Will Koop and Darby Gula both notched three points as the Pistons defeated the Waywayseecappo Wolverines 7-1 Wednesday night at the TG Smith Centre.
Matthew Thiessen was solid in the Steinbach goal, stopping 13 shots in the victory.
The Pistons’ top line have been on fire lately with Koop adding 3 points tonight. Drew Worrad has 10 points in the past four games, and MJHL leading scorer Bradley Schoonbaert added 2 points to extend his point total to 29.
Head Coach Paul Dyck was pleased with his players’ intensity throughout the game. “We really wanted to focus on our game execution, and play at a high rate. I thought we did that tonight,” he said after the game.
The Pistons got on the board early, as Schoonbaert notched his 13th of the season with a wrist shot from the right face-off dot. Worrad put the Pistons up by two when he got his 5th goal, as he finished off a nice passing play from Tanner Mole and Brady Tatro. And after a long shift on the power play late in the first, Austin Heidemann deflected a Jaret Lalli point shot to conclude scoring in the period.
In the second, Tanner Mole showed some nice hand-eye coordination by deflecting a waist-high shot through the legs of Wolverine goalie Ethan Peterson and into the net for the Pistons’ fourth goal. Tyson McConnell netted his 5th of the season on an odd-man rush. Koop got his first goal when he banked the puck in from a bad angle to net the Pistons’ sixth goal.
Koop notched his second of the night with a backhand shot to give the Pistons a 7-0 lead. The Wolverines ended starting netminder Matthew Thiessen’s shutout bid as James Maxwell scored a late power play marker.
“It’s nice to get a couple of goals, but it’s also my linemates helping me out,” Koop said. “I thought it was a good all-around game for the team tonight.
Special Teams
The Pistons went 2 for 3 on the power play, and were 4 for 5 on the penalty kill.
Pistons Active Off the Ice
The Pistons were active on the trade front earlier today, acquiring two players from the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League in a three team deal. Steinbach acquired D Nolan Ferguson (’98) and F Isaac Embree from the Estevan Bruins in exchange for the rights to 20 year old F Aruther Miller. The Pistons then shipped Embree to the Melville Millionaires of the SJHL, and in return they received F Daniel McKitrick (’98). Ferguson is currently in his second season of junior hockey, and he put up 13 points in 15 games with Estevan. McKitrick has spent most of this early season with the Portage Terriers, registering 12 points in 10 games before being traded to the Millionaires.
UP NEXT: The Pistons conclude their 5 game homestand against the Wolverines on Saturday night.