After weeks of searching, the Dauphin Kings finally found their man.
Bryan Kromm was hired as the Kings new head coach and general manager, last week, after spending the last two seasons as the assistant general manager, associate coach and director of player and skill development with the British Columbia Hockey League’s Trail Smoke Eaters.
Prior to his time in Trail, Kromm spent three seasons as an assistant coach with the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point.
Kromm, 31, admits he did not actually apply for the job.
“It was actually a friend of mine who put my name in the ring. And then I got a call out of the blue from Scott (McCallum, director of hockey operations) and we had a discussion,” he explained, adding he got a text from Kings vice-president Bryan Romanow within a couple of weeks.
“Had another meeting with him and Andy Kubas and then I turn around and all of a sudden I have a contract offer in front of me.
“So I didn’t go out searching for it. It just kind of fell in my lap, but I’m definitely excited about the opportunity to get my foot in the door and be a head coach and GM. That is something I was striving toward in my coaching career. I’m super excited to be part of the Dauphin organization.”
All Kromm knew of the Kings was it was one of the premier teams in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League and has a track record of winning and a winning culture.
“As I did a little bit more diving it, I realized it’s one of those true hockey towns where you’re one of the biggest shows in town and people are excited about the organization and the franchise,” he said.
“That was something that was super exciting to me, just being that small town culture and having a community that really supports the team.”
Kromm said fans can expect a competitive team that plays a high-paced game.
“Relentless. Very exciting to watch. But also pretty strong defensively, too, in not giving up too much risk, as well. I do expect our players to put their best foot forward every night and compete to the best of their abilities,” he said.
“Hopefully, there’s a team-first atmosphere when the fans watch and, hopefully, it’s exciting to come watch a game on a Friday or Saturday night.”
Kromm’s first priority will be finding a place to live. But he plans to come to Dauphin in mid-August after completing some prior obligations.
“And then show up a week before the boys show up and get ready to hit the ground running,” he said.
The first thing Kromm did when he was hired was call to all of the returning players.
“So I know who is coming back and I’ve set my expectations for them and for what they should expect from me. I’ve already had those conversations, so I feel I’m in a better spot than I did on Wednesday when I first accepted the position,” he said.
Kromm will also be in search of an assistant coach, with assistance from the board of directors.
The Kings are now taking registrations for its Par 3 Extravaganza, taking place, Sept. 12, at the Dauphin Lake Golf Club, with sign up sheets at the pro shop, as well as the Kings website at dauphinkings.com..
Training camp takes place, Aug. 28 to 30, at Credit Union Place.

The Parkland Pirates U19 men’s team made history recently, winning the Stampede 7s Rugby tournament, July 3 and 4, in Calgary, Alta.
The Pirates opened round-robin play with a convincing 38-0 win, followed by a 17-15 victory over Saltwater Cowboys Yellow.
A default win over Nor’Westers HSB 2 put Parkland in the high school boys elite playoff bracket, where they defeated Team Chud, 21-14, in the semifinals.
Parkland then claimed the tournament championship with a 26-19 win over LA Crude.
Coach Aaron Miner said the team was hoping to win a game or two going into the tournament.
“We’ve had very little success in Alberta. The teams there are normally Alberta, B.C., Washington state-based teams that go there. To win a game there is a success. But to go undefeated and win it all is huge,” he said.
This group, Miner said, has bonded well and has come together as a team.
“The rugby culture here is very strong. But this group, they just want more. They don’t even listen to Gerald (co-coach Lopez) and I anymore. They want more. They want to take things into their own hands,” he said.
“We go to practice and then they want to stay late after practice. On their days off, they want to go to the field and practice their kicks, practice the fine-tuning of their game. And they’ve been doing that for months now. It’s just been amazing to watch this group take the game that they love and expand on it.”
As the Pirates kept winning, Miner said the team kept expecting the “bubble to burst.” And with each win, they knew the opponents would get tougher and tougher.
“They always had that doubt in the back of their mind, but come game time, they just turned it on and took it to the next level, each and every game,” he said.
“They didn’t want to get overconfident. They reality checked after every win and realized it was going to be a tough game every time.”
