The Winkler Royals continued their strong push near the top of the South Eastern Manitoba Hockey League standings with a decisive home win before stumbling on the road, while the Morden Bombers earned a dramatic comeback victory and the Red River Wild bounced back with a third-period rally of their own.
Winkler Royals
Winkler skated to a 7–4 victory over the Red River Wild on Jan. 27, building a 5–2 first-period lead and never relinquishing control. Aaron Lewadniuk led the offence with a hat trick, while Cody Fowlie added two goals, including a power-play marker. TJ Matuszewski chipped in with a goal and an assist as Winkler went 1-for-2 on the man advantage. Goaltender Matthew Thiessen turned aside 38 shots to earn the win.
The Royals were unable to carry that momentum into Notre Dame on Jan. 31, falling 6–1 to the Notre Dame Hawks. Max Collet scored twice for the Hawks, who jumped out to a four-goal first period. Lewadniuk netted Winkler’s lone goal late in the third, while Thiessen made 39 saves in the loss. Winkler sits second in the SEMHL standings with a 12-3-1 record.
Winkler is scheduled to visit Carman on Feb. 6 before travelling to Warren on Feb. 7.
The Bombers erased a two-goal third-period deficit to edge the Warren Mercs 6–5 on Jan. 29 at home. Michael Hlady and Jay Fehr scored early in the third to swing the game, with Fehr’s power-play marker standing up as the winner. Collin Shirley finished with two goals and an assist, while Reed Peters made 36 saves for the victory.
Morden followed that effort with a narrow 5–4 loss to the Ile des Chenes Northstars on Feb. 1. The Bombers scored three goals in just over six minutes midway through the third to tie the game, but Josh Beauchemin’s second of the night restored the Northstars’ lead. Tyler Campbell scored late to keep Morden within one, but the equalizer never came.
The Bombers sit sixth in the standings and are set to host Notre Dame on Feb. 7.
After the loss in Winkler, Red River responded with a 4–3 comeback win over the Carman Beavers on Jan. 31. Trailing 3–1 entering the third period, the Wild scored three unanswered goals, capped by Troy Lehmann’s game-winner at 15:18. Jonah Wasylak recorded two goals and an assist, while Jayden Catellier stopped 18 shots to secure the win.
Red River remains third overall in the SEMHL standings and will face Springfield on Feb. 6 before hosting Ile des Chenes on Feb. 7.
Springfield leads the league with 26 points, followed closely by Winkler (25) and Red River (22). Ile des Chenes (19) and Warren (16) round out the top five, with Morden (15) and Notre Dame (15) battling in the middle of the pack. Carman sits ninth.
