For the first time in three seasons, the Selkirk Fishermen are heading back to the Capital Region Junior Hockey League finals.
They will begin the best-of-seven series this week against the fourth-ranked La Broquerie Habs, who are seeking their first-ever title since entering the league last season.
Selkirk last won in the 2022-23 season, marking a three-peat of championships over a five-year span due to COVID-19 cancellations.
“It’s been quite a few years, even since when I first started with the Fish, that we were not in the finals,” said head coach Chris Poponick on Sunday. “Having two years in a row like that, it was kind of a rebuild that we were doing, trying to get ourselves set again. Now we’ve got ourselves back to a place where we can compete each year and be back in the finals, and it’s where you want to be. You work all year to try and get to this point, so all you want is that opportunity.”
The series marks the second time Selkirk and La Broquerie have faced off in the post-season after Selkirk ended the Habs’ inaugural season in the first round last March.
Both clubs have put together strong playoff runs, each recording semifinal upsets. Third-ranked Selkirk defeated the second-ranked Beausejour Comets in five games, winning the series 4-1 and outscoring them 27-13.
Their toughest test came in round one, when the sixth-ranked Lundar Falcons pushed them to the brink in a best-of-five series.
Selkirk led the series 2-1 before Lundar netminder Dylan Leclair delivered a 47-save shutout in a 1-0 Game 4 win.
That forced a winner-take-all Game 5, where Selkirk broke through with two late third-period goals to secure a 2-0 victory and advance.
Poponick said that close call helped elevate the team’s play heading into the semifinal.
“Lundar really made us focus and continue to have the players believe in the process and the systems that we’re playing,” he said. “We weren’t seeing the rewards from it because we couldn’t get a puck past their goaltender, but once we did, getting through that series really amplified the process and the style we wanted to play. It meant Beausejour was in for it because we were really playing good hockey.”
The semifinal series also brought adversity after forward Logan Saluk was injured in Game 1 following a check that left him needing to be stretchered off the ice.
Saluk missed the remainder of the series, but the team rallied in his absence, winning Games 1 through 3 before closing out the series with a 7-3 victory in Game 5.
Poponick said Saluk has since been cleared and will return for Game 1 of the finals, providing a boost to Selkirk’s offence.
“It’s huge. He’s a 21-year-old and has been one of our top scorers for the last couple of years,” said Poponick. “Having him out of the lineup always hurts a little bit. Just having more firepower will help us, and I think we’re going to need it against La Broquerie.”
The Habs defeated the defending CRJHL champion St. Malo Warriors in six games in their semifinal, erasing a 2-1 series deficit by winning three straight.
They also advanced past the Arborg Ice Dawgs in the first round, capturing the franchise’s first-ever playoff series win.
Now, they will look for redemption after last year’s playoff loss to Selkirk.
Selkirk, however, won three of five regular-season meetings between the teams.
Poponick expects a different challenge this time around.
“They’ve picked up some really good affiliated players along the way,” he said. “Ty Mistelbacher, who played with the Selkirk Steelers, is with their club now. They’ve added some good players now that their teams are out. Not that we haven’t as well, but we just really have to play like the veteran team we are. We’ve got six 21-year-olds on our squad and a lot of rookies, but our vets know how to play the game. If we continue to play the way we did against Beausejour and Lundar — fast and physical — I think we’ll have success.”
Both clubs are expected to draw their largest crowds of the season, with Selkirk hosting games at the Selkirk Recreation Complex and La Broquerie at the HyLife Centre.
The Fishermen hold home-ice advantage and will host Games 1 and 3, along with Games 5 and 7 if necessary.
Upcoming Games:
• Game 1: Tuesday, March 24 — 7:30 p.m. at Selkirk Recreation Complex
• Game 2: Friday, March 27 — 7:30 p.m. at HyLife Centre
• Game 3: Sunday, March 29 — 3 p.m. at Selkirk Recreation Complex
• Game 4: Tuesday, March 31 — 7:30 p.m. at HyLife Centre
• Game 5: Thursday, April 2 — 7:30 p.m. at Selkirk Recreation Complex*
• Game 6: Saturday, April 4 — 7 p.m. at HyLife Centre*
• Game 7: Sunday, April 5 — 3 p.m. at Selkirk Recreation Complex*
* If necessary
