Riese Gaber had a goal and an assist, and Matthew Thiessen made 32 saves as the Steinbach Pistons bounced back with a 5-1 victory over the Swan Valley Stampeders Friday night.
Brett Evans was solid in the Stampeders goal, but he took the loss and recorded 37 saves in the process.
Coming off of a tough loss to the Dauphin Kings last Saturday that snapped a 10-game win streak, it left a bitter taste with the Pistons, and they were determined to get back on their winning ways starting tonight.
After a neutral first half of the first period, Steinbach got on the board first as Brady Tatro banged home a rebound in front for the lead. Tatro netted his 17th of the season, with Easton Bennett and Declan Graham picking up the assists at the 12:10 mark. Then Will Koop scored his 21st of the season when he took a nifty backhand pass from Riese Gaber two minutes later and it was 2-0 Pistons after 20 minutes of play.
The Pistons went up 3-0 halfway through the second period, when Drew Worrad notched his 25th goal of the season from Jack Johnson at 9:11. Gaber gave Steinbach a 4-0 lead when he took his errant pass off of a Stampeder skate, and moved through the middle and backhanded the puck past Evans with 45 seconds remaining in the second period.
The Stampeders carried the play through the first half of the third period, and got their only goal of the game on a jam play in front. With bodies all over Matthew Thiessen’s crease, Jaden Townsend pushed the puck past the goal line at the 10:08 mark of the third, giving him his 11th of the year.
But the Pistons were able to put the game away late, as Austin Heidemann and Bradley Schoonbaert combined to set up Mark Wilson, and Wilson slammed home a one-time laser from the left-face off dot to make it 5-1 with 3:24 left in the game. The goal was Wilson’s 5th of the season.
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Pistons did not get a power play on the night, and the Stampeders did not score on their only man advantage.
UP NEXT: Steinbach will look to exact some justice when they face the Dauphin Kings in Dauphin tomorrow night. Puck drop is set for 7:30 pm. You can listen to the game with Dave Anthony on MIX 96 and Steinbachonline.com, or watch the game on HockeyTV.