July/August Carillon Sports Year in Review

MISTELBACHER SUITS UP FOR JETS AT PROSPECTS CAMP

Luke Mistelbacher didn’t let the fact he wasn’t drafted to the WHL stop him from thriving with the Swift Current Broncos, and he’s going to do his best to replicate that at the professional level.

“Not getting drafted doesn’t make me a better player or a worse player,” Mistelbacher said.

Despite being passed over at the 2024 NHL draft, he was invited by various organizations to their prospect development camps over the summer. When the Winnipeg Jets called, the choice to stay close to home was an easy one.

At that camp, Mistelbacher played on a scrimmage line between top prospects Brad Lambert and Colby Barlow, impressing enough to get an invitation to the Young Stars Classic featuring other NHL prospects later in the summer.

“It was a good experience, I learned a lot,” Mistelbacher said, reflecting on his NHL experience.

“I got to see what it takes and the different level of intensity and speed, the different level of intensity in the gym. There’s a different level to everything.”

SULTANS WIN MJBL

The Carillon Sultans were a force in the Manitoba Junior Baseball League this year, boasting an outstanding top of the lineup that shone through all season.

Despite that, it was the bottom of the lineup and an underrated pitching staff which was the difference as the Sultans edged past the perennial contender Elmwood Giants to win their first championship in a decade.

With playoff MVP Cedric Lagasse on the mound, the team’s number nine hitter Mason Hartung crushed a rare grand slam out of the cavernous A.D. Penner Field before blitzing home on a sacrifice fly to give the Sultans a mercy rule victory in the decisive game five.

“It took me a second to find it in the air, but once I saw it I knew pretty good it was going,” Hartung said.

“It feels amazing… It got the guys going and we didn’t stop from there.”

By winning the championship, Carillon qualifies for the national championship in 2025.

VALENCIA COMES TO STEINBACH

One of Spain’s best professional soccer clubs hosted a camp in Steinbach, searching for the next great soccer star.

Valencia CF is committing to better scouting Canada in advance of the 2026 World Cup, setting up a permanent campus in Montreal, and hosting camps throughout the country.

Cristian Castells ran the camp. He’s based out of Spain, helping run the club’s under-11 team at the academy, after a long playing career in the lower professional divisions across Europe.

“The camp here in Steinbach is very special,” Castells said.

“I am very happy because the passion of the staff in this town, and the passion and the attitude of the kids is incredible.”

Castells had high praise for the Steinbach Soccer Park. While the park is one of the best soccer venues in Manitoba, Castells said it was an outstanding outdoor facility that is comparable to the best facilities around the world.

“It’s top level,” he said.

“Normally when you go to other countries or cities, it’s synthetic grass. For me, it’s a pleasure to be here.”

LOEPPKY OLYMPICS

Steinbach was back at the Olympic Games, as Eric Loeppky played for Team Canada at the 2024 Paris Games.

While Canada came up short in their quest to break into the medal round, it’s an experience the former Steinbach Regional Secondary School student will never forget.

After the event, Loeppky said he’d been struggling to find the words to describe the Olympic experience as an athlete.

“It was amazing,” he said.

“It was such a surreal experience all around. With the venue, and everything they set up for the athletes. It’s the biggest sporting event in the world and they kind of go all out.”

After the Olympics, Loeppky hosted a meet and greet in Steinbach before returning to Europe to continue his professional career.