The Prairie Blaze are Manitoba Women’s Junior Hockey League champions after outlasting the Western Predators in a tightly contested five-game final.
Prairie Blaze secured the title with a 2-0 victory in Game 5 on March 23 at the Hockey for All Centre, scoring twice in the second period and shutting the door the rest of the way. Western goaltender Lauren Cherkas was sharp in defeat, turning aside 26 of 28 shots.
The championship game capped a back-and-forth series between two of the league’s top teams. The Western Predators finished first overall in the regular season with a 20-5-3 record (43 points), while the Prairie Blaze placed third at 18-5-5 (41 points), underscoring how tightly contested the league was at the top.
Prairie Blaze struck first in the series with a 2-1 overtime win in Game 1 on March 14, with Kenady Christensen scoring the winner and adding an assist, while Phoenix Freis also scored. Reese Farmer replied for Western, while Abegael Glass made 30 saves in the victory.
The Blaze doubled their lead with a 2-1 win in Game 2, as Jaida Silvaggio and Emerson Shier each had a goal and an assist, while Arianna Murdock made 15 saves. Lauren Cherkas was busy at the other end, stopping 32 shots in the loss.
Western responded in Game 3 with a 1-0 shutout, as Sydney Shead scored the lone goal on the power play. Lauren Cherkas was perfect with 42 saves, while Abegael Glass made 21 stops at the other end.
The Predators carried that momentum into Game 4, rallying for a 4-3 win with three third-period goals. Brooklyn Balazovic led the charge with a goal and two assists, while Maisie Breckon and Sarah Rach also scored. Zoé Comte, Jaida Silvaggio and Phoenix Freis replied for Prairie Blaze as Western evened the series at 2-2. Lauren Cherkas made 27 saves in the win, while Arianna Murdock stopped 14 shots for Prairie Blaze.
Prairie Blaze secured the title with a 2-0 victory in Game 5 on March 23 at the Hockey for All Centre, scoring twice in the second period and shutting the door the rest of the way. Arianna Murdock turned aside all 28 shots for the shutout, while Western goaltender Lauren Cherkas made 26 saves on 28 shots.
The series also featured strong local representation. Jamie Johnson of Arborg served as an assistant coach for the Prairie Blaze, who also featured local players Taylor Morden and Kenady Christensen.
The Western Predators included Warren’s Emma Stewart as an assistant coach, along with local players Jadyn Baldwin, Kaelyn Morden and Reese Farmer.
Despite falling just short in the playoff final, Western was recognized for its regular-season success and was presented with the league championship trophy following the game.
