It was arguably the worst performance of the year for the Steinbach Pistons and it resulted in a 3-0 loss at home to the rival Portage Terriers.

A night after losing to the Winkler Flyers 3-2 in overtime, the Pistons and Terriers both came out and kind of went through the motions for the first ten minutes of the game.

There was decent flow, both teams were skating well but didn't generate any 'grade A' scoring chances. At the midway point of the frame, Portage struck for the opening goal off the stick of Ty Barnstable.

The Pistons best chance of the period came just over a minute later on the power play as Tanner Mole took a pass from the slot and got a good shot away but it was stopped by the pad of Lasse Peterson.

The highlight of the period for the Pistons came on a save from goalie Matthew Thiessen.

With the Terriers on a power play of their own, they controlled play by keeping puck control to the outside and waiting for a play to develop. It eventually did as Jeremy Leipsic found a quiet area on the side of the net and was gifted a perfect pass and had a wide open net to shoot at, until Thiessen kicked out his right leg (literally, kicked out his leg as it was a good foot and a half off the ice) and made what could be the save of the season so far for Steinbach.

Steinbach didn't get many other chances offensively in the period and it ended with Portage in front 1-0.

In the second, Thiessen continued to hold his team in it as he waited for the offence to get something going.

They didn't.

At the midway point of the second, it was Leipsic who wouldn't be denied a second time on the man advantage as he cashed in to make it 2-0 Portage.

Turnovers and lack of intensity left fans and players alike frustrated and looking for a spark as Steinbach headed into the break down two.

In the third, the coaching staff juggled the lines and got a little fire from Braden Purtill, former Terrier Daniel McKitrick and Bradley Schoonbaert. They had a couple of chances early on but any hopes of a rally were snuffed out when the Pistons took a bad penalty with about six minutes to go in the game and it resulted in the 3-0 goal for Portage from James McIsaac.

Steinbach never really got it going and it showed on the scoreboard in a 3-0 final.

Thiessen was named the games 3rd star after making 38 saves on 41 shots. Steinbach ended up with 30 shots on goal. The power play was 0-4 and the penalty kill was beaten up finishing 3-5.

Coaches Thoughts

Teams understand that losses happen but coaches expect a certain amount of effort every night and as Joey Moggach explains, he just didn't see it from enough of the team. "We were frustrated as a staff. We don't have a lot of control over what goes on (on the ice). We try to make sure guys are ready to play and the rest is up to them. I just don't think we had the compete to go up against a team like that. They're a very good team so it was extremely frustrating."

The play of Matthew Thiessen did provide a small positive. "I thought he was our lone bright spot in a game like that. A young kid (that) seems to be getting better and better. Looked sharp and sound tonight. There weren't too many pucks laying around or that he put in bad sports. It was encouraging for him and gives us some more confidence in him. That's one thing to take away, I guess."

Changes Coming? (Needed?)

"For whatever reason, we were not sharp tonight." Moggach continued, "Maybe we'll evaluate some things we do preparation-wise but a lot of this has to fall on the players and making sure they're ready to play. I didn't we were ready from the start of the game. It's gonna be up to them, we have to be ready to play. That's the bottom line." 

The lines were juggled up in the third period and a message was sent to a few players that didn't see much ice in the final period. "We wanted to get some guys some more ice time," Moggach said after the game. "It had a little bit of an effect but overall it didn't change much."

Line combinations could again be in the blender before Friday's game in Winkler.

Up Next

@ Winkler Flyers - Friday 7:30 pm (game on Mix 96 and SteinbachOnline.com)

@ Portage Terriers - Sunday 6:30 pm (game on Mix 96 and SteinbachOnline.com)

Vs Winnipeg Blues - Tuesday - 7:30 pm