News

WESTMAN WILDCATS ANNOUNCE STEPHEN VANDENBERGHE AS HEAD COACH

    The Westman Wildcats Regional Female Midget Hockey Team are proud to announce that Stephen Vandenberghe of Brandon has been named the new Head Coach of the Wildcat program.

     Vandenberghe has extensive experience coaching throughout the years at all levels and was an assistant coach with the Westman Wildcats this past season.

Westman Wildcats Prospect Camp

The Westman Wildcats regional female midget hockey program will be hosting their Prospects camp April 11-13^th at the Hartney Arena.  Cost for the three evenings is $25.00. 

This is open to all players 94 – 98.  If you have already registered, we look forward to seeing you on April 11^th.

 Monday, April 11    7:40pm – 9:10pm

Tuesday, April 12   7:30pm – 9:00pm

Wednesday, April 13  7:40pm – 9:10pm

 The camp will help identify players eligible for the Wildcats over the next few seasons as well as let potential players and parents familiarize themselves with the Wildcat program and its philosophies.

 The program has had great success both individually, as 25 former Wildcats have had the opportunity to play college hockey, as well as collectively as a program, the Wildcats have medaled Provincially for five of the last six years. This camp will allow many players and parents to get a better understanding of how this  development is fostered throughout the athletes time with the program.

 To register for the program please visit the Westman Wildcats Website at www.westmanwildcats.com and go to link on left hand prospect camp registration.  Please pass this information on to anyone who may have an interest in attending.

If you require additional information you can contact:

Dan De Kezel    747-2940

Carole Williams  483 - 3622

WILDCATS DEKEZEL COMMITS TO WISCONSIN-SUPERIOR

   The Westman Wildcats are proud to announce that Kiara DeKezel has committed to the NCAA Division III University of Wisconsin-Superior Yellowjackets.

   DeKezel, a senior at Deloraine School, is the only graduating senior with the Wildcats this season, and is the last Westman Wildcat who was a member of the 2009 Esso Cup National Championship team.

   DeKezel will be joining former Westman Wildcats Sheryl Kaskiw and Teal Crosson on the Yellowjacket roster for the 2011-2012 season.

WILDCATS PROVINCIAL WEEKEND

The Westman Wildcats were at the MTS Iceplex in Winnipeg this past weekend for the 2011 Manitoba Provincial AA Midget Female Tournament. Friday morning’s game had the Wildcats up against the Winnipeg Titans and the Cats came out very slowly and paid the price for this as they found themselves down 5 – 0 after the first period. A quick regroup in between periods had the Cats come out and play much better, scoring 2 goals of their own in the second period making the score 5 – 2 after the second period. The Wildcats put on a lot of pressure in the third period but were unable to score and the final score was 6 – 2 for the Titans. Rachelle Lougheed was in net for the Wildcats and shots were 33 – 25 in favor of Westman. The Wildcat point getters were Teagan Pringle and Karissa Kirkup with a goal each and single assists to Elise Badiou, Samantha Dyck, Amanda Coey and Kiara DeKezel.

Friday evening’s game had the Wildcats up against the Yellowhead Chiefs with the winner of this game moving on to the medal round. The Wildcats came out very hard in this game and controlled a lot of the territorial play throughout the game and outshot Yellowhead 45 – 21. Period scores were 2 – 0 Yellowhead after the first period with 2 powerplay markers, 3 – 1 Yellowhead after the second period and after a tremendous third period the Wildcats came back for a 4 – 3 final score. Rachelle Lougheed was in net for the Wildcats and point getters were Karissa Kirkup and Gina Williams with a goal and an assist each, Elise Badiou and Bailee Goodon with a goal each, two assists to Kaitlyn Whaley, and single assists to Teagan Pringle and Kiara DeKezel.

Saturday evening’s game had the Wildcats playing the Pembina Trail Twins with the winner of this game moving on to the semi-finals on Sunday. The Wildcats came out of the gate flying and never stopped from the start of the game until the final buzzer. The Wildcats outshot the Twins 45 - 17, with period scores of 0 – 0 after the first period, 2 – 0 after the second period for the Wildcats and final score was 3 – 0 Westman. Rachelle Lougheed played well in the Wildcat net getting the shutout. Wildcat point getters were Karissa Kirkup with a goal and an assist, Jessica Vallotton and Elise Badiou with a goal each and a single assist to Jaycee Magwood.