The tournament featured 124 teams from across North America in all of the different divisions and age groups, with 15 in Parkland’s division.
Most of the Pirates played with the Dauphin Clippers high school team, which won the high school league title, and also toured England and Wales earlier this year.
This past weekend, the Pirates were in Brandon for the first of three Manitoba Cup tournaments, where they defeated Winnipeg, 35-0, and Westman, 61-0.
Miner was surprised the Pirates shutout their opponents.
“I knew we had a good team going in, but I didn’t think we’d shut them out. Winnipeg showed up with some players that I recognized from coaching Team Manitoba over the last few years and they really surprised me with what they had, actually,” he said.
“So good to see that rugby in Winnipeg is starting to make a come back. They had some players there that showed some skill and some knowledge of the game.”
Those players who were in Calgary were keen on keeping their momentum going, Miner said.
“Definitely, seeing the skill over the last two months just increase with these guys and their level of knowledge and knowing where each other are going to be, they look like a finely-oiled machine out there,” he added.
“Just knowing where each other is going to be on the field without even having to look just because everybody is playing their position so well.”
The second tournament will be in Winnipeg, July 18, and the team is excited to play in front of a large crowd at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg.
“Everybody is super excited. Everybody is ready for practice this week,” Miner said, adding several players stayed to play for the Parkland Mavericks senior men’s team in their game against the Winnipeg Wasps.
The third tournament will take place in Dauphin, July 25.

The lack of a medical facility has led to the cancellation of this year’s Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival, just three weeks before it was set to take place.
The CNUF board made the announcement in a press release, Thursday evening, noting the festival site itself was not affected by the flooding
The decision was made after the board consulted with the City of Dauphin, Rural Municipality of Dauphin, MLA Ron Kostyshyn, MP Dan Mazier and its insurance provider.
Third vice-president Cory Lafontaine said they began discussing the prospects of cancelling the festival when Prairie Mountain Health announced it would be closing the Dauphin Regional Health Centre.
“We came to the realization that we’re not so sure we can have a festival without a hospital,” he said, adding that was when they consulted the various government entities, as well as the insurance provider.
“We wanted some direction and what their thoughts were in continuing with the festival. And after that meeting, we came to realize that we weren’t so sure that we can have a festival if we don’t have a hospital,” Lafontaine said.
The biggest concern, Lafontaine added, was the number of festival patrons who are elderly, as well as families.
“And you just want to make sure if anybody gets hurt on the festival site, that they’re covered. We’re not confident that putting them in an ambulance and sending them 30 kilometres away is the best choice,” he said.
Lafontaine said they wanted to make sure they had proper insurance for the festival and weren’t sure they would if they continued with the festival, which is why they had the insurance provider in the discussion.
“We would be bringing in another 3,000 to 4,000 people to our community, already strained with limited urgent and emergency care. That’s putting a tremendous amount of pressure on the those two temporary rural emergency healthcare centers 30 plus minutes away,” he said.
“Of course, it makes sense to cancel or postpone our festival, until we are confident we have the appropriate care and services to accommodate our patrons, as well as our local residents. It’s very unfortunate we have to cancel, but our festival needs to be safe, for everyone who attends.”
The board, Lafontaine said, was overwhelmed with support from the dance groups and performers who were set to hit the stage at this year’s festival.
“They’re all reaching out to us and saying they support us and support our decision. And I think most of them are prepared to come back next year to put on a heck of a great show,” he said.
“They realize that the decision that we made is in the best interest of the community. It’s funny, we put the community first before we put the festival first this year, because it’s important to keep our community safe. We’re just not so sure that if we had a festival, not only under a state of emergency, but without a hospital is the best decision to make. We want to make sure our patrons are, first and foremost, safe in our environment.”
Those who purchased tickets or camping passes to this year’s event can ask for a refund or roll them over to next year’s festival.
“The nice thing about that is if they do roll over to next year, they’re going to get this year’s price. We understand that there will be some people wanting refunds and we’re going to make sure we accommodate them, as well,” Lafontaine said, adding they will have that information on their website at cnuf.ca and their Facebook page as soon as they can.
