Pistons hit on all cylinders

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This article was published 14/05/2023 (1203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE — The Steinbach Pistons were playing for their playoff lives at the Centennial Cup and they looked the part Sunday night.

At times, a combination of nerves and eagerness threatened to become a toxic mix, but timely power-play goals by Landon Roberts, late in the second period, and Ty Paisley, early in the third, lifted the Manitoba Junior Hockey League champions to a 5-2 triumph over the Kam River Fighting Walleye at Stride Place.

“It definitely got the guys going again,” said Roberts, whose goal came eight seconds after Kam River’s Riley Borody was assessed a double minor for tripping. “It had been some been some time since we had something that got us some excitement on the bench. So I think it sparked us a little bit, especially headed into the third period.”

Paisley’s goal, which gave the Pistons a 4-1 lead, came on the back half of Borody’s double minor.

The win kept the Pistons, who improved to 1-0-1-1 in the preliminary round, in the hunt for a playoff berth at the national junior A hockey championship. Steinbach has four points and sits in third place in Group B. The top three teams in each group will advance to the playoff round.

“There was probably some tension,” said Pistons GM and head coach Paul Dyck, who club wraps up the preliminary round with a crucial game against the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s Battlefords North Stars Tuesday night.

“I think everybody understood what was on the line today. I mean, we had to win to keep going and we definitely weren’t crisp. It was very sloppy for good chunks of the game. I thought once we had the the three-goal buffer that was when we started to relax and make some more plays.”

The Fighting Walleye, champions of the Superior International Junior Hockey League, fell to 0-0-3-0. Without any points and only one game remaining, they were the first team eliminated from playoff round contention.

“I definitely think we strayed away from our game and a lot of the time I don’t necessarily know why,” added Roberts. “It’s something we tended to struggle with over the season. It’s just finding consistency throughout the whole game. I don’t know if I’d call it nerves but it’s definitely apparent there’s something there.”

Kirk Mullen, Brett Kaiser and Ian Amsbaugh, who added a pair of assists, also scored for the Pistons, who got a 26-save performance from Dominik Wasik.

Jack Cook and Ethan Lang had goals for the Walleye.

Eric Vanska made 42 stops in the Kam River net.

In an afternoon contest, the Quebec Hockey League’s Terrebonne Cobras eked out a 2-1 triumph over the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Timmins Rock.

Cobras 2 Rock 1

Terrebonne was trailing 1-0 and facing another loss when sniper Anthony Di Cesare got to work, scoring the equalizer at 14:57 of the third period and the game-winner, with the Rock’s Nicolas Pigeon in the penalty box for high-sticking, with 24 ticks left on the clock.

“I think it was tough for me to get used the type of game that plays here, but I was just pushing through it and staying strong mentally,” said Di Cesare, who scored 30 goals in 44 regular-season games and 16 more goals in 16 Qubec Junior Hockey League playoff games. “I think I think I played a good game.”

Patrick Boivin was stellar in the Timmins net, making 31 stops.

“They were holding the stick too hard, missing the man (with passes), too anxious,” said Cobras GM and head coach Robert Dubuc, whose club had scored once in five tournament periods prior to Di Cesare’s outburst. “So after the second period we told them to calm down, relax. It’s tough to have fun when you want to win.”

Harry Clark was the lone Rock shooter to beat Cobras goaltender Alexandre Marchand, who finished with 25 saves.

“Honestly, I think we dominated the third period,” said Dubuc. “We were pushing, pushing, pushing and the puck didn’t want to go in and finally we find a way to put it in. We just told the players to keep pushing and that’s what they did.”

Terrebonne improved to 1-0-0-1 and four points, good for second place in Group A.

“They’re good hockey team and you’ve got to expect the desperation to come in at some point and it certainly did,” said Rock GM and head coach Brandon Perry. “We were doing a good job keeping them outside the dots and nothing too dangerous but we made a mistake — turned the puck over inside the O-zone blue-line — and a 2-on-1 the other way it ends up in our net. Then take a penalty with 40 seconds left. I mean, those are just things that can’t happen.”

Timmins, now 0-1-1-0 with two points, is tied for third place in Group A.

“You just move on whether it’s a win or a loss, you’ve gotta get ready for the next one because it’s such a short tournament,” said Perry. “You don’t have time to feel sorry for yourself. The guys played hard, they competed and they came up short.”

In Monday’s games, the Central Canada Hockey League’s Ottawa Junior Senators (0-1-1-0, two points, tied for third in Group A) face the Maritime Hockey League’s Yarmouth Mariners (0-0-1-1, one point, fifth in Group A) at 11:30 a.m.; Brooks Bandits (2-0-0-0, six points, first in Group A) of the Alberta Junior Hockey League take on Timmins at 3:30 p.m.; and the host Portage Terriers (2-0-0-0, six points, first in Group B) tangle with Battlefords North (1-0-1-0, three points, fourth in Group B) at 7:30 p.m.

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14