Lord Selkirk Royals boys and girls hockey clubs moved further into the regular season last week, each playing three games.
The boys sit tied for eighth in the Winnipeg High School Hockey League’s Platinum Promotions Division with an 8-9-0-0-1 record, while the girls are 11th in the Manitoba Women’s High School Hockey League’s Division 1/2 East following last week’s action.
Both teams finished the week with 1-2 records.
The boys opened their schedule with a 4-3 loss to Steinbach on Jan. 12 in Mitchell, coming close to erasing a four-goal deficit. The Royals trailed 4-0 through two periods before Erik Evason got Selkirk on the board early in the third.
Mateo Malbasa made it a 4-2 game at 11:48, and Nolan Dear cut the deficit to one with 3:45 remaining. Steinbach goaltender Kash Amor shut the door from there, stopping Selkirk’s comeback bid.
Amor finished with 21 saves, while Selkirk’s Rylen Giroux turned aside 24 shots in the loss.
The Royals bounced back the following day with a 2-0 shutout of River East in Winnipeg. After a scoreless first two periods, Hayden Hazlett scored twice to lift Selkirk to the win.
Owen Coe was perfect in goal, stopping all 34 shots he faced to earn the shutout, while River East’s Will Paskaruk made 23 saves.
Selkirk then returned home to host Sturgeon Heights on Thursday at Selkirk Recreation Complex. Trailing by two entering the third, Jaxon Beasley pulled the Royals within one with a power-play goal early in the period.
Both teams pushed for the next goal, but Sturgeon Heights capitalized at the 10:09 mark to restore its two-goal cushion en route to a 3-1 win. Giroux finished with 24 saves, while Sturgeon Heights’ Fisher McDougall stopped 11 shots for the victory.
The boys now move into a two-game week, facing Oak Park on Wednesday at 3:15 p.m. at Eric Coy Arena and Shaftesbury on Thursday at 4 p.m. at Selkirk Recreation Complex.
The girls did not pick up their first win of the week until Friday, when they rolled to a decisive victory over River East.
Before that, Selkirk dropped a 7-1 decision to College Jeanne-Sauvé on Jan. 12 and a 7-3 road loss to Gabrielle-Roy last Wednesday.
Against College Jeanne-Sauvé, goaltender Megan Pellaers turned in a standout 48-save performance despite the loss. Selkirk’s lone goal came on a power-play marker from Kennedy Simpson.
The Royals were more competitive against Gabrielle-Roy. After falling behind 4-0, Delaney Bush opened the scoring for Selkirk. Simpson followed with the game’s next goal — and the only marker of the second period — to pull the Royals within two heading into the third.
Gabrielle-Roy took control early in the final frame, scoring three goals in under a minute to halt Selkirk’s comeback attempt. Simpson added another later to finish with a two-goal night, while Pellaers made 36 saves.
Selkirk closed the week with its strongest showing, posting a 6-0 shutout over River East on Friday. The Royals scored in each period, with Pellaers earning the clean sheet in net.
Simpson led the offence with four goals, while Emily Beattie and Rielle Forfar also found the scoresheet to secure Selkirk’s third win of the season.
The girls now shift to a two-game schedule, visiting College Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau on Monday at 3:45 p.m. at East Selkirk Recreation Association before hosting Lorette on Wednesday at 3:15 p.m. at Lorette Community Complex.
