It was a special weekend as thirteen dads made the trip with the Steinbach Pistons and they watched their boys come away with wins over the Swan Valley Stampeders and the Dauphin Kings.

Playoff Preview?

On Friday night, the Pistons locked horns with the Stampeders in what could be a preview of the opening round of the MJHL playoffs and it was the Pistons that came out with a 5-1 win.

After a long day of travel, the Pistons took a little time to find their legs, but when they did, they began to generate chances. 

The opening goal came just after the midway point of the period when Brady Tatro cashed in for his 17th of the year giving the Pistons a 1-0 lead. Easton Bennett and Declan Graham were given the assists.

Just over two minutes later, Will Koop sniped a perfect shot off a beautiful backhanded pass from Riese Gaber to make it 2-0 Steinbach. Mark Wilson also had an assist on the goal.

In the second, a hardworking shift from Jack Johnson, Koop and Gaber hemmed the Stamps in their own end, kept the puck down low and eventually worked it out front where Drew Worrad notched his 25th of the year from Johnson to make it 3-0.

Gaber collected his second point of the night after he picked off a Stampeders clearing attempt and buried a backhander to make it 4-0.

Matthew Thiessen was solid as Swan forced turnovers throughout the first and second period and the Stamps were finally rewarded as a scramble play in the crease eventually found it's way over the line, breaking the shutout bid, 4-1. 

The Pistons responded as Austin Heidemann set up Wilson perfectly for a wide open net and Wilson buried his 5th of the year to make it 5-1. Bradley Schoonbaert picked up a helper on the final goal of the game.

Thiessen finished the night with 32 saves. Steinbach didn't get a single power play and was only shorthanded once finishing 1-1.

Every player in the game for both teams registered at least one shot on goal. Every Pistons player had at least two. Final shots were 42-33 Steinbach.

Saturday Night Return

Riese Gaber made his return to Dauphin for the first time since being traded earlier in the year and his teammates made sure it was a special night coming away with a 4-1 win. 

The Pistons came out firing and controlled most of the play in the opening 20 minutes. Despite the shots being 27-6 in the opening 20 minutes, the Pistons only found the back of the net once when Mark Taraschuk fired a shot from the point that deflected past the Dauphin netminder to give Steinbach a 1-0 lead. Brady Tatro and Luke Bellerose had the assists on the goal.

In the second, the Pistons continued to fire everything towards the net putting up another 19 shots but again, only scored once. Bradley Schoonbaert, who was tripped earlier in the play with no call, drove towards the net late and untouched, picked off a clearing attempt and buried it top shelf to make it 2-0.

The Kings did get on the board late in the second as they converted on a power play to make it 2-1.

In the third, Tatro dumped the puck in and went hard in on the forecheck pinning a couple of Kings defenders below the goal line. Tatro found the loose puck and hit Bellerose in front and he chipped in his 2nd goal of the year to make it 3-1.

Tanner Mole, who had a very strong weekend, picked up his 6th of the year as he hit the open net to make it 4-1. Tyson McConnell had the only assist on the final goal.

Matt Radomsky was solid as he made 21 saves on the night, including a massive save in the third while the Pistons were up 2-1. The power play went 0-1 while the penalty kill was 5-6. 

Father's Trip

It was a special weekend as many of the player's dads made the trip to spend the weekend sharing stories, laughing and watching hockey.

The players and dads shared stories at a team breakfast Saturday morning, had moments and laughs after the games and brought everyone a little closer together. 

It's an event that Paul Dyck knows is very special for everyone, dads, players and all throughout the organization. "It's just a great weekend. It's cool to see them come out and get close. Our guys are close and the dads are too now. It's a special time for the families to share in the weekend."

Steve Anderson, the father of former Piston Tyler Anderson, played a key part in setting up the weekend. "Paul (Dyck) always says, once a Piston always a Piston, and that works for the families too. It's great to have all the dads come from all over and watch the boys play well."

Bradley Schoonbaert Sr. reflects similar sentiments. "The boys have become a family, the organization has become family and now a bunch of the dads have become that way too. It's something that won't ever be forgotten."

Afternoon Game With A Twist

The Pistons host the Winkler Flyers on Monday afternoon with the puck drop at 2:30 pm. After the game, the Pistons will host a family skate where kids can come out on the ice and skate with their favourite Steinbach Pistons players.

Steinbach heads back out on the road Wednesday to take on the Winnipeg Blues.