Doug Zywina
Williamson helps Cougars qualify for FISU worlds
A Dauphin curler has earned a spot at the International University Sports Federation world games, in Torino, Italy, Jan. 13 to 23, 2025.
Carter Williamson, helped his University of Regina Cougars team qualify for nationals at the Canada West championships, with six teams competing for one of two spots at nationals.
The event was a round-robin format with each team playing five games, with the top two teams advancing to nationals, which were held in Frederiction, NB, Mar. 12 to 16.
The Cougars, which consists of skip Joshua Bryden, third Adam Bukurak, lead Ryan Grabarczyk and fifth Ayden Whittmire, drew the top-ranked University of Alberta Golden Bears on the first day of the competition, losing 7-6 in 10 ends.
It was Regina’s only loss of the round-robin event, with Williamson stating the team went on a winning streak after their loss to the Golden Bears.
“We ended that weekend with pretty high spirits,” he said.
At nationals, the Cougars finished the round-robin with a 4-3 record, qualifying for playoffs, where they got as measure of revenge against the Golden Bears, beating them 7-5 in the semifinals.
The Golden Bears had finished first after the round-robin, with a 6-1 record.
In the final, the Cougars beat Dalhousie University, 8-5, to claim the national title and earn a berth at worlds, next January.
Winning nationals, Williamson said, means everything to him.
“It’s the reason why we curl, is to be called Team Canada one day. It’s the reason my mom and I drove how many hours looking through the windshield just to go to some curling rink in the middle of nowhere just to watch me get absolutely killed out there,” he said. “It’s why we train. It’s why we’re out on the ice every day. All my teammates love the game. So do I. And we’re racing each other to the rink every day it feels like. It’s pretty special.”
The worlds, Williamson said, are basically the university Olympic games. He is looking forward to the trip and so is his mom Jody Romanow, who he said is already looking at flights to book.
Given how well Canada does on the international stage, Williamson is confident in the team’s chances, but he also recognizes that there will also be some pressure on the team to do well.
“It’s a double edged sword, too. Everyone is going to be looking towards us, like, ‘oh that’s Team Canada.’ I curl with Josh and Adam in men’s and we just go there to have fun. That’s really all we do. We show up and we give it our all, but we do it with a smile on our face,” he said. “It really doesn’t matter who we’re playing, when we’re playing at all. It’s all the same four guys out there on the ice.”
Spud Pub a labour of love for Puchailo and friends
A former Parkland resident has entered the world of publishing.
Chenise Puchailo joined forces with some friends who were writing short stories, which became Debut, the first book published by Spud Pub, an independent publishing company the group started.
“Everybody was writing their first drafts for submission. We had everything kind of hammered out,” she said, adding they were trying to decide how to get the book published.
Puchailo had met a publisher with At Bay Press at a fantasy sci-fi convention in Winnipeg. What followed was a two-hour conversation all about publishing and the ins and outs about it.
“Initially, my questions were about distribution, because we were just going to do the one print run or do it on Amazon,” she said.
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Chamber lunch marks membership milestones
The Parkland Chamber of Commerce hosted its appreciation lunch, Mar. 19, at the Watson Arts Centre.
The Chamber handed out its milestone achievement awards, recognizing membership tenures of five to 50 years.
Five years - Business Development Bank of Canada, Dawson Logistics Ltd., Duane McMaster CPA Inc., Gilbert Plains Municipality, Grandview Pharmacy, Habitat for Humanity Dauphin Chapter, Hot Shot Entertainment, Liquid Glamour, Mountain View School Division, SciMar Ltd., and Wiebe Building Solutions Ltd.
10 years - Magnetsigns Dauphin, Momotiuk Enterprises Ltd., Mullen Contracting Corp., Parkland Campus Kids Inc., RM of Lakeshore and Winnipegosis and District Residential Services Inc.
15 years - Boulevard Hotel, Dauphin Bible Camp, Dauphin Magical Horizons Daycare, Dauphin Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation, Lorray Manor, (Parkland Living Assisted) McDonalds, Nolan Farms, Seitter’s Construction, SYNC CPA Inc., and Tim-Br-Fab Industries.
20 years - Strilkiwski Contracting Ltd., and St. George’s Place.
25 years - Canadian Tire, Norwex Canada Inc., and Dauphin Lions Club.
30 years - Ready Mix of Dauphin TYM Ltd., and Dauphin’s Countryfest.
