The Niverville Nighthawks have been riding high. In the last three games, they have forced overtime versus Winkler, routed Portage, and now edged out the number one team in the league, the Steinbach Pistons. Each performance has topped the one before it.
In last night’s game, a massive 2–1 victory over the Pistons, the Nighthawks put together their best 60 minutes of the season. It also sees them into fourth place in the MJHL’s East Division with a record of 14–8–1.
Just three minutes into the contest, Adam Vigfusson got the game going in Niverville’s favour with his team-leading fifteenth goal of the year. Steinbach tied the game later in the period to make it 1–1.
For the rest of the game, both teams put on a defensive clinic.
The deadlock was broken by Merik Boles, who scored to put the home team up 2–1 midway through the second period.
Both teams’ exceptional goaltending locked the game down after that. Niverville’s Austin Dubinsky was particularly strong, stopping 31 shots in the win.
“The progression we’ve shown is gaining momentum and it’s a step at a time,” says Nighthawks head coach Dwight Hirst. “It’s not so much about confidence, but it’s about attacking the day and the game with the right mindset. Pace, tenacity, and hard pucks in every zone. That’s how we were able to shut down Steinbach’s offence tonight.”
The Nighthawks are back in action with another home game on Wednesday, November 27 against the Selkirk Steelers. The puck drops at 7:30 p.m.