“We really wanted to have a festival this year, but without having a hospital in our own back yard to provide the service, it’s just not going to be feasible. We’re not so sure that having emergency services 30 minutes away is going to help us out,” he said.
“Our hearts remain with everyone that’s been affected.”

The Gilbert Plains Country Club was preparing for the biggest week of the season, but it turned into something a lot worse.
The Diamond Athletic Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship and Diamond Athletic Women’s Amateur Championship were postponed last week due to the flooding which occurred in the Parkland.
The two events were to be held at the GPCC, July 1 to 3, but were moved to other locations after the postponement.
GPCC general manager and head professional Scott McCallum called it the worst flooding the facility has ever seen.
“By a mile,” he added.
“I don’t think we’ve ever had our clubhouse compromised the way it was. It’s devastating, to be honest.”
McCallum went to the course Friday morning for the first time since the flooding started.
“We knew that golf carts were floating down the river, it’s obviously, quite a disaster to see,” he said.
The water has started to recede, but that is actually making matters worse.
“The problem is that the force of the water going back into the river is taking some things with it,” McCallum said, adding it is too early to tell if the facility will be able to open again this year.
“Until we can actually, physically get in there and assess the damage that we’re up against, it will be too early to tell. But, as you know, whether it’s a flood or not, the grass keeps growing. So we’re going to have to somehow maintain the beautiful golf course that we’ve got,” he said.
The grounds crew worked hard to prepare to showcase the course to the province during the two provincial tournaments, which is disheartening.
“But I know that we’ll get back on our feet. We’ve got a strong board that’s forward-minded thinking and we’ll definitely get back and be better for it in the future,” McCallum said.
McCallum is not worried about finding money to pay for the repairs that will be needed.
“The Province has been there from the start. They’ve made some good announcements that they’re going to be there for small businesses and not-for-profit businesses. I’m not really worried about that,” he said.
“We’ve got a great MLA in Dauphin. He’ll do everything in his power to make sure that his region is taken care of and I think Wab (Kinew, Manitoba Premier) feels the same way.”
At this point it’s just a matter of waiting for the water to recede.
McCallum appreciates the messages of support GPCC has received.
“All the messages of support, not only to our members, but how passionate people are about Gilbert Plains Country Club, that’s probably the motivation to keep you going,” he said.
The Dauphin Lake Golf Club was also hit with flooding, with most of the course being under water at one point, according to general manager and head professional Shawn Woods.
“Except for some areas. But it’s now subsided. But the lake is up, so who knows,” he said.
DLGC remains closed and conditions will be reassessed Wednesday morning after Sunday’s rainfall.
“It’s very wet. We’ve been pumping nonstop for four days and trying to clean things up. But the golf course and clubhouse has been closed, too. We had water in the clubhouse. So we’ve got lots to do,” Woods said.
Woods hopes to open Monday, but the clubhouse will likely remain closed indefinitely.
The driving range will also be closed and the tournaments scheduled for this weekend were cancelled, however, the pro shop will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday.

They expected to play close to home when the 11U Tier 3 provincials were to hit the diamonds in Grandview this past weekend.
But the flooding last week resulted in the provincial tournament being moved to Portage and the 11U Dauphin Fusion Credit Union team made the best of it, coming home with a silver medal.
Dauphin opened the nine-team tournament with a 6-2 win over Grosse Isle, Friday, and followed that up with a 15-3 win over Tri-Community.
On Saturday, Dauphin dropped a 10-5 decision to Portage, but rebounded to beat Cartwright/Baldur, 14-4.
This placed Fusion in second place and into the semifinals, where a 4-3 victory over Neepawa put them in the final, where they faced Portage once again.
The host team clinched the provincial gold medal with a 12-2 triumph, going undefeated at 5-0.
Fusion coach Mike Winters noted two of their games ended early due to the mercy rule, where a game ends if a team is ahead by 10 runs after five innings.
“So we were able to save pitchers for the next game because of it,” he said.
Teams had to battle hot weather throughout the tournament.
Winters noted the temperature for Sunday’s semifinal was 34C with the humidex, while the final was about 38C.
