By Derek Holtom
The Waywayseecappo Wolverines are one of the hottest teams in the MJHL in 2026, even with some recent setbacks against the top team in the MJHL.
As the Wolverines peak for the playoffs, the veteran-filled team is enjoying what they’ve accomplished so far, but realize there is still so much to do.
“It’s a really good feeling right now,” says Ben Roulette, the team’s second-leading scorer. “Going on that stretch after Christmas, proving to ourselves that we can compete with the top teams in the league, it was really big for us.
“It’s knowing we can compete with those guys,” he added. “You look at our game on Feb. 28 against Niverville – we doubled them in shots. Things just didn’t go our way, so we’re still figuring that part out. It’s about closing things out, and there’s still a learning curve there.”
Wayway recently had a 10-game win streak with no losses in regulation snapped by the sixth-place Northern Manitoba Blizzard. They got back in the win column the very next night in a fight-filled, hard-nosed game that saw Roulette get hit hard into the boards, leading to the two goaltenders fighting at centre ice.
“That game was awesome – I think from the start of the game we were dialled in,” says Roulette. “The loss the night before kind of hurt as we had our chances but ended up losing, so going into Swan we needed two points to clinch and we came out and played physical and fast, and had each other’s backs.
“When I went down (when he was hit hard into the boards) even my goalie had my back,” he added. “We’re like a family now, and it’s all gelling together right now.”
As Wayway enters the final week of the regular season, their first-round opponent is still not known. And frankly to the Wolverines, they don’t care – they just want to get at it.
“I think for us it doesn’t really matter,” he said. “We’re going to give it our all no matter who we play.
“I think the big thing for us would be to get home-ice advantage,” he added. “Our home record is a lot better than our away record. That could set us up really well for the playoffs.”
Roulette also says this veteran team wants to win not only for themselves, but for the fans who have stuck with them all season long.
“I think the community deserves a good showing from us,” says Roulette. “I think we have the team to do that. The community’s rallying around us. It should be an interesting next couple of weeks – we’ve had more fans show up the last couple of games. It’s really great to see and I hope it continues.”
Last week
Kings 4, Wolverines 3 (OT)
The Kings rallied from a 3-1 deficit with three unanswered goals Friday night to earn a 4-3 overtime victory. The extra point allowed the Kings to move three points up on the Wolverines as they battle for home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Wayway led by period scores of 1-0 and 3-1 thanks to goals by Sebastien Hicks (32nd), Dylan Duzan (14th), and Cole Hunter (14th). But the visiting Kings scored 16 seconds into the third period, tied the game midway through the frame, and got the winner from Ethan Stewart (19th) while on the power play.
Mariko Bercier made 34 saves while taking the loss for the Wolverines.
Nighthawks 4, Wolverines 2 (EN)
The host Wolverines almost got their revenge on the league-leading Niverville Nighthawks last Tuesday but ended up on the wrong end of a 4-2 (EN) decision.
The Wolverines took a slim 2-1 lead into the third period thanks to goals by Mikey Thomas (12th) and Max Collyer (12th). But the Nighthawks are not first overall for nothing. They took the lead in the span of 40 seconds with two goals midway through the third. They added an empty-netter with 31 seconds left to hand the Wolverines their second straight loss – both competitive, close games against the league leaders.
Mariko Bercier stopped 28 shots while taking the loss for the home team.
Up next
The Wolverines have one final week of tune up before the playoffs get under way – three games in three nights on the weekend.
First up is a trip to Neepawa on Friday to clash with the Titans. Playoff positioning is still up in the air heading into this one.
The next night the Wolverines return home to host the division-leading Virden Oil Capitals. Wayway has three wins in five starts against the Oil Capitals so far this year.
The season ends Sunday night on home ice as the Northern Manitoba Blizzard come to town. This game could be meaningful for the final placements, depending on how the rest of the week goes for the Dauphin Kings, Neepawa Titans and, of course, the Wolverines.
CLAW MARKS – The Wolverines enter the final week with a record of 27-23-3-2 … They are 6-3-0-1 in their past 10 outings … The Wolverines are five points back of the Dauphin Kings with one game in hand. Wayway would need to win out and Dauphin lose out to overtake second place … They also lead the Neepawa Titans by three points. Both teams have three games remaining this week, including a potentially massive one against one another. If Wayway wins this game they clinch third. If not the final two games become very interesting for both teams.