After a solid win over the Portage Terriers on home ice on Friday night, the Pistons are back at it on Saturday as they make the short trip over to the Hockey For All Centre in Winnipeg to face the Blues.
The Pistons beat Portage 4-1 in what was both of their first games back from the holiday break. Head Coach Paul Dyck had his boys back practicing on New Year’s Eve to get that Christmas turkey worked off before the start of the second half. Was that the key to their success? Perhaps, but it might also be the solid, fast, well rounded effort that the Pistons put together.
Pistons forward Hunter Degelman makes his return to the lineup on Saturday after serving his 4 game suspension. A welcomed addition back into a Pistons lineup that is still, however, short on defenseman. Forward Dawson McCann will draw in again as we await the return of Jack Cook in the next couple weeks. Still no clear timeline for Shane Burns or Chad Cote.
Speaking of Cote’s, David Cote made his return to the lineup on Friday earning himself a goal and an assist along with the game’s first star. A notable return to the lineup and good boost for the veteran defenseman’s confidence.
Onto tonight’s matchup, this is the first game back from the break for the Winnipeg Blues. The Pistons appear to be coming out with some jump this second half so the Blues will need to be ready to go come puck drop. In the standings they currently sit well out of a playoff spot but stranger things have happened and the Pistons shouldn’t take this young team for granted.
SPECIAL TEAMS
PISTONS: PP 30/136 – 22.1% PK 147/162 – 90.7%
BLUES: PP 12/139 – 8.6% PK 110/130 – 84.6%
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Pistons: Jackson Kostiuk
Call him Mr. Consistent. Jackson Kostiuk comes to the rink every day with a smile on his face and ready to go to work. You can always count on him to give it his all night in and night out. An impressive quality for a 17-year-old rookie centreman. Kostiuk is a smart player that moves the puck effectively and plays with a lot of speed. Definitely a player to watch throughout the rest of the season as he continues to develop his skill. After being out a couple games to end the first back, it will be refreshing to see him back in the lineup.
Blues: Brody Green
Green is second on his team in scoring and has accumulated points, often more than one, in 8 of his last 9 games. After a solid recharge over the break, lookout for Green as he looks to come out and continue his point streak.
Puck drop at the Hockey For all Centre is 7:45pm. Catch the game on Flo Hockey or listen to voice of the Pistons Dave Anthony over at DAbroadcasting.mixlr.com.
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