Steinbachpistons.ca is once again bringing you some alumni updates throughout this lengthened offseason to get Steinbach fans caught up with some of your favorite Pistons players throughout the years.
We recently caught up with former Pistons forward Trent Genyk. Genyk was a mainstay up front for Steinbach during three seasons from 2010-2013.
Trent was drafted into the organization back in 2007, when the team was still in Beausejour. The Winnipeg Beach native spent three years with the U-18 Interlake Lightning before making his way to play for the recently relocated Steinbach Pistons for the 2010-11 season.
He got the opportunity to play with his brother Brock for two seasons, and put up 10 goals and 22 points during his rookie season as the Pistons improved that season to 19 wins, up six wins from the year previous. In 2011-12, Trent improved to be the leading scorer on the team with 16 goals and 41 points in 53 games played in an overall tough year for the organization.
2012-13 was a turnaround year for the Pistons, who vastly improved with new ownership and new resources. Genyk was named an assistant captain for his third and final junior season and helped lead Steinbach to its first postseason berth. He again improved his scoring by nabbing 18 goals and 43 points in the regular season.
Head Coach/General Manager Paul Dyck, who coached Genyk all three years of his junior career first as assistant and then as the bench boss, described him as a consistent offensive producer for his team and said that Trent always had a knack for scoring timely goals.
It was during the team’s two most important games of that season was where he had his most memorable moments as a Piston. During Game #7 of the first round series against the Portage Terriers, Trent notched a Pistons record six points (2 goals, 4 assists) in an 8-2 win over their rivals. And in Game #6 of the Turnbull Cup series versus the Dauphin Kings, Genyk scored twice in the first eight minutes of the opening period. That gave Steinbach a lead they would never relinquish as they captured their first MJHL championship later on that night.
Genyk led the team in scoring during the 2013 Western Canada Cup with 2 goals and 1 assist in the five-team tournament, but the Pistons were eliminated after round-robin play.
After his junior career, Trent has continued to be involved in the game by playing one year of collegiate hockey in Alberta. He has spent the past six full seasons playing senior hockey in Manitoba, mainly in the towns of Gimli and Warren. He returned to Steinbach and donned the Pistons logo once again in 2019 for the team’s Alumni Classic game.
Genyk sits just outside of the top 10 in each major offensive category with Steinbach: 44 career goals, 62 assists, and 106 career points in 158 career games. He also is tied at the top for the most shorthanded points in team history, with 3 goals and 4 assists for 7 points.
The following is a Q and A with Trent:
Steinbachpistons.ca: What are you doing in life these days?
Trent Genyk: These days I enjoy spending time with my two young boys, Griffin (6) and Niko (1). They keep us pretty busy. I also work for a construction company called Bituminex Paving as an Estimator/Project Manager. Between the boys and work, life is busy.
SP: Do you still follow the team presently?
TG: I try to as much as I can. With the Covid situation and the team not playing I haven’t been keeping up, but once the league is able to start up again I will definitely be taking in a few games.
SP: Where was the toughest place to play during your career?
TG: For whatever reason I despised playing in Dauphin. They always had good teams and I never seemed to play well there.
SP: You went through a difficult season in 2011-12 to a remarkable turnaround season in 2012-13 with an MJHL championship victory. As one of the few returning players from that team, what was the mentality of you and your teammates throughout that memorable run?
TG: 2011-12 was kind of bittersweet. I enjoyed it because I got to play with my brother Brock, but felt bad that he had to finish his junior career in that fashion. In 2012-13, my mentality was just go out, play hard, and enjoy my last year.
We had a goal of our record being above .500 for the year. But we added a few key players and realized we could make some noise. Once we made the playoffs we just took it one game at a time, and the rest is history.
SP: You’ve had a few memorable moments and plays throughout your time as a Piston, but which one was your favorite and why?
TG: My favorite goal was in Game #6 of the finals versus Dauphin, but winning the championship with such a great group of guys trumps all personal milestones.
SP: So, which then is your favorite memory of hanging out with the guys on the team?
TG: From being roommates with (Kyle) Rous my first year and (Myles) Nykoluk my last year, to the road trips and the dinner, it was all great. We had a lot of fun. But I would say our trip to B.C. for the Western Canada Cup was the most memorable. It’s too bad the outcome wasn’t what we wanted, but we had a great time and a fantastic experience.
SP: How has the Pistons organization and its culture played a part in getting you where you are today?
TG: The level of professionalism and work ethic from within the organization, from all the volunteers and coaching staff, is something that I have definitely carried into my own career.