After dropping back-to-back games for the first time this season, the Niverville Nighthawks responded in emphatic fashion Wednesday night, erupting for eight goals in an 8–1 win over the Winnipeg Blues at the CRRC. The victory completed a perfect six-game season sweep of the Blues and pushed Niverville to their fortieth win of the campaign.
Five different Nighthawks found the back of the net, led by two-goal performances from Dawson Zeller and Hayden Wheddon. Jase Konecsni added his first goal of the season, while Merik Boles recorded a goal and an assist to move into second place in terms of the team’s scorers, with 59 points, surpassing injured teammate Adam Vigfusson. Defenceman Parker Carrier and Jaden Mah also scored in the lopsided win.
After being shut out 1–0 by Virden on Saturday, Niverville wasted no time rediscovering their scoring touch. Just 25 seconds into the opening period, Marlen Edwards spotted Wheddon alone in the slot and the MJHL’s leading scorer buried his twenty-fifth of the season past Blues netminder Kannen Kirkwood.
Carrier doubled the lead late in the first, jumping into the rush and finishing off a feed from Ryken Arran for his sixth of the season, giving the Nighthawks a 2–0 edge after 20 minutes.
Winnipeg pushed back early in the second period, generating several quality chances in the first ten minutes, but Austin Dubinsky stood tall. The Niverville goaltender turned aside 28 shots to earn his league-leading twenty-seventh victory of the season.
Midway through the second period, Zeller pushed the Nighthawks’ lead to 3–0, converting a pass from Kole Mears into an open net to cap off a strong offensive shift.
Niverville struck again before the intermission when Konecsni took a feed from Calyb Moore in the right circle and fired a shot past Kirkwood, giving the Nighthawks a commanding 4–0 advantage and marking his first goal of the season.
“It’s good to see Jase get his first of the year,” says Nighthawks head coach Dwight Hirst. “I think anyone who knows our team knows the importance he brings as far as defending and being hard to play against. And for him to do it in front of Mom and Dad, it was great to see.”
In the third period, the Blues pushed and were able to spoil Dubinsky’s shutout bid on a goal by Shea Chornley, but Niverville had four goals of its own in the final frame to seal the win.
Despite the score, Hirst says there is still lots of room to improve.
“It was a game of ups and downs for us tonight, with glimpses of what I like to see, and glimpses of things I didn’t like,” says Hirst.
The Nighthawks improved to 40–4–1, moving seven points ahead of Steinbach in the standings. The Pistons defeated the Neepawa Titans 4–-3 in overtime on Wednesday.
The schedule doesn’t get any easier for Niverville, with its next two games coming against those same Pistons and Titans. The Nighthawks travel to Steinbach on Friday before returning home to the CRRC on Saturday night to host Neepawa on Valentine’s Day weekend.
See below for the game’s highlight reel.