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Russell Lots-A-Tots
Full Time Summer Students
Nighthawks capture MJHL title with ease
By Derek Holtom
In the end, the Niverville Nighthawks would not be denied their destiny.
The Nighthawks clinched their first-ever league championship Thursday night in Virden as they beat the Oil Capitals 6-2, to win the Turnbull Cup in four straight games.
Niverville dominated the playoffs, posting a 12-1 record over three rounds. The Winkler Flyers were first to fall, and the Waywayseecappo Wolverines second. Wayway, in fact, was the only team to take a game off the Nighthawks, so kudos to them for giving the champs a bit of a scare.
Overall, these MJHL playoffs will not be remembered for being very competitive or having any sense of drama. There were no Game 7’s, only one Game 6 (Virden beating Steinbach to advance to the league final), and four sweeps, including the league final.
Niverville now advances to the Centennial Cup, where they will face the top junior A teams in Canada who still play under the Hockey Canada umbrella – the BCHL does not take part in this event after breaking away from the national hockey organization.
This year’s event takes place in Summerside, P.E.I., May 7-17. Four of nine teams have already punched their ticket to the event, including the host Summerside Western Capitals, the CCHL’s Rockland Nationals, the SJHL’s Flin Flon Bombers, and the NOJHL’s Greater Sudbury Cubs.
Good luck to Niverville in their first-ever national championship.
• The vacancies continue to pile up in the league as teams scramble to get coaches in place ahead of the league AGM slated for June.
The Winnipeg Blues are looking for a new head coach and general manager after they parted ways with Josh Gratton. The Brantford, Ont., native coached the Blues for the past two seasons, guiding them to an overall record of 27-79-8-2. He also served as an assistant coach on the Team Canada West team at the 2025 World Junior A Challenge.
The Blues have not qualified for the playoffs since the 2021-22 season, and usually end up battling the Winnipeg Freeze to stay out of last place in the East Division.
Since the Blues converted to more of a pay to develop type of franchise they have struggled to be competitive with the top teams in the league. Whoever the new coach is, they’ll have their work cut out for them.
• The Neepawa Titans are also looking for a new coach – an associate coach to join Ken Pearson behind the bench.
The Titans spent many years in the MJHL wilderness, but Pearson has got the Titans back to being a playoff team, though post-season success has eluded them so far.
The Titans are coming off a season where they finished 28-28-1-1, 10 points out of second place and five out of third. They were swept out in four games by the MJHL league finalist Virden Oil Capitals in four games in the first round.
• That is another wrap for me. Thanks all for reading – we’ll see you in August for the start of the 2026-27 MJHL season.
Russell Senior Services holds Spring Fling
Russell Senior Services hosted their Spring Fling and brought in the ever popular Fugitives to coax the dancers onto the new dance floor. In all, about 70 people took advantage of the free afternoon which was made possible by funding from the province of Manitoba. The attendees were treated to an afternoon lunch where the vegetable skewers and the Texas brownie (Anne MacIsaac’s recipe) were made by Bev MacIsaac and the bountiful dainties were compliments of Louise Trinder’s baking skills.
Paint the ice event on Thursday
Our 1st Annual Paint the Ice Event is Thursday, April 30th from 6:00-7:30pm at the Russell Memorial Multiplex! Come join us to say “goodbye” to the ice for another season! We will have paint and brushes for you, but feel free to bring your washable kids paint, brushes, stencils, etc. Helmets required for those under 18 years old and no skates, just shoes or boots on the ice. See you there!
Pickleball is at the GPB Hall in Russell! Tuesdays from 1-3pm and Thursdays from 9-11am and again from 7-9pm! The last evening of pickleball at the Binscarth school was on Monday, April 27! See you next fall! Pickleball is FREE and we have all equipment needed. Clean, indoor shoes required. Never played before? We’ve got you covered! We will teach you!
Badminton is in Russell at the GPB Hall on Sunday evenings from 7-9pm. It is FREE and we have all equipment needed. Clean, indoor shoes required.
The last date for Adults & Tots will be Thursday, April 30 from 9:30-11:30am. See you again in the fall!
The last day of Public Skating is April 30th from 9:30-10:30!
Zumba is Thursday nights from 6:30-7:30pm upstairs in the Bunge Room at the Russell Memorial Multiplex, Main St entrance, $5 drop-in!
The Recreation Office is CLOSED on Friday May 1, and Monday, Tuesday May 4 & 5.
Fitness Centre Members and Guests! As the weather gets nicer, it is still MANDATORY to remove outdoor shoes before entering. It may be dry out, but sand, dirt, dust & rocks still get dragged in and are very hard on the treadmills and make our space dirty. PLEASE be courteous to all our community spaces. Thank you.