35 years - Irwin Law Office, Dauphin Chiropractic Centre and Baker Computers.
40 years - Steiner Plumbing and Heating Inc., Manitoba Public Insurance, Assiniboine Community College - Parkland Campus and Cruise Farms.
50 years - Fusion Credit Union, Dauphin Medical Clinic Inc., and Watson Arts Centre.
The next event hosted by the Parkland Chamber of Commerce will be the State of the District luncheon, Apr. 16.
Sheffield steals game one, Schmidt OT hero in game two
The Dauphin Kings are halfway to the semifinals in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League playoffs.
The Kings rode a 46-save performance from Cole Sheffield to a 2-1 victory over the Blizzard Jr. A Hockey Club in game one, Friday in The Pas.
Joshua Schmidt was the overtime hero, beating Blizzard goaltender Tomas Anderson through the five-hole, 6:21 into the extra period to lift the Kings to a 5-4 win and a two-games-to-none lead in the best-of-seven quarterfinal series.
Kings head coach and general manager Doug Hedley, who missed game one due to illness, credited Sheffield for stealing the game with his performance.
“The biggest thing is we weathered the storm up there. And Sheff stole the game. Let’s face it, Sheffield stole the game for us,” he said. “They had pressure after pressure. But the good thing about up there is that we kept them to the perimeter. They only had 12 prime scoring shot areas and they usually have more than that on us the last couple times we played them.”
After the Kings took a 2-0 lead after the first period, the Blizzard outshot Dauphin, 39-7 in the final 40 minutes. That was when Sheffield took the spotlight, stopping all but one of those shots.
In game two, the Kings, playing with just five defencemen, were able to relieve a lot of pressure by getting pucks out of the zone and moving it as quickly as they could.
“And taking advantage of mistakes on the rush. Their D-men are always pressuring their five-man unit down low, so if we can get in behind them and get pucks in behind them, then we end up with two-on-ones,” Hedley said. “But the biggest thing is we had to relieve pressure and I thought our guys did a hell of a job tonight.”
Forward Jordan Bax also missed game one due to illness, while defenceman Brett Magarrell is day-to-day with an upper body injury and may return for game three, tonight in The Pas.
Defenceman Charlie Sandven is likely out for the remainder of the playoffs after contracting mono.
Schmidt, forward Rylan Gibbs and defenceman Ty Pratte also missed some practices due to illness.
“We went up there with a few guys at about 80 per cent, 75 per cent, found a way to get it done and it was just a good follow up today, that’s for sure,” Hedley said.
Schmidt and Carter Zalischuk, who opened the scoring in game two, are examples of the team effort needed to be successful in the playoffs, Hedley said.
“That’s what playoffs are for. It’s for the guys in the bottom of the order. The bottom of your order are the guys that are going to get it done, because you’ve got to play everybody,” he said. “You have to deposit energy into the bank and you’re going to use it in game five, six, seven, depends on how long it goes.”
Madden Murray and Rylan Gage were both outstanding, Hedley said and Zalischuk played his best hockey of the season in the last two games.
“Since we put him back in the middle, that 200-foot game, he’s been outstanding. The energy level, the work ethic, that’s what he brings. He brings energy, he finishes checks and he kills penalties like a trooper,” he said.
Game three gets underway tonight in The Pas at 7 p.m., while game four will go Thursday in Dauphin at 7:30 p.m.
Despite having the series lead after two games, Hedley knows the series is far from over.
“Every game is as important as the last one. We do enjoy today and get back to work tomorrow,” he said. “It’s great we won at home, but there’s still a lot of work to do. This team is not going to go anywhere. They’re too good of a team to do that. Their goaltender is too good to do that. So it’s a matter of us coming back with a good solid effort and, hopefully, take the next step.”
Game five, if necessary, will go Saturday in The Pas at 7:30 p.m., while game six, if needed in Monday in Dauphin at 7:30 p.m.
Mavericks ready for return
A group of local rugby players traveled to Vancouver for some exhibition rugby last month.
Codi Harrigan, Nick Searle, Willie Budzinski and Jeff Zeiler made the trip out west to play old boys (35-and-older) rugby, as well as to watch an international 7s rugby tournament.
Harrigan said one of the players usually goes every year and former Dauphin Maverick Bernie Dowhan had reached out, asking if they would be making the trip this year.
“And if we would play with them on their team. So that’s how it came about. We offered it up to the team and we got four takers,” he said.
The four Mavericks played a game, Feb. 23, using old boys rules.
