MJHL pre-season rolls on for Niverville, Steinbach

The games may not count in the standings, the jerseys may have been practice ones, but there was no love lost between the Steinbach Pistons and Niverville Nighthawks as the two Manitoba Junior Hockey League East Division teams renewed hostilities for the season Sept. 8.

While Niverville came out on top with a 5-4 feisty win, many of the players on the ice had limited, if any junior A experience.

One of those players who made an impact was Steinbach’s Gavin Holod. The Stonewall Collegiate high school standout suited up for a couple games with the Nighthawks last season, but was traded to the Pistons this off-season.

He potted two goals in the team’s losing effort.

Caleb Lepitre responded with a pair of his own goals to counter for Niverville.

The Pistons are playing all of their exhibition games on the road this season, as they wait for ice to be installed at their temporary home at the HyLife Centre in La Broquerie. Training camp practices are still in the T.G. Smith Centre in Steinbach.

Steinbach has brought a less experienced team to both of their first two pre-season games, one against Winkler and one against Niverville.

“The purpose of playing pre-season games is to get players some experience at our level and to evaluate the players as we work to getting our roster set for opening day,” Steinbach general manager and head coach Paul Dyck said.

“We have been able to establish a little clearer picture of what we have in camp and how certain players may fit.”

While the more experienced players have been left rooting for their teammates from the stands during game action, Dyck said they’ve set an excellent tone in training camp so far.

“It’s a group that has brought a lot of energy and attentiveness into camp so we have had some really good practices and scrimmages,” he said.

“It creates an environment conducive to development.”

The Nighthawks won a pair of tight games to open their exhibition schedule, not only getting the better of Steinbach, but also defeating the Selkirk Steelers 6-5 in overtime Sept. 6, in a game filled with rookie skaters.

“(We’ve) seen a lot of of prospects and how they played in that game versus the Steelers,” Niverville head coach Dwight Hirst said.

“They played with pace and a purpose.”

The theme for Hirst at this year’s Nighthawks camp is “intensity.”

“This camp has been very competitive and the compete in every practice and game has been there since day one,” he said.

Niverville and Steinbach will play one more pre-season game Sept. 14 at 7:30 p.m.

The MJHL’s regular season begins Sept. 20, with the Nighthawks hosting the Winnipeg Freeze at 7:30 p.m. The team is also holding a season launch party at Niverville’s outdoor rink Sept. 13 from 8 p.m. – 1 a.m. where fans can meet the Nighthawks and celebrate the start of the season together.

Steinbach’s home schedule begins Sept 21, with the second half of a back to back against Winkler.