The Steinbach Pistons and Selkirk Steelers combined for 11 goals in tonight’s contest in Steeltown, though the Steelers came out on top in the end.
Cole Babych struck for the home side just 37 seconds into the contest, beating Lincoln Molind from a sharp angle to put Selkirk up by one. Noah Paulsen gave the Steelers a 2-0 lead with a shorthanded marker off a bad giveaway by Steinbach at 14:02.
Just 1:54 into the second period, Paulsen recorded his second of the night to put his club up by three.
Marek Miller, coming off a seven-point game on Sunday in Winnipeg, got Steinbach on the board with some sweet moves 4:40 into the middle frame, reaching double digits in goals for the second time in his MJHL career.
Selkirk added two power-play goals at 10:07 and 13:23 to extend its lead to four.
For the second straight game, Miller netted at least two goals, sniping one past Stefan Kostin late in the period on the man advantage to get Steinbach within three heading into the third.
Molind was pulled after giving up his sixth goal of the night 3:09 into the final stanza. Kai Zurowski took over for the remainder of the contest.
It was a special moment for Jace Guevarra, who fired a shot from the point past Kostin at 6:48 for his first MJHL goal. The younger brother of Rohan Guevarra’s milestone goal brought the Pistons within three.
Chris Weyrich entered the zone and dropped the puck off for Olivier Mathieu, and the Quebec City product fired a quick shot past the Steelers’ netminder’s blocker for his first goal since Sept. 18 at 13:46.
The Pistons continued to make things interesting as Griffin Krone pounced on a rebound on the power play with just over two minutes left to play, burying his fifth of the season to make it a one-goal game.
Steinbach continued to push in the late stages, but Selkirk managed to hang on to secure the two points.
Zurowski turned aside all five shots he faced after taking over for Molind, while Miller extended his point streak to seven games. Steinbach fell to 8-3-0-0 with the loss.
Next up for the Pistons is a return home to face the Portage Terriers on Friday at Southeast Event Centre, with puck drop set for 7:00 p.m. CT.
Article Written by Evan Waldner
