Swan Valley Stampeders hire new head coach

The Swan Valley Stampeders have turned to an alumnus to lead them into the future.

The team announced Josh Tripp as their new head coach for the rest of this season. Tripp was excellent for Swan Valley in the 2018/2019 season, winning the league’s most valuable player award.

“The Stampeders organization means a lot to me,” Tripp said in a team news release.

“I owe so much to the team from my playing career to, now, my coaching career. I’m very passionate about this team and anything I can do to have a successful team in the Valley, I will do.”

SPORTS FLASHBACK 1984: Bombers end 19-year wait for trip to 1984 Grey Cup

The last time the Winnipeg Blue Bombers went to the Grey Cup, it was the year John Diefenbaker visited Steinbach to help Warner Jorgenson win his fifth election in Provencher. The last time the Bombers went to the Grey Cup it was the year Lorette’s Diane Landry was crowned Miss Canada.

It was also the year the Boston Bruins’ Ted Green was a special guest at the La Broquerie Sportsman’s Dinner, the year the Kinsmen Mets won the Hanover fastball championship, the year Sandy Koufax pitched for the Dodgers in the World Series against the Minnesota Twins, and the year Steinbach Collegiate’s Roger Loewen set three records at a provincial high school track meet.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers ended their 19-year drought with a victory over the B.C. Lions for their first CFL Western Conference title since 1965.

The Bombers now face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the 72nd edition of the Grey Cup game in Edmonton.

AS I SEE IT COLUMN: Winnipeg heading to 5th straight Grey Cup

So our beloved Blue and Gold will be playing in their fifth consecutive Grey Cup. If my friend’s research is correct, only Edmonton has played in more consecutive CFL championship games (six).

It’s a remarkable stretch of high-calibre play. It’s even more remarkable when you consider the atrocious start the Bombers had at the beginning of the season.

If a couple of plays had gone differently in the past two championship games, the Bombers would be looking to three-peat as Grey Cup champs, but as we all know, they’ve lost two consecutive heartbreakers in a row.

So now they enter the big game with a decidedly different mindset. They want to win to cement their status as one of the best organizations in league history. They need to close the deal.

SRSS Sabres hoping for bounce back year on the ice

Editor's Note: This story was published in the Nov. 14 Carillon

After one game in the Winnipeg High School Hockey League, it looked like the Steinbach Regional Secondary School Sabres were set to repeat last season.

In 2023/2024, the Sabres made a habit of giving up backbreaking late goals to let potential wins slip away, and it once again happened to start the season, as JH Burns scored with 2:11 left in the third period to complete a comeback and hand Steinbach an early loss.

Since then, the Sabres have been on a roll, picking up three one-goal victories, only losing to league-leaders St Paul’s.

High school volleyball playoffs roll on

The action has been hard and fast across the region, as the region’s schools attempt to qualify for their respective provincial championships.

The A and AA Zone 13 banner-winners have been decided already, with AAA championships set for Nov. 18. The Girls championship will be hosted in Lorette, with the boys in Beausejour. A pair of play-in matches took place Nov. 13 after press time.

The Real Berard Jaguars went into Ste Anne and defeated Pointe des Chenes in straight sets (25-14, 25-15) to lock up the girls A banner Nov. 6. The Jaguars are playing in a provincial qualifier at Rivers Collegiate Nov. 16, needing to finish in the top half of a four-team tournament to advance to provincials.

Down the road in Ile des Chenes, Gabrielle-Roy came out on top of the AA final the same night, handling Green Valley in straight sets (25-17, 25-12) to lock up the AA banner. Les Roys will be hosting a provincial qualifier of their own Nov. 16, looking to advance to provincials.

Carillon Sports Second Shots from Nov. 6 edition

Featuring shots from the Steinbach Regional hockey team Oct. 30, a series of Zone 13 South league volleyball games in Lorette Oct. 30, a HTJHL game between Mitchell and Ste Anne Oct. 30, a CRJHL game in St Malo Nov. 1, a Steinbach Pistons victory Nov. 2, a Ste Anne Aces game Nov. 2 and a HTJHL game in Steinbach Nov. 3.

Steinbach Pistons add ‘horsepower’ to off-ice staff

A familiar face and voice is returning to the Steinbach Pistons fold, as the team announced Kevin Geisheimer would begin work as the organization’s director of business operations.

Geisheimer worked with the team from 2014-2018, and served as the team’s radio play-by-play voice on Golden West Radio before that.

