Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Blues Put Flyers On Ropes After Game Three Win

 The Winnipeg Blues and Winkler Flyers hooked up Tuesday night in Winnipeg for Game Three of their best of seven series, and the home team didn't disappoint, as they skated away with a 4-3 win, and now hold a three games to none lead in the series.

The first two periods were dominated by two players.  And they were the goaltenders.  Isiah Plett of the Blues and Flyers Corey Koop looked unbeatable in the first 40 minutes, coming up with some fantastic saves to keep this game scoreless heading into the third.

In the third, both teams found a way to light the lamp, and it was the Flyers who notched the first goal.   Jordan Neduzak knocked home a rebound past Plett, putting the Flyers up by one.  That was Neduzak's fourth of the series.

Just over a minute later Jared Morris scored his 5th of the series after Kurt Keats showed great speed down the left side, fed the puck in front of the net, and Morris tapped it home.

Jeremy Olinyk would make it 2-1 for the Blues 55 seconds later with a highlight reel goal.  Olinyk skated over the blue line, went through three Flyers, and put a backhand under the crossbar, giving the Blues the lead.

Derek Gingera would get his first of the series on the powerplay two minutes later, sliding the puck under Koop, and Winnipeg went up 3-1.

Jesse Enns would get the Flyers back within one, knocking home a loose puck after Plett made the inital right pad save, and the game was 3-2.

Winnipeg regained it's two goal lead just 12 seconds later on a great individual effort by Dylan Kelly who showed great speed going around the Flyer defense, outwaited Koop, and tucked it in blocker side post to give Winnipeg a 4-2 lead.

Winkler would add one more, a wristshot from the top of the circle by Sam Waterfield, but that's as close as Winkler would come, as Winnipeg put a 3-0 stranglehold on the series with a 4-3 win.

Game 4 is set for Thursday night in Winkler, with Game five if necessary back at the MTS Ice Plex on Saturday night.

Puck drop is set for 7:30 both nights.

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Blues Take Game One Over Flyers

During the regular season, the Winnipeg Blues and Winkler Flyers were neck in neck in the standings all year long, so it's fitting that these two teams began their post season last night against each other at the MTS Ice Plex.

And Winnipeg drew first blood, opening the series with a big 7-3 win.

Winnipeg came out flying in the first period, and notched the opening goal, with Blues captain Jeff Borse showing some great eye hand co-ordination, knocking a puck out of mid air over the shoulder of Flyers starting netmiinder Ryan Bembridge. 

The Blues then found themselves with a two man advantage, and made Winkler pay, as Jared Morris scored his first of three with seven seconds left in the first man advantage, and Jake Heisinger was allowed to walk to the net unattested, slipping the puck under Bembridge, giving the Blues a 3-0 lead midway through the opening period.

Winkler would get on the board with a nice deflection by Jordan Neduzak, leaving no chance for Blues goalie Isiah Plett, making the score 3-1.

Winnipeg regained their three goal lead before the period ran out, with Morris notching his second of the game, getting a beautiful feed from Kurt Keats and making a nice move around Bembridge, giving Winnipeg a 4-1 lead after the opening frame.

In the second, Winkler made a goalie change, putting in Corey Koop, but the Blues kept coming, as defenseman Paul Bonar notched his first of the post season on the powerplay, putting Winnipeg up 5-1.

Winkler didn't back down, and started putting the pressure on the Blues, and Jordan Nuduzak and Chapen Leblond scored 23 seconds apart, making it a 5-3 game just six minutes into the second.

Winnipeg stopped the bleeding and got momentum back on their side as Jared Morris would complete the hat-trick, taking another sweet feed, this one from Derek Gingera, who had four assists on the night, and the Blues once again had a three goal lead.

Paul Bonar would put home his second of the evening on the powerplay, making it 7-3 for the Blues, and that's how this one would end, with no scoring in the third, and gives Winnipeg a 1-0 series lead.

Game two goes Sunday night in Winkler, with Game three set back at the MTS Ice Plex on Tuesday night. 

Puck drop for both games is 7:30.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Blues Clinch 2nd With Win Over Flyers

 The Winnipeg Blues clinched second place in the Addison last night with a 4-3 win over the Winkler Flyers in their last game of the regular season.

Winnipeg will face the same Flyers in the first round of the playoffs.

