By Derek Holtom /

The temperatures are cooling, but the action is only getting hotter as the Manitoba Junior Hockey League approaches the midway point of the season. Let’s take a look at what’s going on with each team.

Winnipeg South Blues
The Blues were a little blue about their netminder situation in mid November, so they went out and acquired 18-year-old goaltender Alex Micalef from the Trenton Golden Hawks of the OJHL for
future considerations.
Micalef started the year with the Dauphin Kings before being shipped out.
His first start was not one the Blues organization will want to remember, as the home team jumped out to a commanding 6-0 lead after 20 minutes, only to fall 9-7.
The Blues also had a bit of a quirky statistic after 26 games. They were four games over .500, but had scored nine fewer goals then they had allowed.

Winnipeg Saints
While the Winnipeg Saints are busy trying to hold onto first place in the Addison Division, they’re not too busy to give back to the community.
For the second straight year, members of the Saints plan to serve up meals at a Boston Pizza location in Winnipeg to raise money for the Kidney Foundation of Canada.
The Saints will be on hand on Nov. 30, along with local radio personalities, to help serve meals to hungry customers.
And every tip they receive will go towards the Kidney Foundation of Canada.
On the ice, the Saints have managed to hold onto top spot in the division despite only having the fourth-best penalty-kill, the seventh-best power-play, and one line accounting for almost 50 per cent of their goal scoring.
That said, when Blake Chartier, Cole Pruden and Craig Simchuk are hot, they give the Saints an excellent chance to win.

Winkler Flyers
The early doldrums the Flyers suffered through early in the season might be over, as the team got off to a hot start in November, winning four straight games.
And while the Flyers remain stuck in fourth place in the division, they were only six points out of first place. A few divisional wins could turn the Addison into a four-way race for top spot.
The Flyers also have their eyes set on the annual CJHL Top Prospects Game, which they will host Dec. 7-9.
Plenty of top talent from across Canada, along with professional and college scouts, will be on hand for the three-day event.
It stands to be a busy couple of weeks for the Flyers to start the month of December. From preparing for the Dec. 1 roster cut down date, to hosting a national event, the Flyers, and the community of Winkler, will be extremely focused on hockey.

Steinbach Pistons
Yes, they’re in last place overall in the MJHL. But in late November, they were already one win away from their win total from last season, and were only a point back of the Waywayseecappo Wolverines.
There are other bright spots as well for the Pistons.
Eric Coulombe was the top-scoring rookie in the MJHL in mid November, with 26 points in 28 games.
As well, the Pistons have several players who might attract interest from other teams looking to upgrade their talent at the trade deadline. Ryan Griffiths has been stellar for the Pistons since he was dealt to the relocated franchise, earning 30 points in his first 28 games. Might he attract some attention at the deadline, while also offering the Pistons a chance to improve for next year by giving Coulombe some younger talent to play with?

Selkirk Steelers
How tight is it in the Addison Division? In the third week of November, two points separated the top three teams.
The Steelers were sandwiched in between the division-leading Saints and ahead of the Winnipeg South Blues. It could be a three-way race for top spot in the Addison Division this year.
The Steelers’ Taylor Dickin was doing his part to help his team get back on top, scoring 11 points in the first week of November to earn player-of-the-week honours. His outburst made him the top scorer in the MJHL who isn’t a member of the Dauphin Kings.
Dickin has helped the Steelers forge the most potent offence in the Addison Division, as the team is scoring around four goals per game.

Dauphin Kings
It’s been more of the same for the Dauphin Kings, who only had three regulation losses after their first 28 games. In late November, they were ranked No. 5 in the country, the only MJHL team to be ranked on the CJHL Weekly Top 20.
Still, the RBC hosts continue to tinker with their lineup as they search for the ideal roster to deliver their franchise a national championship. They recently shipped out 20 years olds Allias Kalinsky (to the Steinbach Pistons) and Jacob Verheyden (to the Winnipeg Saints) for future considerations, and added David Lawrence and future considerations from the Winkler Flyers for 19-year-old defenceman Colin Paull.
Despite the many changes they have made, the Kings continue to lean on their No. 1 line of Shane Luke, Ryan Dreger and Bryce Lamb, the top three scorers in the MJHL this year. The trio had a combined 146 points in 28 games this year.

