Portage Terriers

The Portage Terriers are making the trip to The Pas today to take on the OCN Blizzard. The Terriers have won 2 of the 3 contests so far this season, and look for a third win tonight.

Both teams are locked into playoff spots, with playoff action under a month away.

So far this season, Portage sits in the third playoff spot in the MGEU East Division, currently 9 points back of Winkler and 15 points behind Steinbach. OCN sits second in the MGEU West Division, separated by 6 points from the Virden Oil Capitals in first place.

In the end, it doesn't really mean much but it is nice nonetheless. The National Junior A Hockey Rankings are released each week and it is a list that is always open to debate. For the most part, the teams on the list do not play against each other until the Centennial Cup and it is extremely tough to gauge the strength of one league compared to another in any given year. Plus, a high national ranking means absolutely nothing when the puck is dropped at playoff time. It's wins on the ice that tell the real story.

The Portage Terriers have visited many schools in the Portage la Prairie area for the annual "I Love To Read" month. Two Terriers visited École Arthur Meighen to read in French on Monday and had a great reception there.

Goaltender Jayden Catellier and forward Gabriel Laflamme shared some time with a Grade 1 class, reading two books each to the kids. Laflamme shared how it felt to return to his mother tongue for a few minutes.

"It was fun giving back to the French community. I felt like I was back home for ten minutes, it was nice."

It's hard to win without hitting the scoreboard. The Portage Terriers allowed just one goal that had the goaltender in the net, and an inability to answer it back was their undoing as they fell 2-0 to the Dauphin Kings.

The Portage Terriers face off with the Dauphin Kings tonight at Stride Place. The Dogs have won three games in a row, as have their opponents.

Both teams sit in third place in their respective divisions. Portage has clinched their spot in the playoffs, and Dauphin is definitely in reach. A loss for Neepawa tonight would make it nearly impossible for Dauphin to fall out of a playoff spot.

The Portage Terriers had a big game where 4 players put up multiple points, including 3 points for former Niverville Nighthawk Mighton Johnson.

An offensive explosion would give the Terriers a great start to the game, as the team would score four goals in the first. Nolan Nenow, Rhett Perrin, Mighton Johnson and Matthew Biros all scored in the opening frame to give the Terriers a 4-0 lead through 17 minutes of play. However, Nathan Brown would score one for Niverville, and scoring the final goal of the period, making it 4-1 after 20 minutes.

The Portage Terriers' annual Louis Riel Day game is today, and the team has lined up several events to get fans ready.

Cody Buhler, the Terriers Marketing Director, shares what they have planned.

The Portage Terriers came from behind to beat the Winkler Flyers on Friday night, 3-2 in a shootout.

Nathan Lenoski played the hero scoring the game tying goal with time winding down and then the winner in the shootout. Portage started the game strong and opened the scoring midway through the first. Gabriel Laflamme tipped a point shot from Ashton Fishley that trickled past Winkler goalie Liam Ernst. The Terriers then took three straight penalties and killed them off successfully. 1-0 Portage after 1.

The Winkler Flyers come to town on Friday night for their fourth matchup against the Dogs this year.

The Portage Terriers are warming up for an action-filled weekend. Ashton Fishley and Adler Johnston both spoke about the challenge of facing the Flyers.

The Portage Terriers history, when it comes to goaltending, has seen many masked men between the pipes. From Jayden Catellier and Gavin Renwick this season, to Justin Laforest, Talor Joseph and Zac Robidoux tending the net for the Terriers run to the RBC Cup in 2015, there have been some quality goalies make their way through Portage.