Winters was impressed with how the players came together as a team throughout the tournament.
“Teamwork and sportsmanship was unbelievable. My coaches, who coached along side me were unbelievable. All around it was amazing. I’m very proud of my team,” he said, adding Barret Procyshyn was a co-coach.
Knowing Portage had a strong team, Fusion treated the semifinal against Neepawa as its championship game.
“We wanted to guarantee we got the silver medal. The gold medal would have been great for Dauphin and the Parkland, but we knew two games on Sunday was hard to win,” Winters said.
“Portage, they finished first in their round-robin, so they got a bye to the finals. They didn’t have to play in the morning, which was to their benefit. It’s just the way it is.”
Winters credited Portage for hosting the tournament at the last minute, noting they had just a couple of days to prepare for it.
“It’s unfortunate Grandview couldn’t do it. They did so much work, so much energy and time into it and they reached out to our team for us to bring everything out there for Portage,” he said.
“The parents were amazing in Grandview and volunteers. We had a lot of people here in Dauphin, too, who were amazing and helped our team out, donated stuff to us.”
Fusion Credit Union sponsored the team, while Canadian Tire donated some swag for the Grandview event and for the players, as well.
Fusion called up three players and a coach from Roblin and one player from Ste. Rose to join the team for provincials. Winters wishes to thank them for their efforts.
“They helped us a lot. It was great,” Winters said, adding it feels great to be a provincial silver medalist.
“I don’t even remember the last time Dauphin has had it. It’s been a while. And I’m very proud of them. It feels amazing. Beyond words.”

Last week’s flooding in the Parkland resulted in numerous washouts to roads and bridges within the region.
The bridge over the Wilson River on Hwy. 5 between Dauphin and Gilbert Plains was damaged in the flooding, but was quickly repaired thanks to Reit-Syd Equipment Ltd. of Dauphin and Stirling Aggregates.
Manitoba Infrastructure was quick to turn to Reit-Syd to get the repairs done, providing direction on how it may be done.
The east side of the highway connecting the bridge dropped because the floodwater compromised the bank. Crews from Reit-Syd and Stirling were able to re-open the highway by reshaping the bank and building the road back up.
Reit-Syd general manager Don Tarrant said they were called to Ste. Rose, June 30, at about 7 p.m.
“So we moved a couple of gravel trucks down there, because we were going to close that ring dike around the community,” he said.
“Then we got a second call about the bridge getting washed out on the east end. So we moved down there about 10 o’clock on June 30.”
That night, rock from Grandview was hauled in, because the end was washing out, undermining the end of the bridge.
“They got rock at 11 o’clock at night and they placed rock until 9:30 in the morning. So they got that filled full of rock as best they could and it pushed the water under the bridge where it would normally go,” Tarrant said.
Other equipment was moved in and work began again Thursday morning and continued until about 11 p.m.
“And what they did was, they jackhammered off the end of the bridge apron and below that was where it was eroded. And then they filled that void below, just pound it full of rock and just jackhammered and pounded that rock in there for a really good base,” Tarrant explained.
“And then they put geo cloth in on top of the rock and then put on top of that finished gravel up to road level. And then, of course, after that they had to remove all the trailhead they had excavated out, concrete and asphalt. So by 11:30 last night, that bridge was opened up.”
Two staff members initially began working on the project, June 30. Five staff worked on the site, Thursday.
The cost to repair the bridge has yet to be determined.
“Honestly, I think they just marked down their hours when they started and when they finish. Then Manitoba Infrastructure will audit those hours and then pay us accordingly,” Tarrant said.

The Gilbert Plains Country Club is set to host two Golf Manitoba tournaments this week, with close to 100 golfers from across the province taking part.
The Diamond Athletic Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship and Diamond Athletic Ladies Amateur will take place, July 1 to 3, at GPCC.
Scott McCallum, GPCC general manager and golf professional, said the tournaments coming to Gilbert Plains came about after the facility hosted the golf event during the 2024 Manitoba Summer Games.