With the win the Blues also hold home ice advantage in their first round.

Jeff Borse scored in the first period, and the Blues captain finishes the campaign with a 20 goal season.

Winnipeg exploded for three in the third, with markers coming from Derek Gingera, who ends the year with 43 goals, Channing Bresianni (3 goals) and Dylan Kelly (32 goals), all tallied in the final frame for Winnipeg. 

The Blues now have a few days off to prepare for the Flyers, with Game 1 set for Friday March 2nd at the Ice Plex.

Puck drop is set for 7:30

Monday, February 20, 2012

Blues Hold Down Second With Win Over Flyers

 The Winnipeg Blues and Winkler Flyers hooked up in Winkler, with both teams jostling for 2nd in the Addison, and the Blues slipped past the Flyers with a huge 5-4 win.

Winnipeg got off to a great start in the first period, notching three goals.  Blair Osiowy notched a pair, while Jake Heisinger added a single.

Winkler matched the Blues three goal effort in the second period, while Osiowy completed his hat-trick, and the Blues headed to the third with a 4-3 lead.

Both clubs exchanged markers in the third, with Jeremy Olynik putting home the eventual winning goal four minutes into the final frame, giving the Blues the win in regulation, and a very important two points in the standings.

With Portage clinching top spot in the Addison, it's between the Flyers and Blues for who will finish 2nd and 3rd.  

And this one is going to go down to the wire, as these two teams will meet in the final regular season game for both teams this coming Friday night at the Ice Plex.

There is still some work to do before then, as Winnipeg gets set to visit the Portage Terriers tonight.

It could possibly come down to the tie breaker, and even that will be hard to determine as both teams are very similar.  First tie breaker is wins against each other.  Winnipeg has 4 wins, Winkler has 3, in the seven games so far this season. 

Next is goal differential in games against each other.  In seven meetings, the Blues hold a 30-28 goal lead against the Flyers..
Next is goal differential in League Games.  Winnipegs has a +49, while Winkler has +51.

So there's nothing to give between the two clubs, which makes the next two games crucial for both teams.

And it starts tonight with the Blues visit the Addison Division leading Portage Terriers for an afternoon matchup.

Puck drop is set for 4:30.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Blues Tie For First In Addison With Win Over Saints

 The Winnipeg Blues picked up their second straight win with a 5-1 victory over the Winnipeg Saints last night.

In the past two games, the Blues have outscored their opponents 14-5.

Paul Bonar, Dylan Kelly and Brock Vanderveen all lit the lamp in the first period, and the Blues never looked back.

Jeremy Olinyk led the way with a goal and two assists, while Bonar, Kelly, and Jared Morris all had two point nights for the Blues.

The two clubs will meet again on Thursday night in their final regular season meeting between the two clubs.

With the win the Blues temporarily move into a tie for first in the Addison with the Portage Terriers, each with 76 points.  The Terriers have eight games left with four games in hand on the Blues.

Third place Winkler has  73 points and have seven games left with three games in hand on Winnipeg, while fourth place Selkirk sit with 70 points with six games left and two games in hand on the Blues, who have four left in the regular season.

The final four games for Winnipeg sees them face the Winkler Flyers twice, Portage once, and the Saints again this coming Thursday night at the Ice Plex.

Puck drop is set for 7:30

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Blues Lose Second Straight Against Steelers

 The Winnipeg Blues had most of the pressure, more shots, and more powerplays, but in the end Selkirk had more goals as they dropped the Blues 3-1 in Selkirk.

The Steelers took both games of the home and home series, including a 3-2 win on Saturday night in Winnipeg.

Jared Morris notched the only marker for the Blues in the first period, but Steelers goaltender Joey Rewucki held down the fort for Selkirk, making 35 saves in the win.

Winnipeg had it's chances, but were 0-8 on the powerplay, and just could not find a way to light the lamp behind Rewucki.

The Blues now have to regroup and get set for their last Sher-wood division opponent of the regular season when they'll welcome the Neepawa Natives to the Ice Plex on Thursday night.

Puck drop is set for 7:30.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

Steelers Snap Blues Win Streak

 The Addison division standings got a little bit closer last night, after the Selkirk Steelers dropped the Winnipeg Blues 3-2 at the Ice Plex.