Swan Valley Stampeders
The Stampeders have been scoring in bunches this year, but also have been allowing more goals than they were comfortable with. So the team pulled off a series of deals which sent former netmidner Josh Hohn and former No. 1 Chris Ward out of town while bringing in Caden Unger and Charlie Pogue.
The Stampeders responded by going on a 5-0-1-0 run, vaulting them from fourth to second place in the tight Sher-Wood Division.
Unger’s numbers were especially impressive after his first four starts – a .98 GAA and a .966 save percentage with one shutout.
The recent hot streak also included a breakout week for Chris Reimer, who scored 12 points in four games.
The Stampeders also welcomed back Ryan Marshall after he helped Canada West win a silver medal at the World Junior A Hockey Challenge in Summerside, P.E.I. Other MJHL players who took part in that event include Brendan O’Donnell and Peter Stoykewych of Winnipeg South Blues, as well as Dustin Pearson of OCN Blizzard.
Waywayseecappo Wolverines head coach and general manager Barry Butler was also an assistant coach on that team, while OCN assistant coach Jomar Cruz did video work for Canada West.

Neepawa Natives
While most teams were nearing the 30-game mark in mid November, the Neepawa Natives were stuck on 21 games played.
That’s because they had to postpone one game with the Winkler Flyers after they were hit by the flu, and saw another game against the Waywayseecappo Wolverines put off after that franchise was crippled with a massive outbreak of the flu.
While dealing with a light schedule, the Natives also recently shook up their lineup, completing a massive multi-player deal. Neepawa traded 18-year-old forward Matt Luongo, 19-year-old defenceman Dylan Towns and 20-year-old forward Anthony Collins to the Estevan Bruins of the SJHL for 20-year-old forward Jordan Lane, 19-year old-defenceman Mike Dopko and 18-year-old forward Calvin Cairns. Lane previously played in the MJHL with the Dauphin Kings.

Waywayseecappo Wolverines
Speaking of the Wolverines, they were hit extremely hard by the flu in November, and concerns about H1N1 forced the MJHL to postpone five of their games.
Butler said he has never seen a situation like this in all his years of coaching. And though there was no confirmation the cases had anything to do with the H1N1 strain, no one was taking any chances.
“We’re carefully monitoring the flu situation and based on medical reports from team officials, basing our decisions to either go on with a game, or postpone,” explained MJHL Commissioner Kim Davis. “The safety of our players, team officials and fans is paramount. We will not compromise our policies.”
The flu bug is just the latest challenge for the young Wolverines team this year. The Wolverines scored a league-low 44 goals through 23 games, an average of only 1.91 goals per game.

OCN Blizzard
Expectations were high for the OCN Blizzard this season, but through half the season the Blizzard were only a game better than .500.
The most northern team in the MJHL has been inconsistent of late. Six days after beating the league-leading Dauphin Kings 5-1, the Blizzard dropped an overtime decision to the basement-dwelling Steinbach Pistons.
They’ve also had to play without their top scorer, Zeanan Ziemer, for four games this year, and that has hurt them.
Still, the Blizzard are getting production from other sources. Seven players already had 20 or more points after 30 games, giving them plenty of depth in that department.
They also added 18-year-old forward Denis Restoule from the SJHL’s Melfort Mustangs for 20-year-old forward Nick Cooling. Restoule appears to be fitting in well in OCN, basically scoring a point a game for his new team.

Portage Terriers
Not many teams six games over .500 find themselves in fourth place, but that was the situation for the Portage Terriers heading into the third weekend of November.
The Terriers had the latest start of any team in the MJHL this year, but they’ve been winning plenty of those games in hand, and if they continue that trend, they’ll end up in a strong position to finish second in the division.
Tyler Moore has become the player the Terriers count on this year, with 31 points in 24 games.
The Terriers also learned one of their players will be spending the holidays in Ontario playing for Team West. Defenceman Rene Hunter was one of five MJHL players chosen to play in the World Under 17 Hockey Challenge in Timmins, Ont., Dec. 29 to Jan. 4. Other players named to the team include Swan Valley defenceman Evan Morden, forward Jens Meilleur from the Waywayseecappo Wolverines, as well as a pair of forwards from the Winnipeg South Blues – Colin Mospanchuk and Zachery Franko.