There is now just one winless team in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL).
The Winnipeg Freeze will look to change that on Friday when they take on the fifth-ranked national Selkirk Steelers. Over in the MGEU West Division, the Waywayseecappo Wolverines opened up their season with back-to-back losses.
Following a game that was postponed days prior because of ice issues at the Arena Complex, the Wolverines were back on the ice on Monday hosting Neepawa in their annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Day game.
Playing in front of more than 500 fans, the Wolverines started on time scoring three goals in the opening 20 minutes and they never looked back in a 5-1 victory over the Titans, who have now lost three straight. Jaxon Grosdidier led the way for Waywayseecappo with a pair of goals while scoring twice was the game's first star, Jonah Marshall. Deegan Wapass scored the Wolverines' other goal in the win. Jase Wareham was brilliant in net turning away 36 of the 37 shots he faced.
Waywayseecappo went 2-for-4 on the power play and 4-for-4 on the penalty kill. While it's extremely early in the season, it's important not to get too far behind and with the win, the Wolverines moved within two points of Virden for fourth in what is expected to be an incredibly tight race.
"It felt unreal, especially on the special day that it was, we were playing for a bigger purpose than just hockey," said Landyn Cochrane, who is an alumnus of the program and now head coach and general manager. "I'm so proud of the group effort, they deserve that win."
The win was also one for the history books for Cochrane who went on to win a national championship with Minot State after playing in the MJHL. It was the first win of his head coaching career and is one of many to come.
"It was such a huge relief to get that first one, the guys have been pushing to get that one, we just haven't been getting the bounces," said Cochrane. "It was a team effort to get the job done. All the effort that our coaching staff has put in and the player's work ethic, it's a great feeling. It's time to move forward and focus on getting our second win this weekend."
The Wolverines now embark on their first overnight road trip of the season as they play in Swan Valley on Friday before heading to the Roy H Johnston Arena to play the NorMan Blizzard on Saturday. The Stampeders are coming off an 8-2 loss while the Blizzard won two of their three games over the weekend and will be title contenders this season.
Waywayseecappo will board their team bus on Friday morning and as Cochrane says, he is pleased with how his group competes and understands that every night is a chance to grow.
"Our guys have come together here since the start of the year, we're preaching playing an entire 60 minutes," offered Cochrane. "We have to fine-tune our play in the defensive zone which is what we will work on this week. We're taking everything as a positive and looking forward to our big weekend coming up."
The team received a boost to their lineup over the weekend as Dru Mushumanski was re-assigned by the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League (WHL). The former Parkland Ranger all-star had 10 points in 44 games last year with the Pats.
Dru, who debuted on Monday evening in the team's first win of the season, played two games with the Wolverines during the 2022-23 season. That's the year he registered 19 goals and 45 points in 40 games with Parkland.
From Rossburn, Cochrane is thrilled to have the hometown star in his lineup.
"He's an incredible kid, he wants to play for his hometown team which speaks volumes of his character," ended Cochrane. "He's a high calibre player with a high skill set. He will fit in very well with what we're doing here."
The Wolverines will be in Dauphin to play the Kings on October 13 before the two teams hook up 48 hours later on October 15 at the Arena Complex in Waywayseecappo. Darnell Duff will have the broadcast for both of those games.