The loss snapped the Blues five game win streak.

Dylan Kelly scored in the first, and Derek Gingera added a single on a penalty shot in the third, but it wasn't enough as the Steelers kept themselves in the talk for tops in the Addison with the win.

Winnipeg remains in second place with 72 points, two behind the first place Portage Terriers.  Winkler smashed Neepawa 10-3 and now sit one point behind Winnipeg, but have two games in hand.

Selkirk sits in fourth with 66 points, but also have two games in hand on the Blues.

These two clubs will meet for the final time this season on Tuesday night, this time in Selkirk.

Puck drop is slated for 7:30.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Make It Five In A Row As Blues Take Bite Out Of Terriers

 This was a game that definitely lived up to it's billing.

Addison Division leading Portage Terriers were in Winnipeg last night facing second place Winnipeg Blues at the MTS Ice Plex.

Heading into the game just two points separated the two clubs as the regular season begins it's final stretch.

It took an extra period, but in the end, the Winnipeg Blues came out on top 4-3 and picked up a very important extra point in the process.

Jake Heisinger would be the hero for the Blues, who have now picked up five straight wins, as he notched his 19th of the season on the power play in the extra frame.

Derek Gingera picked up his 38th of the year, while Jeff Borse (18th) and Jared Morris (28th) all added singles.

With the game heading to overtime, the Terriers still garnered a point which they now lead the Blues by for the overall lead in the Addison.

Winkler also won last night so Winnipeg didn't gain any separation from the Flyers, but are still three points ahead of them.

Winnipeg has eight games left in the regular season, seven are against Addison Division opponents, with a home and home against Selkirk coming up next.

And it all starts tonight at the Ice Plex with the Steelers, coming off a 6-3 loss last night to the Flyers, coming in hungry for wins, dropping three of their last four games, including a 5-4 overtime loss the last time these two teams met on January 27th.

Puck drop tonight at the Ice Plex is 7:30.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Blues Win Fourth Straight With Win Over Pistons

 The Winnipeg Blues picked up their fourth straight win last night, dropping the Steinbach Pistons 5-2 in the last meeting between the two clubs this season.

Winnipeg picked up wins in eight of the nine meetings against Steinbach this season.

Five different scorers found the back of the net for the Blues, with Jeff Borse, Derek Gingera, Dylan Kelly, Dustin Pearson, and Blair Osiowy all notching singles.

Defenseman Paul Bonar had a great night on the back end for Winnipeg, adding three helpers in the win.

The score could have been much closer, if not more in favor of the Pistons, if it wasn't for the strong play of Blues netminder Byron Spriggs, who stopped 41 of 43 shots he faced in the game.

That included 18 stops in the second period after the Pistons outshot Winnipeg 20-10 in the frame.

With the win, and the fact both Portage and Winkler lost their last game, the Blues are now just two points out of first in the Addison Divison behind the Terriers, though Portage still holds two games in hand.

Three points now separate the second place Blues from third place Flyers, with Winkler also holding two games in hand.

This sets up a huge game Friday night as Winnipeg hosts the Terriers at the Ice Plex.  In the six games between the clubs, both teams have each won three.

Puck drop is set for 7:30

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Blues Win Third Straight With Win Over Stamps

 The Winnipeg Blues didn't gain any ground, but they also didn't lose any last night after dropping the Swan Valley Stampeders 6-2 at the Ice Plex.

It was a very important win as both the Portage Terriers, who the Blues are chasing, and the Winkler Flyers, who trail the Blues by just three points, both won their games.

Five players had multi point games for Winnipeg including  Kurt Keats, Derek Gingera, Jeff Borse, Warren Callis, and Jared Morris. 

That ends a January that started off terrible for the Blues, who started the month with four straight losses coming off the Christmas Break, but have followed it up with wins in five of their past six games.

Winnipeg now enters the final month of the regular season, and with just 10 games left and very few points separating the Addison division, every point is crucial down the stretch.

The Blues get back to action this coming Wednesday night when they'll travel to Steinbach to face the Pistons.

Winnipeg is 7-1 over Steinbach this season, but lost their last meeting between the two clubs 3-1.

Puck drop is set for 7:30.

Friday, January 27, 2012

Gingera OT Hero in Win Over Steelers

The Winnipeg Blues got a much needed two points with a 5-4 overtime win over division rival Selkirk Steelers.

