The Steinbach Pistons will look to rebound from their first loss of the season on Friday night when they head to the Selkirk Recreational Complex tonight to try and exact some revenge on the Selkirk Steelers.
The main downfall of the Pistons during last night’s contest was the power play, as the man advantage units went 0 for 10 on the night. Equally as troubling for Paul Dyck was that Steinbach didn’t take advantage of the fact that the Steelers only finished the game with three defencemen due to penalty and injury issues.
The good news however was that Steinbach did pick up a point in the 3-2 shootout loss yesterday to remain one of three teams in the MJHL to have not lost a game in regulation thus far. Ty Naaykens and Dominic Murano had the goals yesterday for the Pistons, while Thomas Couture was excellent in goal for the home side making 33 saves. Couture now also owns the Pistons record for the longest shutout streak to start a season, going 119:31 before allowing a goal to Steelers forward Jared Chapel.
The Steelers came back from two deficits last night, and Sheldin Howard scored with 28 seconds left to tie the game at two. Then Tristan Thompson and Ryan Ostermann notched the shootout goals in the penalty shot contest to give Selkirk the extra point. However, they played with fire last night by taking too many penalties and now lead the MJHL in the dubious category of total times shorthanded (35).
William Desmarais was rock solid in goal with a 40 save performance, so it wouldn’t be surprising to him get the call once again to try and shut down the offensive firepower that the Pistons possess.
Catch the game live on HockeyTV or on your radio at MIX 96.7 and Steinbachonline.com as the puck drops at 7:30 pm.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Pistons PP 4/26 (15.4%), PK 17/19 (89.5%)
Steelers PP 1/14 (7.1%), PK 30/36 (83.3%)
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Pistons: Codey Behun
Behun is the only Piston to have recorded a point in every single completed game so far this season. He grabbed an assist last night on Ty Naaykens’ goal, giving the fourth-year MJHLer two goals and four assists in Steinbach’s first five games. Behun can do it all: play fast, has a quick shot release, kill penalties, and is one of the top faceoff takers in the league. Look for him to continue his solid play tonight.
Steelers: Ryan Ostermann
Ostermann has been the reason Selkirk has won both of their games so far in 2020-21, as he’s scored both shootout winners against the Blues last week and now the Pistons last night. He’s a hard-nosed player that has a deceptive quick shot and likes to attack the front of the net. Steinbach will have to slow him down if they want to have success tonight.