Neepawa Farmers secure first round home ice advantage Close out THHL regular season with win in Rivers

By Eoin Devereux Neepawa Banner & Press

Game results

Tiger Hills Hockey

The Neepawa Farmers have secured themselves a very important first round advantage in the Tiger Hills Hockey League (THHL) playoffs. With their 3-2 win in Rivers on Saturday, Feb. 11 against the Jets, Neepawa locked down fourth place in the THHL’s East Division, with 15 points (7-10-1-0 record) on the season. That propelled them past the MacGregor Wild (6-10-1-1. 14 points) in the standings by a single point. The Farmers and the Wild will face one another in a best-ofthree quarter-final, which begins on Thursday, Feb. 16 in Neepawa at the Yellowhead Arena. Opening face-off is set for 8:00 p.m. Game two will follow on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 4:00 p.m. That game as well will be at the Yellowhead. Game three, if nessessary, will be played in MacGregor. A date and time were not announced before the Banner & Press publication deadline.

The Farmers geared up for the playoffs with one final

Club 55 Bowling

FEB 9/23:

Ladies’ High Single & Triple: Carole LeBoutil- lier 204 & 532. Men’s High Single & Triple:

Darrell Gabler 256 & 689. Other Scores to Note:

Judy Gabler 157, 153; Len

Pritchard 173, 192, 185;

Calvin Goetz 151, 165, 195; Vivian Oswald 158;

Carole LeBoutillier 175, 153; Frank Porada 152;

Eleanor Scott 172, 165;

Darrell Gabler 238, 195.

THHL Playoffs

victory in the regular season, a 3-2 decision over the Rivers Jets on Feb. 11. This was the first time these two clubs have played one another since Rivers transferred over the Tiger Hills from the North Central Hockey League last off-season. Neepawa started out the game quickly, as Brad Marshall scored just 3:36 in opening period. Corbin Mariash added one more just before the end of the period, to make it 2-0 for the visiting Farmers.

Rivers would claw one back on the scoreboard in the second, as Riley Shamray scored for the Jets. In the third, Farmers’ scoring leader Kyle McDonald, added one more to his season stats, to make it 3-1. McDonald closes out the regular season with 40 points (20 goals - 20 assists) in 17 games, which places him within the top-10 for league scoring on the year. Shawn Bowles of Miniota-Elkhorn lead the league, with a 57 point campaign (28G -29A). A Kale Bomback goal mid-way through the third for Rivers wasn’t enough, as Neepawa closed out the game with the 3-2 win. That win, combined with a MacGregor loss to Wawanesa on Friday, Feb. 10, secured fourth for the Farmers.