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Fidierchuk officiates last game in MJHL after 25 years
After 25 years of officiating in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League, local referee Kerry Fidierchuk is hanging up his skates when it comes to the MJHL.
Fidierchuk started in the MJHL as a linesman in 1995 and worked his first game as a referee in 1997. He worked his final game, Mar. 1, when the Dauphin Kings hosted the Winnipeg Freeze.
Dauphin’s Mitch Drysdale, who started officiating in 2001 and worked his first MJHL game in The Pas in February 2007 with Fidierchuk, also retired from the MJHL after that game.
Fidierchuk decided to get into officiating as a way to stay in the game after his playing days were over.
“I always had a passion for officiating in some sort and I also had a passion for hockey. So put two and two together and I wasn’t playing any more, so that was the next best thing,” Fidierchuk said.
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Dauphin well represented on Manitoba Selects
Four local football players put their talent on display with the Manitoba Selects at a tournament in Orlando, Fla.
Riley Lobert, Sully Fox, Owen Tyschinski and Lars Gudbjartson attended tryout camps after the high school football season ended last fall.
“They got all the guys who wanted to play and just had an open tryout for anybody that wanted to come,” Gudbjartson said, adding he was happy for another chance to play the game after ending his high school career in November. “I love the game. It’s very important to me. And without that, there’s no real options for us to continue during the school year, so I was very grateful for the chance to play,” he said.
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Kings ready to weather a first-round Blizzard
The Dauphin Kings enter the 2023-24 Manitoba Junior Hockey League playoffs riding a four-game winning streak to end the regular season.
Included in that winning streak is a 2-0 victory over their quarterfinal opponents, the Blizzard Jr. A Hockey Club, Wednesday in The Pas, a game in which the Kings sat their top line of Jordan Bax, Cayden Glover and Ashton Paul, as well as starter Cole Sheffield.
The night before, the Kings scored three late power-play goals en route to a 7-3 win over the Portage Terriers at Credit Union Place.
On Friday, Dauphin snapped a 2-2 tie with three third-period goals in skating to a 5-2 victory over the Winnipeg Blues in Winnipeg.
And in the season finale, Logan Walker scored three times and added an assist to lead the Kings to a 6-3 win over the Selkirk Steelers, Saturday in Selkirk.
Kings head coach and general manager Doug Hedley was pleased with how the team played in the final four games.
“I’m really proud of the guys for the way they worked in the last four games. Actually, the last couple weeks. They worked hard. We didn’t get the results all the time, but the compete and being hard on pucks and the speed and playing fast was all back again. I think we’re ready to go for playoffs,” he said. The schedule will begin on Friday in The Pas with the second game of the series in Dauphin on Sunday (4:00pm).
The Kings and Blizzard split the season series with each team winning three games and they each won twice on the road. The Blizzard outscored Dauphin 15-12 in the six games.
Hedley said it will be a tough series.
“We know what they bring. They work hard in five-man units. We have to match their work ethic and compete level. It’s going to come down to two great goaltenders,” he said.
The Kings, he said, have to play fast, get on pucks quickly and move them quickly.
“The longer you hang on to it, the more chance of a turnover with a team that works real hard. We just have to make sure that we’re hard on pucks, we work hard, we protect the middle of the ice and really look after the net front and help Sheff out as much as we can,” Hedley said. “We know he’ll make the first one. We’ve just got to look after rebounds and second shots and make sure we box out.”
But the biggest thing, Hedley said, is it is going to come down to will, hard work and never quitting.
“We’re going to make mistakes, everybody does. It’s just how you rebound, how resilient you are and how many times you’re going to be pushed,” he added. “It’s the best time of year. You find out about the players in your group and the players find out a lot about their teammates. It’s one of those things that is nothing but a positive experience.”
Hedley feels home ice advantage is overrated, noting they won the Turnbull Trophy two years ago in game seven in Steinbach.
“The only difference is the noise factor and a lot of times that gets you pumped up and ready to play, regardless of whether they’re going against you or for you,” he said. “It’s a matter of the focus, where we’re going and not necessarily who we’re playing. Our goal is to win the series and move on to the next one.”
Winning in The Pas twice will give the Kings confidence heading into the series. Because it’s a small ice surface, the key will be moving the puck quick.
“It’s one-touch. You can’t handle it too long. They come at you hard and they work hard. It’s a small building, things happen fast, so the support for your teammates all over the ice has got to be there,” he said. “So short passes, deep pressure and that’s what we’re going to focus on.”