Despite leaving the team to work for HyLife, Geisheimer stayed involved, joining the community ownership group in 2022 and serving on the board of directors.

“I’m convinced that our region ranks among the best places to live worldwide,” Geisheimer said in a Pistons’ news release.

St Malo celebrates CRJHL’s newest all-time leader

Even as Ashton Dubois was being honoured for becoming the Capital Region Junior Hockey League’s all-time leading scorer, he was focused on the future.

The 2004-born Dubois became the league’s new highest point-scorer after notching an assist against Selkirk during a 6-2 win Oct. 25 and was honoured before the start of a game against Arborg in St Malo Nov. 1.

It’s a special record to hold for a player who has watched St Malo Warriors hockey from the time he could walk.

“Growing up watching those guys play every night, they were a huge inspiration in my hockey career,” Dubois said.

DANKOCHIK’S DRAFTINGS: Nothing better than local hockey

There’s a reason the Hanover-Tache Junior Hockey League and South East Manitoba Hockey League are my favourite hockey leagues to cover.

When I was growing up in Gimli, I had one option for a hockey team to root for.

With the Jets still years away from returning, and the Gimli Vikings junior B program long-gone, the only competitive hockey I deeply cared about was the local senior intermediate team, the Gimli Wolves.

Even when the Jets finally returned, and I started my journalism career, the Wolves held a special place in my heart, as many of the first events I ever covered were Manitoba Senior Hockey League games featuring the Wolves.

SPORTS FLASHBACK 1971: Steinbach Collegiate Institute stars shine with Portage Terriers

A pair of Steinbach Collegiate Institute (SCI) teammates who were instrumental in their school’s provincial high school hockey championship victory earlier this year caught the eye of Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) scouts, and Ralph Krentz and Randy Penner have been reunited with the Portage Terriers this season.

Krentz and Penner have been piling up the points with the Terriers early in the 1971-72 MJHL season and last week Krentz was named “Terrier of the Week.”

Profiled in the Terrier’s program 17-year-old defenceman Krentz is called one of the brightest additions to the team this season.

“His hard-working style and slick puck-handling has not only delighted fans, but also pleased Terriers Coach Ron McEachern,” the profile reads.

8 players from local teams make MJHL showcase roster

The centre of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) world is in Saskatchewan this week, as the league combined with their prairie counterparts to hold an all-star showcase event in Warman, Sask.

Six Steinbach Pistons players were named to the roster, with forwards Jackson Kostiuk, Mathis Laplante Connor Paronuzzi and Brody Green joined by defenders Luke Bogart and Reece Gault.

Gault, who is from Oakbank, isn’t the only Eastman player making the trip, as Lorette’s Avery Laliberte is attending the camp. Both players committed to Northern Michigan University earlier this season.

Laliberte’s Niverville teammate, goaltender Raiden LeGall is also at the event, which included games Nov. 5 and 6. LeGall earned the start and the victory for Team MJHL in their 4-2 win Nov. 5 to open the event. The Bemidji State commit stopped 24 of the 26 shots he faced.

Ste Anne Aces dominate start of SEMHL season

The Ste Anne Aces may need to change their name if they keep up the insane offensive pace they’ve been on to start the South East Manitoba Hockey League (SEMHL) season.

While Aces are considered the best starting hand in Texas hold’em, that might not convey the complete offensive potential of this year’s Ste Anne SEMHL team.

The Aces put 19 goals past Portage, the league’s fourth-place finisher last season, in their season opener and then notched an 11-4 victory over Warren Nov. 2. The Mercs were last year’s league runners-up and lost to Ste Anne in the final.

With that insane offensive outburst, it’s no surprise to see the top six scorers in the league are all Aces players, led by Brendan Walker, Matt Bailey and Jordan DePape. All players have 11 points in two games.

Transcona Railer Express hosting game in Hazelridge

Fans of junior hockey in the region will have another option to choose from Nov. 9, as the Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League’s (MMJHL) Transcona Railer Express are hosting a game in Hazelridge.

The Express will be taking on the River East Royal Knights, with puck drop at 8 p.m. inside the Hazelridge Sports Complex.

The team is hoping to recognize and honour the many supporters and players who come from the Eastman region.

The current Railer Express roster features five players from Oakbank (Trey Sellen, Kaden Bruchanski, Roan Coe, Griffin Boomer and Nolan Vandenbussche), two from Lorette (Gage Ferguson and Ryder McLure) and one from Anola (Carter Johannesson).