Natives clip Winkler’s wings

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Published on Thursday, September 28, 2017

Photo by Eoin Devereux
Natives goaltender Evan Robert made 65 saves over the course of two games against the Winkler Flyers, including this stop in the second period on Friday, Sept. 22 against Winkler’s Nolan McGuire.

Eoin Devereux
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The Neepawa Natives are off to a hot start in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL), winning their first two games of the regular season. The Natives claimed a 4-2 decision over the Winkler Flyers on Friday, Sept. 22, at the Yellowhead Arena in Neepawa. The team followed that up by spoiling the Flyers’ home opener on Saturday night, by the score of 3-1.

Home opener
For the Friday night showdown, it was a mix of new faces and old favourites combining to spur the Natives to victory. Early in the opening period, fourth year player Griffin Chwaliboga scored the first goal of the regular season, off assists from fellow returnees Ashton Anderson and Justin Metcalf. That was followed up by a new name on the stat line, as Brett Namaka contributed a goal before the end of the first, giving the home side a 2-1 advantage after 20 minutes. Jordan Martin and Ryan Heino assisted on the play.

Winkler played well in the middle frame, leading to a tying goal at the 13:42 mark. The Flyers would attempt to take advantage of multiple power-play opportunities in the second, but were unable to solve the Neepawa defensive core and goaltender Evan Robert.

Neepawa scored what would end up being the game winner with just over eight minutes left in regulation, as Zach Johnson potted his first, with assists from Martin and Heino. An empty net goal from Justin Metcalf sealed the win for Neepawa.

Goaltender Evan Robert had a good game between the pipes for Neepawa, stopping 24 shots. The Natives went 0-for-7 on the power-play, but a perfect 6-for-6 on the penalty-kill.

Neepawa 3-1 Winkler
The next night, Winkler looked to bounce back in their own home opener. With just 4:34 gone in the first period, Winkler’s Coltyn Bates scored. That would be the last time the Flyer’s would find the back of the net, however, as Neepawa’s Evan Robert put together a 41 save effort and helped Neepawa collect the 3-1 win. Ryan Heino, Jordan Martin and Ashton Anderson all scored for the Natives.

After the success of the opening weekend, Neepawa head coach Dustin Howden was full of praise for the players, saying that the team played very well on both nights.

“As an organization, we wanted to get off to a good start and that’s exactly what I think we did. There were some issues in terms of penalties [six penalties in game one, eight in game two], but we were able to work an effective penalty kill on both nights. What was great to see was the new players on our roster working well with the returning players so quickly. You could see that on the stats, as there’s a mix of old and new names on there. The passing, as well, was good. Not mid-season form just yet, but still very good. Evan Robert had a solid pair of games, especially the Saturday night in Winkler, where he came up huge for us. It’s exciting to see the potential that this team has,” stated Howden.

The road ahead
Despite the strong start, things will not get any easier for Neepawa, as the club travels to Portage la Prairie on Saturday, Sept. 30 to face the defending MJHL champions, the Portage Terriers. After a game in Swan River against the Stampeders on Friday, Oct. 6, the Natives will return home for a matchup with the Selkirk Steelers. Start time for that game on Saturday, Oct. 7 at the Yellowhead Arena is scheduled for 7:30 pm.