The Niverville Nighthawks made the most of their first road test of the season, defeating the Virden Oil Capitals on Friday night by a 4–1 score to improve to a perfect 2–0–0 record.
It was a slow start for Niverville, who were outshot 15–6 in the opening frame as Virden came out buzzing in front of their home crowd. The Oil Capitals opened the scoring midway through the first period when Noel Englot capitalized on a slick feed from Nathan Schaefer, slipping a backhand past goaltender Austin Dubinsky to make it 1–0.
Virden nearly doubled their lead late in the first after Tyson Ulmer was awarded a penalty shot, but Dubinsky outwaited Ulmer and came up with a timely save to keep the deficit to just one.
Moments later, Dubinsky stymied another quality chance from Marshall Light on a two-on-one, keeping the Nighthawks within striking distance after 20 minutes.
Dubinsky stopped 14 of 15 shots in the period, holding the fort and giving his team the chance to respond.
Special Teams Spark the Comeback
The second period saw a shift in momentum as the Nighthawks found their legs—and their power play. Niverville struck twice with the man advantage, just 1:48 apart, to turn a one-goal deficit into a one-goal lead.
First, Loic Leduc capped off a perfect three-way passing play with a shot in the slot, set up by a one-time feed from Merik Boles.
Not long after, another power play saw Aaron Krestanowich dish the puck to Hayden Wheddon, whose fanned shot fortuitously found its way to Boles. The veteran forward redirected it past Braxton Burdeny for his first of the season, giving Niverville a 2–1 lead heading into the third.
Putting the Game Away
Niverville carried their momentum into the third, scoring another pair of goals just 1:12 apart to put the game out of reach.
Parker Carrier made a great defensive play at his own blue line to pick off a pass and start the rush. Carrier chipped the puck to Tyler Bernier, who dropped a pass to John Scott, who ripped a shot that snuck under Burdeny’s arm and trickled across the goal line, giving the Nighthawks a 3–1 cushion.
Shortly after, Krestanowich again made his presence felt by keeping the puck in at the Virden blue line under pressure. He tapped it to Adam Vigfusson, who found Boles at the top of the crease for his second of the night, sealing the 4–1 victory.
Key Performers
Boles led the way offensively with a three-point night (two goals, one assist, bringing his season total to four points.
Aaron Krestanowich also tallied three assists, and now has four helpers through two games.
Austin Dubinsky was solid in net, turning aside 28 shots to bring his season total to 69 saves on 72 shots (.958 save percentage).
Around the League
The win keeps Niverville among the early season’s leaders. The Nighthawks are one of just three MJHL teams yet to lose in regulation, joining Selkirk (4–0–0) and Steinbach (3–0–1). Niverville’s defence has been particularly stingy, allowing a league-low three goals through two games.
After a light opening schedule with just two games in the first 11 days, the Nighthawks are set to ramp things up. They’ll play three games in five days against a pair of division rivals, with two of them at the friendly confines of the CRRC.
On October 1, they’ll take on the Portage Terriers at the CRRC (7:30 p.m.). Then, on October 3, they face the Winkler Flyers, also at the CRRC (7:30 p.m.). On October 5, the Nighthawks travel to Winkler to complete the home-and-home series.