ByTy Dilello
The Niverville Nighthawks got back in the win column in style on Friday night at the CRRC with a convincing 7–2 trouncing of the Winnipeg Blues. With the win, the Nighthawks stay in second place in the MJHL’s East Division with a record of 3–1–0.
The Nighthawks put on a great performance for the home crowd, dominating throughout the entire game and outshooting their opposition by a 37–15 margin.
The Nighthawks spread the offence around. Multiple lines got in on the scoring action.
Matthew Bertolin, a 16-year-old rookie, led the charge for Niverville with a pair of goals. The other tallies came from Lane Apperley, Bryce Warkentine, Luke Mackenzie, Dawson Zeller, and Aiden Corbett.
Niverville’s Raiden LeGall stopped 13 shots in goal for the win.
“We did what we needed to do to play to our strengths,” says Nighthawks head coach Dwight Hirst. “And our strengths are that we want to play fast and heavy on teams. I was very happy that we rebounded with a better compete level without the puck, and we did a better job retrieving pucks than we did in our loss on Tuesday.”
Speaking to how the Nighthawks can play consistently this year, Hirst keys in on focusing on the team’s strengths.
“Recognizing what our success comes from and playing to those strengths,” he says. “So once we realize that, we want to stick to it consistently night in and night out.”
The Nighthawks are back in action with a home game on Sunday, September 29 against the Swan Valley Stampeders. The puck drops 3:00 p.m.