Lancers lead the pack

St. Vital

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This article was published 22/01/2025 (598 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Dakota Lancers girls’ hockey team is having a stellar season.

At press time, the St. Vital-based team was top of the standings in the Manitoba Women’s High School Hockey League’s third division, which is made up of seven teams.

As of Jan. 16, the Lancers were six points ahead of second-placed Murdoch MacKay, having won 13 of its 18 games with a game in hand.

Coach Kyle Ridler said the team “lost lots of scoring power” at the end of last season with the graduation of several key Grade 12 players, which makes the Lancers’ achievements so far this season even more gratifying.

“The girls have done an exceptional job this season, finding ways to win,” said Ridler, who is in his sixth season as the team’s head coach. “They’ve pushed each other, and we went on an eight-game winning streak at one point.”

“It’s a great group of girls, who’ve really worked hard, pushed each other, and stepped up a lot when the team needed growth this year,” he added.

Many high school teams go in cycles, and the current Lancers’ team has only one Grade 12 player, which means this crop of players has the potential to grow together in the next couple of seasons.

“We’re usually heavier with older girls, but this year we’re heavier with younger players — we have four in Grade 11, and the rest are in Grade 9 and 10,” Ridler said.

“It’s nice for the program, and it means we won’t be losing a lot of players at the end of the year,” he added, noting the significant growth of goaltender Elizabeth Pirie in the last two years — she is currently second in the standings for goalies and has 4 shutouts — as one example. “She’s one of big reasons of our success.”

“I have a great group of girls every year, who are fun to be around and always want to be there,” Ridler said.

Based on its progress to date, Ridler said he believes the team can make a good run this season — all the way to the finals.

“I can see us making it to the playoffs, not because of our work ethic, but also because some of the players have stepped into new roles, which has been a big thing for the growth of the team,” he said. “They push themselves to learn the game, and develop their skills.”

Ridler noted that the PCI Saints have proven to be strong rivals this season, and there’s a big game coming up against the Portage team on Jan. 24 at Southdale Community Centre.

“The biggest thing I’ve enjoyed through my coaching of female hockey is the continued growth of it, and also bringing back graduated players as part of the coaching team. The current girls look up to them, and see them through a different lens, and it also shows their willingness to give back to the team,” Ridler said.

The rest of the team’s coaching staff consists of assistant coaches Risa Shatford, Roby Yeung, Brenya Kapusta, and Doug Williams. Sabrina Milner is the team manager.