The Steinbach Pistons are the 2023 Manitoba Junior Hockey League Turnbull Cup Champions.
The Centennial Arena in Steinbach was filled to capacity Saturday night, for game 5 of the MJHL finals, with the Pistons leading the series 3 games to 1 against the Virden Oil Capitals.
Fans for both teams cheered loudly and after three full periods of full-throttle hockey, the Pistons beat the Oil Caps 3-0. The Dominic Wasik got the shutout, his third of the series.
The championship win Saturday night was the Piston's third Turnbull Cup with Paul Dyck as head coach of the team.
Dyck says that it’s always special to win, but this one was extra special.
"Maybe some people doubted that the team could do it. I’m just really proud of the players, for the growth and the perseverance they showed. They weren't going to be denied."
Referring to winning in the Centennial Arena, Dyck says, "Personally, this is incredible. I couldn't write a better script, right? You know, you grow up playing in this building and we're all excited for a new building, but there are tremendous memories in here and we've hoisted a couple of trophies in here and now and to end it this way, we couldn't have written a better script, to be honest with you. This arena has been a big part of the fabric of our community so this is going to be amazing memory, no question.”
The Pistons now join the list of 10 teams that are coming to Portage for the Centennial Cup National Championships that start next week as the Manitoba representative. The Battlefords North Stars will the Saskatchewan team, (North Battleford) while Brooks will once again represent Alberta. That team is the defending champion. Yarmouth is coming from Nova Scotia along with Timmins and Collingwood from Ontario. The Cobras de Terrebonne will come from Quebec and two other slots still need to be decided. The Portage Terriers will be in the event as the host team.