The Niverville Nighthawks returned home Saturday night hoping to rediscover their winning formula after a loss to the Winkler Flyers on Friday night, but the West Division-leading Virden Oil Capitals had other plans.
Behind a stellar performance from goaltender Braxton Burdeny, who stopped all 33 shots he faced, and a timely third-period goal, the Oil Capitals spoiled Niverville’s return to the CRRC with a 1–0 victory, handing the Nighthawks their second consecutive loss for the first time this season.
It was Niverville’s first home game in nearly three weeks, coming less than 24 hours after their 15-game winning streak was snapped on the road in Winkler. While the Nighthawks had dominated Virden in previous meetings this season, outscoring the Oil Capitals 22–4 across three games, this was a much different Oil Caps squad than the one Niverville beat 11–2 back on December 7.
Since that loss, Virden has surged to the top of the West Division, entering Saturday’s contest riding a 10-game winning streak and having earned points in 15 straight games without a regulation loss.
The opening period saw Niverville battle through penalty trouble, surrendering three consecutive power play opportunities. However, goaltender Ben Chornomydz and the Nighthawks’ penalty kill rose to the occasion, keeping Virden off the scoreboard.
Both goaltenders continued to shine in a tightly contested second period as the teams traded chances with no result. Niverville came close to opening the scoring during a net-front scramble early in the third period, but the loose puck slid back under Burdeny to preserve the scoreless tie.
The deadlock was finally broken with just under nine minutes remaining in the third. A turnover at the Virden blue line turned costly for Niverville, as Brooks Siemens sprung Tyson Ulmer on a breakaway. Ulmer lifted a backhand over Chornomydz’s glove for what proved to be the game-winning goal.
Despite taking his first loss of the season, Chornomydz delivered another strong outing, stopping 27 of 28 shots. He also continued his impressive run of not allowing more than two goals in any start this year.
Head coach Dwight Hirst points to a breakdown in habits as the cause of the recent slide.
“Games like last night and games like tonight, when the skill dries up the habits show themselves, and it’s been pretty bad for the last two or three games for us,” Hirst says.
Hirst acknowledges that adversity is part of the season but emphasized the need for accountability.
“It’s something that the guys are going through, and most teams go through this during a season,” he says. “And so they’re in a bit of a rut right now and they have to find a way out of it.”
He stresses that the team’s success earlier in the season was built on unity, not individual efforts.
“There’s enough individuals on this team with skill that can play, but at the end of the day they got to where they were before this two-game slide because they played as a team.”
Despite the frustration, Hirst believes the setback could ultimately benefit the group.
“It’s not that you like to lose games, because you never want to lose, but this two-game skid might be the best thing that could happen to this team right now—to find a little bit of a gut check and a little bit of reality for the guys.”
Forward Parker Rolston echoes that sentiment, emphasizing a return to fundamentals.
“As a group, I think we just have to get back to the things we were doing earlier on,” Rolston says. “Getting back to our basics and playing our game and we’ll have success again.”
With 14 games remaining in the regular season, they’ll look to get back on track Wednesday night when they host the Winnipeg Blues at the CRRC. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m.