Stampeders' and Wolverines both victorious on MJHL Opening Night

 Stampeders 6, Blizzard 3

The Swan Valley Stampeders kicked off their 2020/21 regular season with a 6-3 road victory over the OCN Blizzard on Friday night.

It wasn't the most ideal start for the Stamps' as after turning the back over at the Blizzard blue-line, the home-side would come back on a 2 on 1 and Aaron Lorenz's initial shot was blocked the rebound came out to Jaden Pashe who made no mistake to give the Blizz a 1-0 lead just 14 seconds in. 

The Stampeders' responded a short time later as loose puck came out in the slot and Cody Barnes sniped it over the right shoulder of Danick Rodrigue, for his first MJHL goal to knot up the score. 

Swan grabbed their first lead of the night with 2:36 left in the 1st frame as Parker Johnson of Elkhorn, MB tucked in his 1st to make it 2-1 for the visitors but before the buzzer would go off a unfortunate bounce for Swan G Mikael Foucher went off him and then into the back of the net to tie it at 2-2 after 20 minutes.

In the 2nd, the only goal would come from Swan on the PP as after a nice set-up, Haydn Delorme slid it cross ice to Alex Danis who finished it off nicely with the snapshot by the OCN goaltender for his 1st in a Stampeders' uniform to regain the visitors their one goal lead after 2 periods. 

The Stamps' would continue that momentum into the 3rd where they would strike with three goals in the first 9 minutes off the sticks of Quinn Mulder (1st MJHL goal), Johnson and newly named Captain Lane Kirk to push the Swan Valley to 6-2.

Levi Thiessen added a late goal on the man advantage for the Blizzard whose PP ended up being 1 for 7 on the night, but that's as close as they would get. 

20 year old G Mikael Foucher picked up where he left off from last year, making 42 saves on 45 shots to earn the win while Danick Rodrigue got the start for OCN and allowed 6 goals on 38 shots before being relieved by Nik Jerris who stopped both shots he faced in the final 10 minutes. 

The two teams will play the rematch of their weekend series on Saturday night back in Swan River for the Stamps' Home Opener with the puck drop being at 7PM MB time. Don't forget to bring your mask to wear, follow the social distancing guidelines that are in place, and get your advanced tickets at www.stampedershockey.ca

Benny's 3 Stars:
1) Parker Johnson- SV (2G 1A)
2) Mikael Foucher- SV (42 saves and W)
3) Quinn Mulder- SV (1G 2A)

Meanwhile, 

Wolverines 7, Kings 3

The Waywayseecappo Wolverines got out to a 6 goal lead and never looked back as they defeated the Dauphin Kings on the road, 7-3.

The Wolverines' veterans led the way offensively as Gerrik Ripley and Conrad Phillips each had a goal and 2 assists each while Kieran Thiessen, Jacob Charko, Rayman Bassi, Jaymes Knee and Leyton Smith chipped in with the other markers.

Grady Hobbs, Koby Morrisseau and Braeden Young replied for the Kings. 

 Brendan Foreman, who was acquired in an off-season trade from Humboldt, made 30 saves to earn his 1st victory as a Wolverine.

 The Wolverines' home opener will be the back half of this home and series with Dauphin and puck drop from the Wayway Arena Complex is at 7:30PM MB Time.

 

Other Friday MJHL scores: 

 Portage 2, Virden 4 

 WPG Blues 5, Selkirk 3

Steinbach 2, WPG Freeze 0

Winkler 3, Neepawa 2 (OT)

Saskatchewan Hockey Association's Return to Hockey Guidelines receive Ministry of Health's Approval

The Saskatchewan Hockey Association announced on Thursday that their Return to Hockey Safety Guidelines has received provincial approval.

The comprehensive plan which is 63 pages long is split about into three phases.

Phase 1 is Evaluation and Training which is what Sask Hockey is at right now, while Phase 2 allows teams starting Oct. 17th to get together with another team for mini league for exhibition games.
 

Meanwhile while phase 3 allows for mini regular season games with up to 6 teams which will begin tentatively at the start of November and phase 4 allows for even more expanded leagues of up to 8 teams which would start in the middle of January.

Phases two and three will only apply for under 13 age groups and higher.
The final phase, the 5th doesn't have a start date yet and comprises of playoffs and provincials.

A maximum of 150 spectators will be allowed for minor hockey games as long as there is enough space for two-metre physical distancing to take place.

Junior, senior and U18 AAA hockey must have assigned seating available. If assigned seating is unavailable, a maximum of 150 spectators is permitted.