“I think they were quite impressed with the product, so they wanted to bring another event out here,” he said, adding champiosnhip tournaments were confirmed in December.
Hosting the events will be great advertising for the golf club.
“Obviously, its the recognition to have probably 100 of the better golfers in the province come out to play your golf course and then, hopefully, go back and tell their friends what a great facility we have. It’s really good that way,” McCallum said.
The board and staff, McCallum said, have been working hard to get the course in the best shape possible.
“I can’t say enough about the grounds crew and what they’ve done to the golf course to prepare for this event. It’s always exciting times,” he said, adding the course is in fantastic shape.
“We’re obviously watching the weather pretty closely, praying that we dodge some of the big cells that are coming. But it will be in good shape,” he said.
The grounds crew paid special attention to some of the smaller details, such as getting the greens to a certain speed.
“All those types of things are things that you pay close attention to,” McCallum said.
A number of local golfers will be taking part in the men’s tournament, while Swan River’s Crystal Zamzow will be one of the favourites to win the ladies event.
There is an expectation that McCallum and his staff have for the golf course, but they don’t really feel any added pressure in hosting the provincial tournaments.
“Pressure is just what we put on ourselves. But we want our golf course to showcase well,” he said.
“I’m just looking forward to a good week.”
Early Tuesday afternoon, Golf Manitoba announced the cancellation of both tournaments due to severe rainfall, widespread overland flooding, and the forecast for additional significant precipitation. Several roads between Neepawa and Gilbert Plains have been impacted by flooding, and the Rural Municipality of Gilbert Plains has declared a State of Emergency.
Any decisions and potential rescheduling of the championships, will be communicated as soon as they are finalized.

Although Sunday’s headline show was shutdown early due to an emergency weather alert, it was another successful Dauphin’s Countryfest and president Duane McMaster couldn’t be happier.
McMaster said this year’s ticket sales were stronger than last year, although the final numbers have yet to be tabulated.
“More than twice as many tickets were sold this year than last year. So we’re happy with ticket sales,” he said.
“I’ll never say I’m totally satisfied with ticket sales. Unless I don’t have any left to sell, I’m not totally satisfied.”
McMaster was pleased with how the weekend had gone heading into Sunday’s performances, noting there were few problems.
“Everything has gone smoothly at the gates. What problems we have had have been relatively minor and dealt with efficiently by the staff and the volunteers,” he said.
The entertainment, McMaster added, was fantastic, noting there have been a lot of positive comments about the shows.
Although he doesn’t know the numbers, McMaster was impressed with the crowds in the amphitheater, noting the stands were close to, or at capacity, both Friday and Saturday.
“That was a great crowd (Saturday) night. And it was so great to see everybody out there having a great time. I posted online, I said it’s been a few years since I’ve seen the stands looking like that. It was really great to see it back like that,” he said.
“Countryfest has been around for an awful long time and we just love having a huge crowd, people here enjoying what we work every year so hard to present to them.”
New to Countryfest this year were metal detectors at the entrances, which were part of a partnership with Manitoba Provincial Exhibition.
“Obviously, we can’t afford them on our own, so we did make an annual arrangement to do that, again try and promote safety in our venue. Make sure people aren’t bringing in stuff that shouldn’t be present in the area,” McMaster said.
Along with a new and larger VIP tent, Countryfest also had new vendors and activities including a poker derby, miniature golf and a horse shoe pit.
McMaster noted there were also the old standard favourites, such as helicopter rides, a flip cup competition and perogy eating contest.
“Everything has been really good. I always strive to offer a different and better experience to our patrons from year to year,” he said.
With rain forecast for Saturday, the schedule for the main stage was adjusted with performers hitting the stage earlier than advertised.
“That was pretty challenging. I’m not really heavily involved in the production side of it. But going in and working with Rob and Shelley (Waloschuk) and the production team a little bit when we tried to adjust the schedule, there’s an awful lot of moving parts and that was quite a challenge,” he said.
“It would have been nice if we didn’t have to make that change, but we managed to pull it off and everything worked out. We got everything done.”
McMaster feels they lucked out, because rain was forecast for Saturday and Sunday, but it held off until Sunday’s final main stage show.
