The defending Manitoba Junior Hockey League champion Steinbach Pistons play their home opener tonight (7 p.m.)  when they meet the Portage Terriers at HyLife Centre in La Broquerie. The Pistons recorded a pair of road wins to start the 2023-24 season. Steinbach defeated the Virden Oil Capitals 4-3 and the Selkirk Steelers 3-2 last weekend. The Pistons moved operations to La Broquerie earlier this month and will play home games at the HyLife Centre this season as the hockey team awaits the completion of the Southeast Events Centre in Steinbach.


Roger McQueen scored twice and Ethan Eskit made 24 saves as the Brandon Wheat Kings defeated the Prince Albert Raiders 4-3 at Westoba Place. Nolan Flamand and Carter Klippenstein also scored for the Wheat Kings who have two wins and an overtime loss to start the 2023-24 Western Hockey League season. Brandon's next game is Friday against the Warriors in Moose Jaw. 


The Winnipeg Jets dropped a 3-2 decision to Calgary at Canada Life Centre. Flames forward Andrew Mangiapane scored the only goal of the shootout. Jansen Harkins and Parker Ford scored in regulation for the Jets. Connor Hellebuyck and Oskari Salminen combined to make 31 saves in net for Winnipeg, The Jets play their fourth of six pre-season games Friday in Ottawa against the Senators. 


Kerri Einarson, Kaitlyn Lawes, Reid Carruthers and Ryan Wiebe are into the Elite 8 after winning their openers Wednesday at the 2023 PointsBet Invitational in Oakville, Ontario. Einarson defeated Josie Zimmerman of the University of Alberta-Augustana in Camrose 15-3; Lawes downed Abby Marks of Edmonton 11-5; Carruthers beat Canadian Under-21 champion Johnson Tao of Edmonton 10-3 and Wiebe knocked off John Epping of Toronto 8-5. Jennifer Jones and Matt Dunstone play their Sweep 16 openers today. Jones will meet Myla Plett of Sherwood Park and Dunstone will take on Sam Mooibroek of Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo.


Golf Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee have announced Canada’s golf team nominated to compete at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games. The Team Canada golf team for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games is Selena Costabile (Thornhill, Ont.), Myles Creighton (Digby, N.S.), Étienne Papineau (St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Que.) and Alena Sharp (Hamilton, Ont.). The four athletes qualified for Team Canada based on their standing through their respective World Golf Ranking, with considerations for 2023 performance as well competition schedules on the global golf calendar. Santiago 2023 will mark the Pan American Games debut for all four athletes. Sharp, a two-time Olympian (Rio 2016 & Tokyo 2020) and long-time LPGA Tour member, recently made her 18th appearance at the CPKC Women’s Open where she finished tied for 36th. Sharp won the 2023 ORORO PGA Women’s Championship of Canada and is ranked 12th on the 2023 Epson Tour points list in a season that features a victory and four other top-10 finishes. Costabile, a member of Golf Canada’s national team, currently sits 65th on the 2023 Epson Tour points list where she has three top-10 finishes. The 25-year-old turned professional in 2018 and will be competing in a major multi-sport Games for the first time ever. Creighton, 27, turned professional in 2018 and will go into Chile riding a stellar 2023 season on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica with nine cuts made in 12 events played, including a win, two third-place finishes, and five top-10s overall. A member of Golf Canada’s national team program, Creighton finished second on the PGA TOUR Latinoamérica ranking to earn conditional 2024 Korn Ferry Tour membership. He also made the cut in three of five events played on PGA TOUR Canada, including two top-10 finishes. Papineau, 27, who turned professional in 2022, is coming off a great season on PGA TOUR Canada that included a victory, five top-10 finishes, and 16 of 21 event cuts made. The National Team member finished fourth on PGA TOUR Canada’s Fortinet Cup standings to earn conditional status on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour. Golf joined the Pan American Games program at Toronto 2015. At Lima 2019, Team Canada won its first and only Pan Am Games medal in golf -- a bronze – by Austin Connelly, Mary Parsons, Joey Savoie and Brigitte Thibeault in the mixed team event. At Santiago 2023, golf will have individual events only.

pistons_2023The Pistons won their season opener 4-3 over the Oil Capitals last Friday (photo courtesy Brandi Crowe)

The Steinbach Pistons are 2-0 heading into their home opener tonight against the Portage Terriers. Head coach Paul Dyck will join Clayton Dreger on the Pistons Report which airs Thursdays at 5:15 p.m. on AM 1250 Radio.