For more information on protocols, face covering guidelines, seating capacity info and much more about the Saskatchewan Hockey Return to Hockey Guidelines CLICK HERE

Two Local Golfers/Students named as Pat Fletcher Scholarship recipients

Two local products are among the four students that were announced as the 25 recipients from across Canada of the Pat Fletcher Foundation annual scholarships announced on Thursday by the organization.

Melville’s Kylie Severson who is attending the University of Saskatchewan and University of Alberta student and Wynyard product Carson Fisher are the local recipients of the scholarship money from the Foundation, whose purpose is to provide financial assistance to deserving young Canadian students on their journey to obtaining a university degree.

Since establishing the Foundation in 1985, The Pat Fletcher Foundation has awarded 543 scholarships, for a total of approximately $750,000 to young Canadian golfers – giving them the opportunity to develop and reach their highest potential.

Manitoba Junior Hockey League opens up 2020/21 Regular Season today!

It's been 212 days since the Manitoba Junior Hockey League last iced a regular season or playoff game due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but that'll change tonight (Fri) as the league's modified 2020/21 regular season will officially kick-off with 6 game schedule. 

To follow their Return to play guidelines and to help to limit the risk of the spread of the virus, the league will play a 42 game regular season schedule meaning teams will play their 3 divisional rivals, 8 times each while playing the rest of the league just twice. 

For Swan Valley Stampeders' Head Coach/GM Barry Wolff, he commends the hard-work that the league office has done to get them back on the ice. 

"You know our league has done a great job in getting an approval from Manitoba and all the teams have done an incredible job following the protocols and so far so good everybody's healthy and moving forward and I just think it's great for everybody in Manitoba and the teams in the city and the fans that are all going to get a chance to see our hockey for real in a safe fashion coming Friday.  "

For the Stampeders' they'll open their season against one of their three division rivals, the OCN Blizzard who they'll meet in their first 4 games of the campaign. 

"One thing for sure obviously Billy Keane going in there  he's a good coach and does a great job with those guys and they're gonna be well structured and they compete and that they've got some good skill up there so it's definitely gonna be a battle for us.  "

The game will be broadcasted from OCN on GX94, starting the play by play which gets going on at 7PM MB time. You can also listen live to the game online at www.gx94radio.com

The Waywayseecappo Wolverines' also kick-off their season on the road on Friday when they travel to take on the Dauphin Kings at Credit Union Place. 

Wolverines' Head Coach/GM Taylor Harnett says his bunch are ready to go. 

"In order to have success you've got to play good teams and  win big games and we're gonna start there the season with that mindset and we expect a great effort from Dauphin in their home opener and and then we have to follow it up with our home opener which is exciting for any teams. " 

Puck drop from Dauphin at 7:30PM MB time. 

Other games on the opening night schedule include Portage at Virden, Winnipeg Blues visit Selkirk, Neepawa entertains Winkler and the league's newest franchise, the Winnipeg Freeze play their first ever game against the Steinbach Pistons. 


Audio with Waywayseecappo Wolverines Head Coach and GM Taylor Harnett 

bennywalchuk2 · Taylor WAY Season Preview- (Oct 7th)

Audio with Swan Valley Stampeders Head Coach/GM Barry Wolff 

bennywalchuk2 · Barry Wolff SV Season Preview (Oct 8th)

Swan Valley Stampeders' acquire 20 year old F Zloty from Prince George (BCHL)

The MJHL's Swan Valley Stampeders added some veteran experience to their forward unit after completing a trade the Prince George Spruce Kings on Tuesday night. 

The Stamps' acquired 20 year old F Jackson Zloty from the BCHL franchise in exchange for future considerations. 

The Calgary, AB product split last year between the Spruce Kings and the AJHL's Calgary Canucks and he compiled 4 goals and 13 assists for 17 points in 58 games during the 2019/20 campaign. 

 

Swan Valley wins; Wayway falls in MJHL Preseason Finales on Friday

 SWAN VALLEY 4  OCN 1

The Swan Valley Stampeders' wrapped up their MJHL preseason with a 4-1 victory over the OCN Blizzard at home on Friday night. 

Newcomers Jayce Nikbahkt and Haydn Delorme led the way offensively for the Stampeders with a goal and an assist each while Jackson Betcher and Quin Mulder chipped in with the other goals. 

Trenton Morrisseau replied with the only goal for the Blizzard.

Stamps' veteran netminder Mikael Foucher made 30 saves on 31 shots to earn the victory in goal. 

