Bad driving conditions force game cancellations

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This article was published 22/12/2022 (1247 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Colorado low which swept across Mantioba last week brought wind, snow and wrecked havoc on scheduled hockey games in nearly every league.

The Steinbach Pistons were forced to cancel two away games last week, forcing their trips to Portage on Dec. 14 and Winkler Dec. 16 to be postponed. Those three teams are at the top of the standings, and the only MJHL teams in the Canadian Junior Hockey League’s most recent top 20 rankings.

The Niverville Nighthawks were lucky to have none of their games cancelled due to driving conditions. Both Manitoba Junior Hockey League Franchises are now in their Christmas break, with both set to host their final games of 2022 on New Year’s Eve.

The game between the Pistons and Terriers has already been re-scheduled for Jan. 25, with the new date for the Flyers game yet to be determined.

Both of the region’s junior B teams also had games postponed, with the Pembina Valley Twisters’ away game in Charleswood Dec. 16 cancelled due to poor driving. A new date has yet to be determined.

The Twisters will next be in action on Jan. 8, when they visit the Raiders Jr. Hockey Club. Pembina Valley’s remaining six games in January are all set to be hosted at the Morris Multiplex.

The St Malo Warriors were scheduled to face the Arborg Ice Dawgs on Dec. 18 in the afternoon, but Arborg was not able to make the trip. The new game will also be on a Sunday, set for Jan. 22 at 2:30 p.m.

St Malo will have one more game before breaking for Christmas, with the team hosting the North Winnipeg Satelites Dec. 23 at 8 p.m. They’ll kick off the new year at home as well, hosting the Lundar Falcons at 8 p.m. Jan. 6.

In the South East Manitoba Hockey League (SEMHL), the Ste Anne Aces were particularly hard hit. The senior team had two home games cancelled, a visit from Portage Dec. 14 and Ile des Chenes Dec. 16. The game on the 16th was cancelled despite Ile des Chenes and Ste Anne’s proximity. Both games have yet to be re-scheduled on the league’s website.

Only one game is left of the SEMHL’s schedule before the winter break, with Winkler and Morden facing off Dec. 22.

The Steinbach Regional Secondary School Sabres also had their hockey games moved. The Sabres were set to play on Dec. 14 and Dec. 16, but both games were post-poned. The Sabres wasted no time in re-scheduling their Dec. 14 game against the Béliveau Barracudas for Dec. 21. The game finished after press time.

The Hanover-Tache Junior Hockey League managed to get through the weather mostly unscathed. Two of the league’s three games scheduled for Dec. 16 were postponed, with the Macdonald at Red River and Springfield at Steinbach games not going forward.

The league is set to be busy in the Christmas season, with three games scheduled for Dec. 23 alone. For a full schedule and results of recent games, check out the local scoreboard on page B4 of The Carillon every week.