Heading into the game the second place Blues held a three point lead over the fourth place Selkirk Steelers in the tight Addison division, with the Steelers holding a game in hand.

Every game seems to have a playoff type feel now with teams vying for playoff spots as we roll into the home stretch of the schedules.

The Blues got off to a two goal lead after the opening period with Jeff Borse and Dylan Kelly scoring for the visitors.

The Steelers would answer with a pair of their own in the second, but the Blues Warren Callis would restore the lead for Winnipeg and the Blues headed into the third with a 3-2 lead.

Selkirk tied the game seven minutes into the third, but it was short lived as Blues Derek Gingera would light the lamp on the powerplay with just over seven minutes to play, regaining Winnipeg's one goal lead.

The lead would hold up until Selkirk's Dylan Heide tied the game with just over a minute to go, sending the game into overtime.

Both teams wanted that very important second point, and Gingera would notch his second goal, third point of the game late in the extra frame, giving Winnipeg a 5-4 overtime win.

As it stands now, just eight points separate first place from fourth place in the Addison division, and only four points separate second from fourth.

Winnipeg (2nd, 66pts) has just 11 games left in the regular season, Portage (1st, 70pts) has 13 games left, Winkler (3rd, 63pts) has 14 games left, while Selkirk (4th, 62pts) has 12.

The Blues are back on the ice Saturday night when they host Swan Valley at the Ice Plex.

Puck drop is set for 7:30.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Winkler Tops Blues In Overtime

The Winnipeg Blues couldn't grab their third win in a row, dropping a 4-3 overtime decision to the Winker Flyers last night at the Ice Plex.

It was a playoff type atmosphere with only 4 points separating the two clubs heading into last nights contest as we enter the home stretch of the season.

Jared Morris notched a pair for the Blues, while Jake Heisinger added a single in the loss.

Jordan Neduzak fired home a pair of his own for the Flyers, with Steven Sorensen netting a single as well.

In overtime it was Chapen Leblond potting the winner, giving Winkler a very important extra point in the standings.

Winnipeg continues to hold down second place in the Addison division, three points clear of the Flyers, but Winkler has three games in hand on the Blues.

Winnipeg now gets set for another key divisional matchup on Sunday night, when they head to the St. James Civic Center to face the Winnipeg Saints. The Saints currently sit in 4th in the division with a 23-18-5 record, 11 points behind the Blues.

Puck drop is set for 7:30

Blues Win 2nd Straight With Win Over Wolverines

Winnipeg found a way to win back to back games for the first time since mid December, after dropping Waywayseecappo 2-1 Thursday night.

Derek Gingera and Brock Vanderveen lit the lamp for the Blues, who improve to 29-16-3 on the season and sit in 2nd place in the Addison Division, seven points behind the Portage Terriers.

Winnipeg also holds a 4 point lead over third place Winkler Flyers who happen to be the Blues opponent at the Ice Plex tonight in a key Addison matchup.

The Flyers have three games in hand, so a win for the Blues tonight will be a big step if they want to create separation in the standings heading down the stretch.

The Flyers are 3-5 to start 2012 and currently hold a 27-15-3 record overall.

Vanderveen, who got a goal last night, will face his former club tonight for the first time since being acquired by the Blues on the January 10th trade deadline for the MJHL list rights of 15 year old defenseman Connor Hamonic

Puck drop is set for 7:30.

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Blues End Losing Streak With Win Over Terriers

The Winnipeg Blues found their way back in the win column Tuesday night, slipping by the Portage Terriers 3-2.

Warren Callis, Jeff Borse, and Jeremy Olinyk all tallied for the Blues, who snapped a four game losing skid with the win.

Winnipeg netminder Isiah Plett was stellar in the game, especially in the third period when the Blues were outshot 16-6, but the Terriers couldn't find the equalizer, outshooting the Blues 32-27 overall.

With the win, the Blues now take over sole possession of 2nd place in the Addison division, two points ahead of both Selkirk and Winkler.

Winnipeg looks to keep the momentum going this Friday night when they welcome the Waywayseecappo Wolverines to the Ice Plex.

Wayway has taken two of the three meetings between the two clubs so far this season.

Puck drop is set for 7:30.