Carillon Sports Second Shots: Nov. 13th edition

Featuring photos from the A/AA varsity boys Zone 13 championships in Ste Anne and Grunthal, a Gabrielle-Roy/Pointe des Chenes hockey game in Ile des Chenes Nov. 7, the Ile des Chenes North Stars home opener later that night and Remembrance Day Nighthawks and Eastman Selects games in Niverville.

Local teams near top of WHSHL standings

Click on any tier of the Winnipeg High School Hockey League and you seem to be guaranteed to see an Eastman team battling near the top of the standings.

In the top Platinum Promotions Division, Steinbach continues their strong start to the season with a 5-2 start to the season.

In the third-tier Price Division, Niverville and Lorette are both undefeated through a combined 11 games this season.

And in the Winnipeg Free Press Division, the Gabrielle-Roy/Pointe des Chenes Caveliers and Springfield Sabres are a combined 10-3 on the season, both in the top three of their division.

Jocelyne Larocque, Charge will ‘takeover’ Winnipeg

For the first time in her Professional Women’s Hockey League career, Jocelyne Larocque will get to suit up in Manitoba.

Ste Anne’s Larocque, who plays for the Ottawa Charge, will be in Winnipeg March 22 as part of the PWHL’s annual “Takeover Tour” series of games.

Winnipeg’s Canada Life Centre will host the Charge and Montreal Victoire for a regular season game, with puck drop at 6 p.m.

“This event reflects our commitment to creating opportunities for young women to see themselves represented on the professional stage, and we are proud to play a small role in creating this moment for our community,” Annie Chipman Stockl, True North Sports and Entertainment vice-president of marketing said in a news release.

Nighthawks continue to make cross-league trades

Owning the best record in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League hasn’t stopped the Niverville Nighthawks from making trades.

The Nighthawks moved Luke Mackenzie to Melfort int he Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League in exchange for 2007-born defenseman Jake Demone and a player development fee.

Mackenzie, who is from Pipestone, joined Niverville after a brief stint with the Virden Oil Capitals mid-way through the 2023/2024 season. In his only full year for the Nighthawks, he had six goals and fourteen assists in 57 games. He had five points through nine games this season.

His play earned him a college commitment to Canisius College, an NCAA Division 1 school based out of Buffalo, New York.

SPORTS FLASHBACK 1975: Sleeper play catches St Laurent napping

The St Laurent Panthers must be wondering what they have to do to defeat the Landmark Dutchmen. They came within three minutes of their first victory in three years Sunday, only to have a 50 yard-sleeper play and a last second field goal turn a sure victory into a defeat in the Rural Manitoba Intermediate Football League semi-final.

The Dutchmen, trailing 14-1 at the half, rallied for one touchdown and a safety touch in the third quarter to make it 14-10.

St Laurent’s Wayne Tremblay returned a blocked punt 15 yards for a touchdown to give St Laurent a 10 point lead early in the fourth, setting the stage for the rally by the Dutchmen.

Landmark gained a first down following the kickoff on a third down gamble and then moved the ball another five yards on a completion to Ken Sonnichsen.

AS I SEE IT COLUMN: Let’s celebrate Grey Cup like never before

Sports fans, with the Grey Cup happening this weekend, we need to embrace and celebrate the CFL’s championship game more than ever.

Given the existential threats to our economy and our sovereignty by the madman south of the border, we need to support Canada in any and every way we can, and the Grey Cup is the quintessential opportunity to treasure our game, our country and our collective national pride.

So, let’s make the most of it.

There isn’t a whole lot that individual Canadians can do to combat punishing tariffs or threats of annexation, but one thing that is totally within our control, one way we can fight back against destructive outside forces, is to uphold and cherish the Grey Cup as the unique aspect of sporting Canadiana that it is.

Providence women’s volleyball prepping for nationals

Providence University College’s women’s volleyball team knows where their season will end, but the path they take to get there is still up in the air.

The Pilots are the hosts of the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association national championships, after the men’s team hosted last year in Niverville.

Head coach Kyle Guenther will lead an experienced team, ready to make some noise at the national level. The host team is granted an automatic berth in nationals, but Providence is aiming to qualify directly by winning the province, for a better seed and more momentum.

Guenther said Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference women’s volleyball has taken a step up this year.

Volleyball zone banners handed out across region

The first banners of the high school volleyball season were handed out Nov. 5, as athletes across the province look to add to their school’s gym walls.

