Goalie Dawson Green – 2 wins, 1 shutout, 1 goal scored
Things just keep rolling on for the Blues as they remain a power house in the MJHL. Great goaltending by Green has been a constant and depth scoring is becoming more apparent. Also, their goalie scored a goal and that’s very impressive.
Up next: Oct. 22nd vs Selkirk, Oct. 23rd @Selkirk
(-1) 2nd – Steinbach Pistons
This week: 2-0
Overall: 9-1
Impressive Player: Forward Travis Hensrud – 4 goals, 1 assist
After a strong showing Friday, the Pistons were served a wake-up call by a hardworking Terrier team. Steinbach managed to pick up the win in overtime but were shown that there are no easy nights in the MJHL. Expect a better effort in the upcoming rematch
Up next: Oct. 22nd vs Portage, Oct. 23rd @ Portage
(-) 3rd – Dauphin Kings
This week: 2-0
Overall: 8-2
Impressive Player: Defenseman Parker Malchuk – 1 goal, 3 assists
Scoring a lot or scoring at the right time, the Kings are figuring out how to win in any game. The confidence continues to grow and with it, so will their distance atop the West standings. More opportunities to prove themselves are coming up throughout October with a first-place showdown looming to close the month.
Up next: Oct. 15th @ Virden, Oct. 16th vs Virden
(-) 4th – Waywayseecappo Wolverines
This week: 2-0
Overall: 8-2
Impressive player: Defenseman Reese Malkewich – 2 goals, 2 assists
Quietly, the Wolverines are showing that last year’s strong start was far from a fluke. They continue to pile up wins and points with their sights set on being the best in the west. Total team wins have been the name of the game so far and it makes them a very difficult team to gameplay for then play against. A true test is coming up as next weekend, a four-game set with the other top team, the Kings, awaits.
Up next: Oct. 22nd vs OCN, Oct. 24th @ OCN
(-) 5 – Winkler Flyers
This week: 1-1
Overall: 6-3-1
Impressive player: Defenseman – Trent Sambrook – 4 assists
A pair of wins the Flyers really needed. Not just for the points but for their offence. They got some of their big horses going and that will only do good things going forward for a team still searching a bit for their identity. The league will need to watch out if Winkler can really put the hammer down here to close out October.
Up next: Oct. 22nd @ Freeze, Oct. 23rd vs Freeze
(+1) 6 – Neepawa Titans
This week: 1-0-1
Overall: 3-5-1-1
Impressive player: Forward Mitch Thiessen – 2 goals, 1 assist
A shootout win and a shootout loss. One step forward, one step back. But, three out of a possible four points for a young team like the Titans, it’s hard not to view it as a positive step in a season where things have gone either very well or the opposite direction. Consistency is still something the Titans are looking for but if they keep gaining points in the standings while learning, they’ll take it.
Up next: Oct. 22nd vs Swan Vally, Oct 23rd @ Swan Valley
(+3) 7 – Swan Valley
This week: 1-0-1
Overall: 4-5-0-1
Impressive player: Forward Jamie Valentino – 3 goals, 3 assists
Taking three out of four points in a weekend is always good but Swan’s got to feel like they let a point slip away. They’ve been able to score goals but the trend so far has been taking as many pucks out of their net as they’re putting in the other.
Up next: Oct. 22nd @ Neepawa, Oct. 23rd @ Neepawa
(-) 8th – Portage Terriers
This week: 0-1-1
Overall: 2-7-1
Impressive player: Forward Brendan Holba – 1 goal, 1 assist
Despite only picking up a single point over the weekend, the Terriers deserved better. Everyone up and down their lineup works hard and doesn’t give an inch. With that, they’re forcing mistakes and taking advantage of them. A hard team to play against every night.
Up next: Oct 22nd @ Steinbach, Oct. 23rd vs Steinbach
(-3) 9th – Virden Oil Capitals
This week: 0-2
Overall: 4-5-1
Impressive player: Forward Jack Oleksiuk – 3 assists
A pair of losses that could have just has easily been wins keeps the Oil Caps in the middle of the pack in the West division. They have the talent to score their way out of problems but in taking those chances, leave themselves open to goals against. They need to find the happy medium or stay a medium ranked team.
Up next: Oct. 22nd @ Dauphin, Oct. 23rd vs Dauphin
(-1) 10th – Selkirk Steelers
This week: 0-2
Overall: 3-6-0-1
Impressive player: Forward Tyson Smith – 1 goal
After a productive weekend, the Steelers struggled again to produce any offence. A positive takeaway is they gave the top ranked Blues all they could handle and never let the games get away from them. While scoring is something of a concern, effort hasn’t been and that can lead to results.
Up next: Oct. 22nd vs Blues, Oct. 23rd @ Blues
(-) 11th – Winnipeg Freeze
This week: 0-2
Overall: 1-9
Impressive player: Defenseman Evan Sterling – 1 goal, 1 assist
Their highest goal scoring output of the season wasn’t quite enough to match Winkler but it showed that this team can score when given the chance. The next game didn’t go so well, but it’s all about taking positives and growing. Multiple players scoring goals is a good way to grow chemistry on and off the ice.
Up next: Oct. 22nd vs Winkler, Oct. 23rd @ Winkler
(-4) 12th – OCN Blizzard
This week: 0-2
Overall: 3-6-0-1
Impressive player: Brett Tataryn – 1 goal, 1 assist
A hard-fought weekend but nothing to show for it in the standings. OCN battles hard but just can’t seem to get over the hump at key points of the game. The thing about this season is, they can learn from this past weekend and bring it into the return matchup vs Wayway. A win or even an OT/SO loss can be the start of something special.
Up next: Oct. 22nd @ Waywayseecappo, Oct. 24th vs Waywayseecappo
