They say when you get the taste of winning, you never want to lose again and that's how the Parkland U15 Rangers are feeling right now.
Now it's one thing to say it, but it's another to get the job done and that's what the Rangers are doing. The team is coming off a weekend sweep and they have now won four of their last five games which has seen them jump up the standings.
Starting the weekend in Carberry against a very good Southwest Cougars team, seven different skaters found the back of the net in a 7-4 win. Goals were scored by Carter Moncrief, Reese Scott, Noah Hanneson, Ben Poole, Dayson Martin, Brayden Budolowski, and Noah Smigelsky. Xander Perih was outstanding in net as he made 45 saves to record his third straight win.
It was the second time the Rangers beat the Cougars this year. Southwest has won 11 of their 17 games this season and sits in fifth place in the league.
Then on Sunday, it was the Kyle Pelletier show. Playing in his hometown of McCreary, Kyle turned away all 35 shots he faced in a 3-0 win against the Winnipeg Wild Green. Moncrief, Budolowski, and Martin all scored for the Rangers in the win.
Matt Kustra is in his first year of head coaching the program and he had this to say after the successful weekend.
"I'm extremely proud, these guys have been battling so hard this year," said Kustra. "After starting the season with nine losses in our first 11 games, you can see the guys are feeling a spark. I really do believe moving forward we're going to see an entirely new team, it's pretty exciting."
With wins in four of their last five games, the Rangers have used a combination of great offence which has been paired with great goaltending and defensive play. During their recent streak that has seen the team earn eight of a possible 10 points, the Rangers have scored 18 goals while giving up just 14.
"Both goalies in Xander and Kyle have been excellent as of late," said Kustra. "They are making the big saves in big moments to help us win games, I can't really ask for much more from them, it really gives the rest of our team a lot of confidence."
Parkland will continue their four-game homestand on Saturday when they play the Winnipeg Wild Gold in Russell at 12:30 and then they head back to McCreary to play the league-leading Wheat Kings on Sunday at 4:00 p.m. For fans in Dauphin wanting to watch the Rangers, you will have to wait until the team's final regular season game on February 11 when Eastman comes to town.
Brayden Budolowski continues to lead things offensively for the Rangers with 16 goals and 13 assists while Noah Smigelsky is second in team scoring with 21 points. Dayson Martin and Ben Poole have 17 points while Noah Hanneson has 14. Perih has now won four games in net while Pelletier has won a pair.
