It was a battle between the top two teams in the MJHL, and after a chippy, scrappy, fast-paced, and entertaining game, it was the Steinbach Pistons coming out on top, 5-3, over the Selkirk Steelers on Saturday night. First period In the opening minutes, it was the Steelers that came out on their toes. Having played the night before, it took the Pistons a few shifts to find their rhythm, and when they did, they pushed back, carrying the play for stretches while never really being in much trouble. Chris Quizi was given the start in goal and came up with some timely saves, especially early, allowing his team the opportunity to work themselves into the game. The penalty kill was a big theme throughout the night for Steinbach, and it was a kill late in the first that produced the first goal of the contest. Ryan McDonald, playing in his second game of the year, took a penalty for slashing. The penalty kill units stepped up and managed to keep the league's best power play from getting much of anything. As the Pistons cleared the zone for a final time, McDonald was sprung from the penalty box, went in on the forecheck. The Steelers' goalie mishandled the puck, allowing McDonald to spin and fire home his second goal of the season into a wide-open net. The 1-0 goal was unassisted, and it was the only goal in the period. Second period Early in the second, just after Steinbach killed a penalty they had picked up right at the end of the first period, it was the Steelers that capitalized, knotting the game 1-1. Just over two minutes later, and while on a power play of their own, the Pistons would restore their lead. Rory Gilmour walked in from the blueline, showcased his elite patience, earning himself some time and space, then firing home his third of the season, putting the Pistons up 2-1. Cole Cairns and Evan Gradt picked up the assists. Just a few minutes later, Charlie Velner bullied his way toward the Steelers' net, and while his first shot was blocked, he followed it up and muscled a shot through the netminder, and celebrated his first MJHL goal. Gradt managed to collect his second point of the night on the marker that gave Steinbach a 3-1 lead. Refusing to go away quietly, the Steelers scored to cut the lead to 3-2 heading into the final period. Third period In the early stages of the third, as Selkirk tried to break out of their zone, Cairns raced up ice, crashing into the Steeler forward, forcing him to turn the puck over to Luke Bogart in the neutral zone. Bogart fired a pass up to McDonald, who then hit a streaking Cairns, who uncorked a beautiful, perfect wrister, giving Steinbach a 4-2 lead. For Cairns, it was his first goal of the season. Luc Degagne got into the scoring act, as the 19-year-old drove to the net and cashed in off a Grady Hoffman rebound, extending the Pistons' lead to 5-2. Brett Kaiser, who got the play started in the neutral zone, picked up the secondary assist. Degagne's first of the year was assisted by Hoffman, who was in his first game after returning to Steinbach earlier in the week. Selkirk scored to make it 5-3, but that would be as close as they would get, as they suffered their first loss of the season. Game notes Quizi picked up the victory, making 25 saves, according to the shot counter in Selkirk, but many in attendance believed he had more than the 28 recorded shots. Either way, he improved his record to 6-0 on the season. A big part of the game for Steinbach was the penalty kill, which was called into action seven times, including a shortened 5-on-3 against, but stood tall, going a very impressive 6-7. The power play clicked once, going 1-4. Up next The Pistons will enjoy Thanksgiving weekend and then prepare to head to Portage on Wednesday.