Portage Terriers

A lot of kids growing up in Portage la Prairie dream of one day lacing up the skates with the Portage Terriers.

Thanks to the 7th Player program, many young players get to spend some time with the team at the rink.

Asher Guenther, a member of the U11 MacGregor Mustangs, got a chance to be the 7th Player on Wednesday, January 22, hanging out with Jonny Ballos on the bench. Afterward, he got to sit in the locker room with the team between warmup and the first period.

Guenther says it was a fun experience, and he'd love to do it again.

The Portage Terriers pulled out a 3-2 overtime win against the Selkirk Steelers on Friday night.

Portage started the game strong scoring halfway through the first. Koy Funk tapped in a nice pass from Tristan Gravenor on the power play. Cam Bullinger started the play and picked up his 50th point of the season with the secondary assist. The game started getting chippy and off setting penalties were called to close out the period. 1-0 Portage after 1.

A close game was lost on a miscue by Portage defenders near the end of the third period, in a 4-3 defeat at the hands of the Niverville Nighthawks.

The first period saw Portage score a pair of goals as Breck Hirrschoff and Kyan Grouette both tallied their first as Terriers. 2-0 Portage after 20 minutes.

The frame came to a crazy end, with a massive scrum which resulted in five penalties, three going against Portage.

The second period would see four goals, with Niverville tying the game at 3 just before the halfway mark of the game.

The recent roster release for the MJHL's squads at the MJHL-SJHL Showcase in Winnipeg featured a bunch of players from the Portage Terriers

The showcase gives players a chance to compete against some of the top talent in the other league, featuring two squads of players 20 and under, and one 18 and under team.

Great goaltending and a solid defensive effort led the Portage Terriers to a 3-0 win over the Steinbach Pistons on Wednesday night.

Portage came out of the gate on fire. Scott Cousins was sprung on a breakaway, and he went high blocker side to open the scoring two minutes into the game. Steinbach started to get their feet under them and upped the pressure, but the score stayed 1-0 Portage heading into the intermission.

The Terriers have been off to a solid start in the second half of the season, only one loss to this point in the new year, and two major reasons are Cameron Bullinger and Nolan Nenow. The gap is now down to two points separating those two as they sit third and fourth in the MJHL respectively in scoring. Bullinger leads the way with 48 points, and Nenow with 46.

A tightly-contested affair between the Portage Terriers and Winkler Flyers ended in a 3-2 shootout loss for Portage.

Koy Funk's 13th of the season would come on the powerplay, as a long shot from Nolan Nenow would get a nice tip over the glove hand of Flyers netminder Liam Ernst to get Portage up 1-0.

Winkler would add a goal in the second period to make it a 1-1 game, as Portage found themselves hemmed in their own end following a penalty kill. That would last until the end of the second period.

The Portage Terriers continued their hot streak Wednesday night, securing their fifth consecutive win with a commanding 5-2 victory over the Dauphin Kings.

Special teams were the story of the night, with Portage converting four of five power play opportunities and killing off seven of eight penalties, including a crucial two-minute 5-on-3 disadvantage.

A hot start and strong forecheck led the Portage Terriers to a 6-4 win over the Selkirk Steelers on Tuesday night. Portage came out of the gate firing.

In the first minute of the game Selkirk goalie Noel Olsonawski got caught playing the puck behind his net and Will McKay blasted it into an empty cage for his fifth of the season.

The Terriers kept the pressure coming and Koy Funk deposited a rebound six minutes later to make it 2-0 Portage.

Hockey has a way of bringing people together, and the Portage Terriers are witnessing that first-hand.

Jacob Michelson, a Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan product, largely appeared out of the aether to slot into the Dogs lineup on opening night in Neepawa and quickly became a favourite in Portage, due to his consistent effort and work ethic on every shift.

He shares his thoughts on coming out and living in Portage