Kaiser reflects on 3 eras of Pistons hockey

Brett Kaiser wasn’t sure he’d return for his fourth season with the Steinbach Pistons.

The 2005-born forward had been a mainstay on the team’s roster since he joined in 2022, but wasn’t sure he was going to play his 20-year-old season in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League.

Coming back to the Southeast Event Centre and the team’s brand new locker room had Kaiser return to Steinbach for his final year of junior eligibility, where he picked up a new career high in points, nabbing 59 across 56 regular season games to finish second on the team.

“Just seeing that facility and the rink and the fan support, it’s like, how can you say no,” Kaiser said after the team’s wind-up banquet earlier this summer.

Kaiser finished his junior career playing in combined 236 games, nabbing 146 points during the regular season and adding 22 playoff points. He even scored a goal for Steinbach at the Centennial Cup in 2023.

Kaiser was the only player who was selected by the Pistons in the MJHL draft, which was eliminated in 2024, to graduate from the team in 2026. He finished his career as one of the top 10 players in team history in terms of games played.

At the wind-up banquet, Pistons head coach and general manager Paul Dyck recalled the draft process, noting Kaiser’s incredible run with the Winnipeg Warriors U15 team where he scored 27 points in ten games, suiting up alongside third-round NHL pick Jaden Perron.

“The one thing we liked about him at 14-years-old was the fact his best hockey was at the most meaningful time of the year,” Dyck said.

“That’s exactly what we’ve seen every year he’s been with us. Come playoff time, when you play the best teams, that’s when Kaiser really shined. He was excited to play those games. It’s the one’s in between sometimes…”

Kaiser was the only Pistons player to play a full season both in the Centennial Arena and the newly constructed Southeast Event Centre, joining the team in 2022 after a strong U18 campaign with the Rink Hockey Academy. He played two seasons at the HyLife Centre in La Broquerie before finally getting a chance to play at the new rink.

“It’s been awesome being here for four years,” Kaiser said.

“The community is so great, they really get behind you. All the people here are super-nice. The old rink was cool, La Broquerie was fun too but there’s nothing like the new rink and the new facility. It’s incredible.”

The Pistons able to send the Centennial Arena out in style, winning a championship as construction crews waited to tear down the building nearly the day after winning game five of the 2023 Turnbull Cup to beat Virden in the finals.

Kaiser was just a fresh-faced rookie on that team, mentored by players like Dawson Milliken and Warren Clark, who stayed with the same billet family as the rookie forward.

“It was really cool watching them, seeing them play,” he said.

“I still text them to this day, we saw each other this summer. It’s awesome to re-unite with them.”

He also was named the team’s academic player of the year, completing business administration at Red River College. Kaiser won the award twice, much to the surprise of some in the audience. He plans to continue his education this fall.

“I’m going to miss it for sure,” Kaiser said.

“It’s going to be weird not coming back here for the spring.”