Portage Terriers

The Portage Terriers are back in action tonight for their second of consecutive games against the Virden Oil Capitals at Tundra Oil & Gas Place. The Dogs won the first meeting on Sunday, October 20, by a 5-2 score.

An outstanding week placed the Terriers in the #1 spot of the MJHL's Power Rankings, with wins over the Oil Capitals, the Steinbach Pistons and the Niverville Nighthawks, outscoring their opponents 12-5 over the week span.

A wild scene unfolded on Saturday night when the Steinbach Pistons and Portage Terriers faced off at Stride Place. The first meeting of the two teams saw Portage pull out a close 4-2 victory in the game, but also saw something Terriers fans haven't seen in some time.

Every year, near the start of the autumn season, hockey players leave home and trek to their new homes for the winter months. Parker Scherr, the Captain of the Portage Terriers, has made the trip from Edmonton to Portage la Prairie for the third time and has been joined in the city by his parents for several visits.

It was just what the team doctor ordered. A perfect 2-0 weekend. After defeating Steinbach, one of the top teams in the league so far this season, on Saturday night, the Terriers responded with a road win in Virden on Sunday.

A gutsy effort led the Portage Terriers to a 4-2 victory over the rival Steinbach Pistons on Saturday night.

There was plenty of action in the first period, as Portage notched three goals, three different ways.

With seconds gone in a bench minor penalty for too many men on the ice, Wyatt Dreger stripped one of the Steinbach players and went on a two-on-one with Decker Mujcin. With a couple bounces in front of the net, the puck wound up in the goal, credited to Mujcin.

The Portage Terriers and the Steinbach Pistons will meet for their first matchup of the season at Stride Place on Saturday, October 19.

The Pistons enter the game off to a solid start and Portage will need a big game out of their leading scorers to be able to match the production out of the Pistons leaders.

Portage has gotten outstanding goaltending from Mitchell Kathler in the early going, and will likely need another such performance out of him in this one to compete with an annual contender for the Turnbull Cup.

The Portage Terriers picked up their fifth win of the season on Wednesday night, beating the Niverville Nighthawks 3-1 on home ice.

The Portage Terriers are back in action after a tough game that was a lot closer than the score suggested in Winkler.

The Dogs were downed 6-2 by Winkler, following back-to-back shutouts against the Winnipeg Freeze and Swan Valley Stampeders.

Portage will look to even up their record again today when they take on the Niverville Nighthawks for the first time this season at Stride Place. 

Niverville currently boasts a record of 5-4-0-0 but have lost their last two games, a 1-0 loss to Northern Manitoba and a 5-1 defeat at the hands of the Steinbach Pistons.

Thae game was much closer than the score indicated however the result was the same as the week before. For the second straight Sunday, the Portage Terriers fell to the Winkler Flyers, whose win streak has now reached four games.

The Portage Terriers and Winkler Flyers will meet for their second matchup of the season, exactly one week after their first.

Winkler won the initial matchup 4-1, as Portage could convert only once on eight powerplay opportunities, while giving up three goals during their six penalty kills.

The Terriers penalty kill is riding a hot streak to go along with goaltender Mitchell Kathler's back-to-back shutouts. Kathler has stopped 38 shots in the last two games, but will undoubtedly see more than the average of 19 he has faced in the previous games.