The Stamps' will open up their 2020/21 regular season on Friday night when they visit the OCN Blizzard. GX94 will broadcast the game, there will be no pregame show and the broadcast will start with play by play starting at 7PM MB time. 


WAYWAYSEECAPPO 4, NEEPAWA 5 

The Waywayseecappo Wolverines' comeback in their preseason finale came up a little bit short as they lost 5-4 on Friday night against visiting Neepawa.

Conrad Phillips and Jacob Charko had 1G 1A to lead the Wolverines who got singles from Tyler Leibl and Mack Belinski. 

Rayman Bassi and recently acquired D Nick Dobson had 2 assists each. 

Austin Clyne, Briley Wood, Bryce Krauter, Jaeger Lapointe and Will Highet scored for Neepawa. 

Brennan Foreman (12 saves on 16 shots) and Liam Tereposky (5 saves on 6 shots) split the goaltending duties for Wayway. 

The Wolverines will kick off their 2020/21 regular season schedule on Friday night on the road in Dauphin against the Kings. 

Swan Valley Stampeders' Home Protocols and Procedures ahead of 1st Home Preseason Game on Friday!

(Stampeders Press Release) 

The Swan Valley Stampeders are excited for the 2020-21 season, which is set to start with a pre-season home game on Friday, Oct. 2 and the regular season home opener on Saturday, Oct. 10.

Due to COVID-19, this season will look different than others and the safety of our players and fans is priority for the Stampeders, the facility and the MJHL. For this reason the league has shortened the season to 40 games – 20 at home and 20 on the road. These games are primarily held on Fridays and Saturdays with the odd weekday game and several breaks throughout the year.  Home game time has also been changed to 7 p.m..

To ensure a safe environment for the whole family the MJHL has implemented Return-to-Play guidelines approved by the province of Manitoba which all teams will follow. We will also be adhering to the guidelines set out by the Town of Swan River for the Centennial Arena. This includes a maximum 50 percent capacity (500 fans) for games, sanitization stations and a mandatory mask requirement at all times.

You can read more about the MJHL’s return to play protocol here.  https://www.mjhlhockey.ca/mjhl-announces-return-to-hockey-for-2020-21

Because seating at home games will be limited we have implemented the following:

• Only season ticket holders will be guaranteed entrance. This does not include flex pack holders.
  • If you have reserved a flex pass but would like to switch to a season ticket please let our Director of Marketing Cody Manchester (204.281.2765) know.
  • Season tickets will be available for purchase and pickup during the Oct. 2 exhibition game or from the Swan Valley Star and Times at 704 Main Street (between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays) Starting Oct. 5.
    • Season tickets can also be purchased online at stampedershockey.com starting Sept. 28
  • Reserved seating is available for those who choose that option
• Flex pack and walk-up ticket purchasers will be handled on a first come, first served basis following rush seating practices. Once reserve capacity has been reached, all but season ticket holders will be turned away.
  • Non-game specific tickets will be available in advance at Patty’s Sports Excellence, online at stampedershockey.com or at the ticket window on game day
  • Doors and ticket window will be open 45 minutes before puck drop. We encourage you to come early to make sure you get your seat.
• The ‘warm room’ at the north end of the ice will be open by reservation only to create a safe space for those who require it. This does not include the lounge/bar side that will operate with its own limitations/restrictions.
  • A pass, obtained at the ticket counter, will be required to access this space
  • No children will be permitted unless accompanied by an adult with a pass

In addition:

• Fans (over the age of 9) are required to wear masks in the arena at all times as physical distancing may not be possible
• Fans are also encouraged to sit socially distanced from people outside their household wherever possible
• Fans (including children) will be asked to remain seated during the game unless going to the washroom or concessions and to not socialize in the lobby between periods
• All fans must use the self-assessment tool prior to attending games and if feeling unwell please stay home

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I take off my mask when I am in my seat?

No, when you sit down to watch the game you must keep your mask on as per Centennial Arena policy.

 Where can I buy a mask?

Reusable team branded masks are available to purchase at The Stall.

Can I still buy season tickets?

Yes, season tickets and flex packs of 10 or 20 tickets are available at Patty’s Sports Excellence or online at stampedershockey.com starting Sept. 28.

Please note that the situation with COVID-19 continues to be fluid and rules and restrictions are subject to change at any time.  

If you have any questions please contact Stampeders President Cramer Coulthart at 204.281.4255.

Audio with Stampeders' President and Governor Cramer Coulthart

bennywalchuk2 · Cramer SV (Oct