An SEMHL rivalry begins in Oakbank

It was a special night for senior hockey in Oakbank Dec. 14, as the Ste Anne Aces took on the Springfield Winterhawks for the first time.

Not only was it a match-up between the top two teams in the South East Manitoba Hockey League Standings, it was a match-up of former team-mates, as several players on the Winterhawks used to suit up for the Aces.

In the end, Ste Anne came out on top 5-4, with Brenden Walker notching the overtime winner on a clever play. Walker, who has been the league’s best forward since the Aces joined in 2022, didn’t start the three-on-three session of extra time.

When Matt Baily managed to win the opening face-off, he went immediately to the bench, with Walker leaping onto the ice and blitzing parallel to the blue-line. Brett Lernout hit Walker with the breakaway pass, and he went five-hole on Steve Christie to give Ste Anne the victory.

It was a passionate performance from Walker, who appeared to bring a playoff edge that night, even sarcastically waving good-bye to Oakbank fans which had taunted him earlier in the game.

After the game Walker said there was no doubt this was the start of a rivalry and he couldn’t wait to play the return game in Ste Anne.

“I was excited for it, I’m always excited for intense games like this,” Walker said.

“It gets the heart pumping and there’s no better feeling than scoring the O.T. winner.”

Darren Bestland also had a great game for Ste Anne, bringing physicality and scoring his first goal as an Ace late in the third period. Bestland played with Walker in the WHL for Brandon, and joined the Aces after playing with the Warren Mercs last season.

“He’s still the same Besty, he comes out plays those hard games,” Walker said.

“When the games count, he’s there to battle and I sure love having him on the team.”

Springfield erased four Ste Anne one-goal leads in the game, including when Owen Blocker scored with four seconds to go to force overtime. The former Ace tallied twice in the contest, with veteran defender and other former Ste Anne player Yvan Pattyn also finding the back of the net.

Blocker took advantage of some poor time management from Ste Anne to tie the game late. It appeared the Aces had the game won when they cleared the puck out with under 30 seconds to go, but Oakbank rushed into the zone, eventually pushing the puck towards the net with 10 seconds left on the clock.

While Ste Anne players crashed the crease to try and stop the play dead, there was still lots of time left, as the puck squeaked out to the slot, where Blocker was all alone with more than enough time to slot home a late equalizer.

The Oakbank rink was jam-packed in a way rarely seen for regular season senior hockey. Fans standing outside of the bleachers along the glass were two deep, as every fan from the region wanted to get a chance to see the highly anticipated match-up.

Winterhawks assistant coach Ryan Frykas said the expansion franchise has been well-supported to start the year.

“It’s good to have the support from the community,” Frykas said, crediting Quinton Howden for helping organize a strong roster on and off the ice.

Howden is an Oakbank product and Springfield’s captain, boasting hundreds of games of professional experience, including nearly 100 in the NHL.

“It’s very good hockey, it’s good to have everyone back in Oakbank,” Frykas said.

“We’ve got a lot of local guys too… We just wanted to put a good product on the ice and compete all year and I think we’re doing that.”

The game was 1-1 after the first period, with a pair of brilliant individual efforts. Walker showed great speed to beat out an icing call, circling around the net and setting up Jordan DePape for a tap-in after a cross-crease pass. Later in the frame Conner Grunsten tied the game for the Winterhawks with a “no-look” shot on a two-on-one rush.

Both teams also scored a single time in the second period, setting up a memorable final frame. After DePape’s second of the game was erased by Pattyn, both teams had great chances to take the lead, but it was Bestland who would finally break through, after Bailey was robbed by Christie’s glove.

Bestland was the final Ste Anne player to enter the zone after it appeared a rush chance was well defended, and he leaned into a drop pass, blasting the puck past Christie to give Ste Anne a 4-3 lead Blocker would erase.

Ste Anne and Springfield were clearly the best two teams to start the season this year, dominating games on the scoresheet, and lapping their competition when it comes to goal difference.

“At the end of the day we’ve just got to keep growing and take it one game at a time,” Frykas said.

“We’ve seen what it takes to be at the top of the league, so we’ve got to build off that and take the positives out of it.”

The two teams resume hostilities after the Christmas break, playing in Ste Anne Jan. 3. Both have a single game this weekend, with Ste Anne hosting the basement-dwelling Ile des Chenes North Stars Dec. 22 at 3:30 p.m.