The Steinbach Pistons and Portage Terriers wrote another bruising chapter in their long-standing rivalry, combining for 272 penalty minutes to go along with eight goals, seven of which belonged to the victorious Pistons, who earned a 7-1 victory. First period Steinbach came out very strong in the opening period, controlling much of the play and earning themselves several quality opportunities, but they couldn't find the back of the net. A glorious opportunity to open the scoring came when the Pistons earned a 5-on-3 power play chance, but despite having over a minute of the two-man advantage, they couldn't capitalize. Another power play late in the period didn't produce the opening goal, however, the Terriers, boosted by their strong penalty kills in the period, managed to score with only seconds remaining in the first period, staking claim to a 1-0 lead. Despite owning most of the puck, offensive zone time, and shots on goal, 14-5, it was Steinbach that trailed 1-0 after the first. Second period After killing off a penalty of their own in the opening minutes of the frame, the Pistons kept working and were rewarded with an offensive outburst. Liam Doyle got the scoring party started as the standout defender joined a rush moving up the ice, took a pass from Evan Gradt and wired home his third of the season. Zhenya Miles started the play in his own zone and was given credit for the secondary assist. Later in the period, the Pistons finally capitalized while on a power play. Rory Gilmour showcased his elite edgework and patience, creating space for himself near the top of the offensive zone. While Gilmour worked his magic, the Terriers were focused on him, forgetting about Brody Green, who snuck toward the net, took a beautiful pass from Gilmour and scored his sixth of the season. Evan Kabel picked up a secondary assist on the 2-1 goal. There would be no assists on the 3-1 goal, as it was all Eric Han, with a little help from Luc Degagne. With Portage trying to regroup in their defensive zone, Han and Degagne forced the Terriers into a mistake, and Han capitalized as he walked in and wired home a beautiful shot, ringing off the crossbar and in for his second of the season. Not done yet, the Pistons once again converted on a power play with all five players touching the puck before the goal. Jack Greenwell started it off by winning the faceoff back to Miles, who dished off to Brett Kaiser near the top of the circle. Kaiser sent a pass over to Doyle, who directed a puck on goal for Grady Hoffman, and as Hoffman's attempt was stopped, Greenwell was there to pounce on the loose puck, scoring to make it a 4-1 game. For Greenwell, it was his 9th of the season, giving him sole possession of the MJHL goalscoring lead. Temperatures started to rise as the Terriers' frustration level continued to boil, eventually resulting in several penalties. All that would be a precursor for what was to come. Third period It was a low event start to the third period, with Steinbach doing a good job keeping control, keeping the Terriers from getting anything going or gaining any momentum. In the second half of the period, a delayed penalty to Portage allowed the Pistons to slice through their defensive structure, thanks to some good hard work by Will Picklyk, who used his speed to win a footrace, knock a pass to Ryan McDonald, who then hit a streaking Green who scored his second of the game and 7th of the season, bringing the score to 5-1. Control is lost Portage called a timeout, and it was after that break that things came unglued. A double-minor for spearing was called on Portage. That player made his way to the penalty box eventually, after unsuccessfully attempting to goad a Piston into taking a penalty, and then giving the referee an earful. Conversations continued between the teams as they moved toward their respective benches. The whole thing started when a Terrier grabbed the cage of a Pistons player, igniting a wrestling match which involved many players from both sides. While the officials tried to get things under control, a Terrier forward went after a Piston and ended up on the Steinbach bench, exchanging punches with Brett Kaiser. As that was going on, a Terrier left the bench and joined in the pile, causing Doyle to drop his mitts and go at it with him briefly, before the officials were able to get between the two. Seconds after that fight was broken up, Rory Gilmour dropped his gloves and went at it with a Portage defender, having a spirited tilt. Zhenya Miles and a Portage forward then started swinging hands, but with gloves on, so as not to be considered a fight. Finally, the officials were able to get things calm, and they spent the next several minutes trying to make sense of what had just happened. Both teams were given major penalties for fighting, ten-minute misconducts, and several players were told to hit the showers. Cooler heads prevail With most of the troublemakers out of the game, tempers may have cooled, but the Pistons' sticks did not. Logan Mehl scored on the power play that was being called before the brawl, giving Steinbach their third power play goal of the game. Mehl's third of the year was assisted by Degagne and Greenwell, putting Steinbach up 6-1. Ryan McDonald scored one more for good measure, snapping home his third of the year from Gradt and Picklyk, bringing Steinbach up 7-1. That would be more than enough as the Pistons secured a statement victory on the road. Game notes Chris Quizi picked up the win, making 25 saves, including a couple of glorious glove saves, combined with some great pad work on jam plays in the crease. Steinbach's power play was 3-10, while the penalty kill was 2-2. The Pistons had the edge in shots throughout the game, finishing 43-26. Cole Cairns left the game in the second period after colliding with a Terrier defender, and while he stayed on the bench for the rest of the period, he did not come out for the third. Up next Steinbach was supposed to have a game on Friday night in Winnipeg, but that has been postponed. The next game action will come on Saturday night when the Virden Oil Capitals make their first-ever trip to the Southeast Event Centre.