Winnipeg native Will Koop had two goals and two assists to lead the Pistons past the Waywayseecappo Wolverines 6-0 in the second game of a back-to-back at the Waywayseecappo Arena Complex.
Starting goalie and Altona’s Matthew Thiessen made 12 saves in the Steinbach crease for his first career MJHL shutout. Wolverine goaltender Curtis Stewart stopped 35 shots in defeat.
“Thiess has been playing really well this season so it was great to see him get rewarded with a shutout,” Koop said after the game. “He’s come in as a young goaltender, and he makes a lot of big saves and fights for every puck.”
Steinbach native Darby Gula picked up his 4th goal of the season while adding an assist, and Mark Taraschuk scored his 5th of the season. MJHL scoring leader and Brandon’s own Bradley Schoonbaert picked up two more assists, which puts him at 38 points in 18 games played.
“I thought the guys played well and kept good habits throughout the weekend,” Koop said.
Gula got the scoring started early in the 1st, as he wired a slap shot past Stewart for the 1-0 lead. However that was the only marker in the period, as the Pistons came out flat in the first, probably as a result of playing two games in less than 24 hours.
“We were flat in the first, but started finding our legs in the second period,” head coach Paul Dyck said after the game.
Koop scored his first goal on a pass from Schoonbaert early in the second period. He set up Taraschuk in the middle of the second period, and then netted his second of the night on a pass from Drew Worrad to make it 4-0 just 22 seconds later.
Danny Pion tallied his second of the season at 14:13 of the third, and Koop setting up Austin Heidemann on the power play for the 6-0 final score line.
When asked about his team’s play this weekend, the Pistons’ head coach was pleased with the overall performance. “I thought we did what we needed to do,” Dyck said. “Our focus was taking care of our zone and we limited them to 12 shots (tonight). For the most part we were pretty solid.”
TOP LINE CONTINUES TO SIZZLE
Steinbach’s top line of Schoonbaert-Worrad-Koop seems as if they do not want to slow down their torrid play. The line totaled eight points on the night after scoring six total points the previous night. “They both have such good vision of the ice and see plays before they happen,” Koop said of his line-mates. “They find the openings on the ice and make a lot of great passes.”
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Pistons were 1 for 3 with the man advantage, and were a perfect 4 for 4 on the penalty kill.
UP NEXT: The Pistons return to the TG Smith Centre for their next three games, beginning with a vist from the Winnipeg Blues on Wednesday night. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 pm.