The Zone 13 A and AA varsity championships were held last week, with four different schools winning their respective championships.

There was a bit of an upset at the AA girls level, as the St Joachim Braves took down top-ranked Gabrielle-Roy in Lac du Bonnet.

The Gabrielle-Roy Les Roys were second in the provincial top 10 rankings heading into the championships, with St Joachim not even ranked. The Braves took out 10th rated Landmark just to make the semi-finals, where they defeated the hosts.

Carillon Sports Second Shots: Nov. 6th edition

Featuring photos from a Steinbach Regional Sabres hockey action Oct. 29, Zone 13 girls varsity volleyball games in St Pierre Oct. 29, Providence Pilots volleyball matches in Niverville Oct. 31, Winnipeg High School Football League playoff action from Princess Auto Stadium Oct. 30, WHL action from Brandon Nov. 1 and an MJHL game between Niverville and Dauphin Nov. 2.

Niverville Nighthawks honoured by MJHL

Adam Vigfusson and Austin Dubinsky have both been recognized by the Manitoba Junior Hockey League for their outstanding play for the Niverville Nighthawks.

Dubinsky was named the top goaltender in the league for the month of October, finishing with a record of 8-1 while boasting a sparkling 0.930 save percentage.

Dubinsky only trails Dauphin’s Justin Perreault in save percentage for the season, while appearing in twice as many games. The Ardossen, Alberta, goaltender has thrived for Niverville since taking over as the team’s full time starter last season when Raiden LeGall earned a call up to the Western Hockey League.

He had a 22-11-1 record last year with a save percentage above 0.920. The 2005-born goaltender played with Grande Prairie in the Alberta Junior Hockey League before joining Niverville.

Providence launches cross country program after false start

It’s not exactly easy to have a false start in a cross-country race, but the Providence Pilots suffered one at the program level.

The school was set to launch a foyer into a new sport for them last year, hiring Caleb de Jong in January with the hopes of beginning the program for fall of 2025.

That plan was put on hold when de Jong nabbed a different job before fully establishing the team.

Cross-country at the college is now back on track, with Providence announcing Nick Reimer as their new head coach, with the goal of competing in fall of 2026.

Ste Anne’s Lansard hopes season will end with NHL selection

There’s no doubt the first year a player is eligible to be drafted to the NHL comes with added motivation and pressure.

Ste Anne’s Zach Lansard is one of many hoping his name is one of 224 called at the 2026 draft, and he’s gotten off to a strong start. The 2008-born forward was recently named to NHL Central Scouting’s initial player’s to watch list, and continues to rack up points with the Regina Pats in the Western Hockey League.

“It’s a dream come true for every kid (to be drafted to the NHL), but I try not to pay too much attention to it,” Lansard said with a chuckle when asked how aware he is of accolades like the players to watch list.

He was named Regina’s rookie of the year last season.

SPORTS FLASHBACK 2011: Jets gear is tops on Christmas wish list

The Winnipeg Goldeyes lost in the first round of the playoffs in their first season in the American Association, the Toronto Blue Jays finished their season early with a dismal .500 and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers lost the Grey Cup to the B.C. Lions after finishing first in the CFL East.

It was time for Winnipeg fans to turn their attention to hockey. And that they did, with the return of the Winnipeg Jets to the National Hockey League this season.

Christmas shopping for diehard Winnipeg Jets fans, who were devastated when the team left the city in 1996, came early this year. It will be no surprise to find Jets-related gifts under the tree Christmas morning.

Sean Walsh of Steinbach is one of many hockey fans thrilled to have a Manitoba NHL team to cheer for this hockey season. He was also fortunate enough to have been able to purchase season tickets this year, which he shares with a group of friends.

AS I SEE IT COLUMN: Even in defeat, Jays unite and inspire a nation

In the end, after the shock, the heartbreak and the tears, one thing was perfectly clear: even though the Toronto Blue Jays came oh so close to winning the World Series, ultimately succumbing to a star-studded team with more than double the Jays’ team salary — the Jays managed to lift the hearts of Canadians.

Living in a time when a deranged American president takes childlike glee hurting Canada with punishing tariffs and threatens to annex our beautiful country, the Jays unified the nation and gave us joy, suspense and thrills.

I bet all of you know people who aren’t sports fans at all that got caught up in the Jays’ magic.

The staggering TV ratings prove how the tightly the Jays gripped the nation: Nearly half of the country watched game 7.