Road washouts and floating culverts
At about 6:30 pm on Tuesday April 21st, Scott Gregor, the CFO of Riding Mountain West was checking out the water flowing under the municipal road off of Hwy 83 to the entrance to the Asessippi Beach & Campground.
“I had driven down the road over the Bear Creek around 6:15 p.m, and the water was really flowing down the road and over the culvert,” Karen Goraluk said.
“Scott who works for the RM was there watching and I guess he heard a noise and ran to back his vehicle and backed it up and he was still able to get a video of the culvert letting loose and going down Bear Creek before it ended up in the Shell River where it is now.”
A few days prior, the RM, she said, had been keeping an eye on that portion of road.
“They had their back hoe there and sat there for a few hours one evening keeping the culvert clear so that the water was flowing west,” Goraluk said.
Bear Creek, Karen explained, comes all the way from the Riding Mountain National Park and winds its way down and goes through the culvert right beside Asessippi Beach & Campground and ends up in the Shell River and then into Lake of the Prairies.
“If you go to the Inglis school and head north down the provincial road just north of the school, Bear Creek has two big culverts there.”
“And all that water comes down from there plus all the runoff along the creek and it all passes past the campground.”
Although nothing of this magnitude has happened since the Goraluk family took ownership of the Asessippi Beach & Campground in 2008, Karen said she knows that a washout like this has happened in the past when the washrooms and a septic tank were demolished by the waters of Bear Creek a number of years ago.
Goraluk said she’s spoken to the RM of Riding Mountain West who have assured her that a new culvert is already on order and are hopeful they’ll receive it in time for their May long weekend opening at the campground.
In speaking to Glenda Lemcke, the CAO of the RM of Riding Mountain West, came assurances that the culvert is indeed on order and is expected to arrive within two weeks.
If for some reason, the culvert does not arrive within that time frame, the RM will come up with a plan to ensure that road will be open.
Intrigued? Pick up a copy of Russell Banner at our office or one of our fine newspaper dealers and turn to pages 1 & 2.
A new youth basketball team takes the court
BY: JENNIFER LAVIOLETTE
A new youth sports team has been established in Roblin, giving youth a chance to play basketball. The Roblin Raptors is a club basketball team started by head coach Ryan Wiesner. Assistant coaches are Danny Andres and Brandin Beasley, and the team managers are Rita Collins and Tara Martin. This team started as a result of some strong interest coming from the elementary school.
“Rita Collins was coaching the boys’ elementary school team and I was helping out a bit, while also coaching the guys at GLH,” said Roblin Raptors Head Coach Ryan Wiesner. “There seemed to be some keen players at the elementary. I also knew a few homeschooled boys who were excited to play basketball on a club team, so I put out some feelers to see what the interest would be and to my surprise, 11 guys signed up.
“We are a 14U team, whereas it’s more common to have a 15U team, so we’re playing against older competition a bit this year. There are 15U programs in Yorkton and Dauphin, as well as larger centres like Brandon, Winnipeg, Regina, etc. Sometimes other surrounding communities have programs too, but none were able to do that this season.”
The Roblin Raptors just started their first season earlier this month made their first appearance this past weekend at a tournament in Dauphin.
“Our first practice was April 6, 2026, and we’ve had two a week since then,” said Wiesner. “The boys are improving so much.
“Our first tournament was in Dauphin this past weekend, on April 18 to 19, 2026, and due to this being our first season and playing older competition, it was a true growing experience. The boys showed a ton of grit and determination and by the fourth game, they played very well.
“We all were extremely proud of their effort and were able to see them put up 43 points, and their defence improved a lot too,” said Wiesner.
There is an opportunity for a home audience to cheer on and support this new local youth basketball team next month, when they host their first tournament.
“The club basketball season is relatively short compared to other sports,” said Wiesner. “It only goes from April until the beginning of June.
“We have a home tournament planned for May 10, 2026, and we’re also going to the Club Basketball Manitoba Championships from May 22 to 24, 2026. There is also the possibility of some exhibition games coming up too. The whole point of the program is to help the players have fun and to grow and develop their skills as basketball players.
“Come on out and cheer us on May 10 at the Goose Lake High Gymnasium,” said Wiesner. “The first game is at 2 p.m. and the last one at 6:30 p.m.”
Municipality of Roblin unveils its 2026 Financial Plan
The Municipality of Roblin held its Financial Plan Hearing on April 20, 2026, with head of council Robert Misko facilitating the presentation. The municipality’s revenue for the 2026 fiscal year is estimated at $10,504,422.42. The breakdown in that revenue is as follows: $6,310,156.79 in municipal taxes and grant-in-lieu; $4,852,245 in school requisition; $1,366,952.23 transfer from accumulated surplus, and $2,827,313.40 in other revenue.