Kings court:
The Manitoba Junior Hockey League recently named its award winners. Winkler Flyers forward Trent Penner was named Most Valuable Player, while Noah Szabo of the Steinbach Pistons won the Top Defenceman Award and his Pistons teammate Grady Hoffman won the Rookie of the Year Award. Blizzard netminder Tomas Anderson won the Top Goaltender Award and Blizzard coach Eric Labrosse was named Coach of the Year. Josh Lehto of the Virden Oil Capitals won the Hockey Ability and Sportsmanship Award. Penner, Szabo and Anderson were all selected to the first all-star team along with Steinbach forward Leo Chambers and forward Dalton Andrews of Winkler. Tayem Gislason of the Portage Terriers was the other defenceman selected. The second all-star team consists of forwards Sean Williams of the Waywayseecappo Wolverines, Lehto and Nolan Chastko of Virden, defencemen Sebastian Hamming of the Blizzard and Kaycee Coyle of the Niverville Nighthawks and Dauphin’s Cole Sheffield in goal. The rookie all-star team includes forwards Hoffman, Marlen Edwards of the Blizzard and, Nathan Brown of Niverville, defencemen Cole Slobodian of Virden and James Edwards of Winkler and goaltender Raiden Legall of Niverville.
Maamawi Park work is off to a good start
With construction of the Maamawi Park now underway, residents are wondering just what will be included in the facility.
Committee member Stacey Penner said they are excited to see construction of the hill begin.
“I know it has garnered a lot of information,” she said.
The park’s name is Ojibwe, meaning together. Penner said when deciding on a name for the park, the committee was excited to celebrate the rich culture of the local Indigenous population.
“And something that really suits us in our community coming together for free physical activity. It’s just very, very fitting philosophically what we’re shooting for in building this park,” she said.
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Kings look to end season on high note before playoffs
After suffering three losses last week, the Dauphin Kings have resigned themselves to a third-place finish in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League’s MGEU West Division.
Dauphin’s week began with a 4-0 setback at the hands of the first-place Virden Oil Capitals, Tuesday in Virden, followed by a 3-2 overtime loss to the Neepawa Titans, a game in which the Kings led 2-1 until Neepawa tied it with 14 seconds left in regulation, then won it on a power play with two seconds left in overtime.
Saturday, the Kings hoped to make up some ground when they hosted the Blizzard Jr. A Hockey Club, but they were set back on their heels almost right off the start in what turned into a 5-3 Blizzard victory, the team’s 12th win in a row.
Defenceman Aiden Murray was assessed a high sticking penalty 53 seconds into the game and 37 seconds later, defenceman Trey Gnetz was given what was initially called an interference penalty, but was later changed to a cross checking penalty, putting the Kings two men short.
The Blizzard took advantage, scoring twice to build an early 2-0 lead, 3:21 into the contest and they never looked back, building a 5-1 lead less than six minutes into the third period.
The Kings scored two goals 34 seconds apart, but that was as close as they would get.
As a result, the Kings enter the final week of the season with a 34-17-2-1 record for 71 points, seven behind the Blizzard.
Kings head coach and general manager Doug Hedley felt the second penalty was unwarranted as it was a play which occurs several times a game.
“We do it all year. Everybody does it. Every PK unit does it. The guy has the puck, he dumps it in, he gets hit. And all of a sudden we’re down five-on-three. I didn’t agree with the call. It is what it is. It was a tough start,” he said.
Hedley felt the Kings were better the rest of the period, but gave up a goal just 1:13 into the second period to fall behind 3-1.
“And then, for some reason, the start of every period, we’re back on our heels,” he said.
To the Kings credit, they didn’t give up and scored twice to make a game of it.
“We wanted to send a message that they have to go through us. If you have a bad shift, it’s the guys on the bench that are responsible for having a better shift. They’ve got to get out and work with five guys on the ice,” Hedley said.
The Kings started throwing pucks at the net and creating opportunities, but failed to close the gap.
Now the Kings will end the season with four games this week, beginning with the final home game of the season, tonight, against the Portage Terriers at 7:30 p.m.
On Wednesday, the Kings travel north for a rematch with the Blizzard at 7:30 p.m.
On Friday, Dauphin is in Winnipeg to face the Blues, before ending the season in Selkirk against the Steelers on Saturday.
Hedley plans to give some players some rest to make sure everyone is healthy and ready to go for the playoffs.