“It’s been a really good year. (Saturday) night’s entertainment was just phenomenal. I’m sure (Sunday) is going to be fantastic and Friday night was great,” he said.
“I believe that pyro and everything with Jelly Roll’s show, that was pretty much next level. We may have raised the bar at Countryfest. It’s going to be hard to top that one.”
One of Countryfest’s goals has always been to promote local Manitoba artists. That was the case when Dauphin’s The Wet Towels was the first band to perform at Thursday’s kick off party.
“I loved that. We’ve always tried to develop and promote local music, Manitoba music. We used to have the talent contest years ago. We still do the Battle of the Bands up here. I think last year we had a Battle of the Bands in Winnipeg for a chance to play up here,” McMaster said, noting local bands The Wet Towels, Revolving Doors and Kate’s Outlaw, which has two albums out and made their main stage debut last year, all performed at this year’s Countryfest.
McMaster said it is sometimes a struggle to book performers, especially big name acts, because they are often in such big demand.
“It’s quite something for us to be able to say, ‘performing for the first time at Countryfest.’ That’s a bit of an oddity for us,” he said.
McMaster was most impressed with the concert experience provided by Saturday headliner Jelly Roll.
“He’s a pretty amazing individual. Watching that and seeing how he interacted with the crowd and the crowd interacted with him was pretty special. I think it was pretty cool to be there for that,” he said, adding it was a special moment when Jelly Roll recognized a fan for celebrating 7,162 days of sobriety.
After being invited for a number of years, Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew and his wife Lisa, who used to live and practice medicine in Dauphin, attended this year’s event.
After his show, Jelly Roll threw his hat into the crowd. Kinew was the first to get to it and he immediately gave it to a young fan sitting in the front row, bringing the youngster to tears.
“That was really cool. It was nice to see them here and just enjoying the show and being regular people. Out here to have a good time like the rest of us and enjoy some good country music,” McMaster said.
With the challenge to book entertainers, planning for next year began two months ago.
“You have to start planning that far in advance, because there are already people who are booked for that weekend. When you get to the bigger names, there’s a lot of demand for them,” McMaster said.

For two decades, Credit Union Place (CUP) has been a cornerstone of recreation, activity and community connection in the Parkland region.
Fusion Credit Union (FCU), a sponsor since inception in 2006, is proud to continue its commitment with a new 10-year sponsorship agreement as the exclusive naming partner of the facility.
“Facilities like Credit Union Place play an important role in the vitality of our communities,” Darwin Johns, CEO at FCU, said in a press release.
“We’re incredibly proud to have supported this facility since day one and are excited to continue that partnership for the next decade.”
Since its inception, Dauphin’s CUP, managed by Dauphin Recreation Services (DRS), has become a gathering place for sports, major events and activities that contribute to healthy, vibrant communities.
“Partnering with local organizations such as Dauphin Recreation Services aligns closely with Fusion’s co-operative values and commitment to helping communities remain active, connected and economically strong,” said Johns.
“Credit Union Place brings people together, supports active lifestyles and creates opportunities for connection and community pride.”
Beyond recreation, Credit Union Place supports the regional economy by hosting major events and attractions that bring visitors to the area.
“When communities have spaces that bring people together, the impact reaches far beyond the four walls of the building,” said Johns.
“These facilities create economic activity, support local businesses and help foster the kind of vibrant, connected communities we’re proud to serve and live in.”
The long-standing partnership between DRS and FCU symbolizes the power of collaboration to create lasting impact in our communities.
“Investing in Credit Union Place is an investment in the future of our communities,” said Johns.
“When organizations come together with purpose, they create opportunities that shape brighter futures for everyone.”
“We are incredibly grateful to have Fusion Credit Union returning as our naming sponsor for the next 10 years,” said DRS assistant general manager Lindsey Kyle.
“There is no better symbol of community than Credit Union Place, a central hub that brings together residents from across our region for recreation, connection, and events.
“Support from partners like Fusion is what allows us to continue offering a wide range of recreation opportunities and community events. We are proud to move forward together and look forward to building on this strong partnership for years to come.”