On the municipal expenses side, the municipality’s 2026 budget has allocated $925,610 for general government, $856,225 for protective services, $3,120,400 for transportation, $607,795 for environmental health, $77,600 for public health and welfare, $101,700 for environmental development, $142,400 for economic development, $883,870 for recreation and culture, $1,988,804.56 for fiscal expenses, $526,316.10 in debenture payments, $594,322.22 in Ag Tax Credits and $448.54 allowance for tax assets.
Last year, the municipality budgeted $862,840 for general government services and the actual amount spent was $789,307.50. This year has been budgeted for $925,610 and next year’s budgeted amount is forecasted to be $930,250. Some of this year’s notable expenses for general government services consist of $20,000 in Asset Retirement Obligations and $12,000 for new iPads or laptops for new council members. It also factors in staff wage increases and the cost of the upcoming municipal election in October of this year.
For the protective services portion of expenses, last year it was budgeted at $858,055 and came in at $823,016.87. This year has been budgeted for $856,255 and $873,300 for next year. Policing and fire department costs have increased slightly, so council considered that when budgeting.
Read the whole report in this week's Roblin Review on page 6.
Spring road closures in Municipality of Roblin
If you are not sure which roads are flooded, washed out, impassable and closed, residents are encouraged to check the Municipality of Roblin website www.roblin.ca for current and active road closures.
The website will be maintained and kept up-to-date according to a post on the MOR Facebook page.
The Municipality may close or reopen roads at any time to ensure public safety and to protect municipal infrastructure.
Drivers are asked to respect all road closures, as travel on closed roads can create unsafe conditions and cause damage to both, vehicles and the roadway.
Washed out roads and dislodged culverts
By Terrie Welwood
Russell Banner
At about 6:30 pm on Tuesday April 21st, Scott Gregor, the CFO of Riding Mountain West was checking out the water flowing under the municipal road off of Hwy 83 to the entrance to the Asessippi Beach & Campground.
“I had driven down the road over the Bear Creek around 6:15 p.m, and the water was really flowing down the road and over the culvert,” Karen Goraluk said.
“Scott who works for the RM was there watching and I guess he heard a noise and ran to back his vehicle and backed it up and he was still able to get a video of the culvert letting loose and going down Bear Creek before it ended up in the Shell River where it is now.”
A few days prior, the RM, she said, had been keeping an eye on that portion of road.
“They had their back hoe there and sat there for a few hours one evening keeping the culvert clear so that the water was flowing west,” Goraluk said.
Bear Creek, Karen explained, comes all the way from the Riding Mountain National Park and winds its way down and goes through the culvert right beside Asessippi Beach & Campground and ends up in the Shell River and then into Lake of the Prairies.
“If you go to the Inglis school and head north down the provincial road just north of the school, Bear Creek has two big culverts there.”
“And all that water comes down from there plus all the runoff along the creek and it all passes past the campground.”
Although nothing of this magnitude has happened since the Goraluk family took ownership of the Asessippi Beach & Campground in 2008, Karen said she knows that a washout like this has happened in the past when the washrooms and a septic tank were demolished by the waters of Bear Creek a number of years ago.
Goraluk said she’s spoken to the RM of Riding Mountain West who have assured her that a new culvert is already on order and are hopeful they’ll receive it in time for their May long weekend opening at the campground.
In speaking to Glenda Lemcke, the CAO of the RM of Riding Mountain West, came assurances that the culvert is indeed on order and is expected to arrive within two weeks.
If for some reason, the culvert does not arrive within that time frame, the RM will come up with a plan to ensure that road will be open..
Find yourself wanting to know more? Pick up this week's Roblin Review to get the full story on page 3.
Fun activities at 50 & Over Club
As spring is slowly showing up, many of us are looking forward to the warmer weather. We at the Drop-In Centre are planning more activities and will keep you posted (watch for posters or check our Facebook Page). We are currently planning our next dance. Just Us played for our last dance on April 11th. Attendees enjoyed dancing and a light lunch. The morning group gathers from 7:30 to 10:00 Monday through Saturday to play Pool, Cribbage and enjoy coffee and fellowship. Plenty of smiles and laughter are enjoyed. Another group gathers for exercises and coffee on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 10:30 to 11:30. Tuesday afternoons from 1 to 2, we enjoy either Drums Alive or Shuffleboard. Also on Thursday afternoons at 1 join us for Line Dancing. Wednesday afternoons, a group gathers to play cards. There is no shortage of laughter and fellowship happening at the Centre.
We have a monthly Potluck Supper every last Monday of the month. Come and enjoy homecooked goodies along with smiles and fellowship.
Our facility is available for rent. Please contact Martha at 937-4717 to place a booking.
Keep smiling and let the sun shine in.