Sunday morning had the Wildcats playing the Pembina Valley Hawks in the semi-final game and the Cats came out hard in this game but Pembina Valley was the more experienced team in this game and this showed. The Wildcats battled hard and in fact dominated in the second period but just didn’t capitalize on enough of their chances and the Hawks did. Period scores were 3 – 1 PV after the first period, 4 – 2 PV after two periods and a 5 – 2 final score for the Hawks. Shots were 34 – 22 in PV’s favor with Rachelle Lougheed in the Westman net. Point getters were Jessica Vallotton with a goal and an assist and Teagan Pringle with a goal, and an assist going to Jaycee Magwood.

We then had a 2 hour break before playing the bronze medal game against the Eastman Selects and as usual this was a real battle between these 2 teams with plenty of chances at both ends of the ice. Period scores were 1 – 1 after the first period, 2 – 2 after the second period, and the final score ending up 4 -2 in favor of Eastman. Rachelle Lougheed was in net and the Wildcat point getters were Bailee Goodon and Karissa Kirkup with a goal each and single assists to Jaycee Magwood, Karissa Haney, and Kiara DeKezel. That wraps up game competition for the 2010 – 2011 season with the Wildcat Prospects Camp the second week of April being the team’s last official function of the year.

  HAWKS SWEEP WILDCATS

   Round 2 of the MFMHL playoffs had the Westman Wildcats playing the Pembina Valley Hawks and Game 1 was Wednesday March 9 in Glenboro. The Wildcats came out flying in the first period and finished out the period with a 2-1 lead. The Hawks came out hard in the second period and really put the push on the Wildcats and scored 4 unanswered goals to end the second period up 5-2. The 2 teams traded chances in the third period but were unable to find the back of the net with the final score ending up 5-2 in Pembina Valley's favor. PV outshot the Wildcats 35-23 with Rachelle Lougheed in net for the Cats. Point getters for the Wildcats were Jessica Vallotton and Kiara DeKezel with a a goal each and single assists to Karissa Kirkup and Amanda Coey.

   Game 2 of the series was back in Glenboro on Saturday March 12 with the Wildcats in a must win situation. Again the Wildcats came out playing very hard in this game and although they outshot Pembina Valley 43-28 they were unable to solve the Hawks goaltender. Period scores were 2-0 PV after the first period, 3-1 PV after the second period and the final score 4-1 in favor of Pembina Valley. Rachelle Lougheed was in net for the Wildcats and point getters were Elise Badiou with the lone Wildcat goal with assists going to Amanda Coey and Karissa Kirkup.

   The Wildcats now prepare for Provincial tournament this upcoming weekend at the MTS Iceplex in Winnipeg.

WILDCATS SWEEP CAPITALS

Tuesday was Game 1 of a best of 3 series putting the Westman Wildcats up against the Central Plains Capitals in the first round of MFMHL Playoffs. Both teams had chances in the first period but it was not until the 5 minute mark that the Wildcats found the back of the net and in fact found it 3 times to end the first period 3 – 0. Both teams traded goals in the second period to end that period 4 – 1. Westman scored a quick goal a minute into the third and the Capitals put on pressure of their own to finish the third period strong, scoring 2 goals for a final score of Wildcats 5 – Capitals 3. Rachelle Lougheed faced 30 shots in net as the Cats outshot the Capital 51 – 30. Karissa Kirkup had a big night for the Wildcats getting the hat trick and two assists, Kiara DeKezel had a goal and 2 assists, Amanda Coey a goal, Jessica Vallotton had 2 assists and a single assist to Jaycee Magwood.

Game 2 was Friday night in Portage and again the Wildcats came out quickly in the first period with good pressure and ended the first period up 2 – 0. The Wildcats got the lone goal in the second frame and headed into the final period up 3 – 0. The Capitals again put on pressure but were unable to solve the solid goaltending of Rachelle Lougheed who had the shut out in net. Final score was Wildcats 5 – Capitals 0. Point getters for the Wildcats were Jessica Vallotton and Kiara DeKezel with a goal and an assist each, Samantha Dyck, Jaycee Magwood and Amanda Coey all with one goal each and single assists to Elise Badiou, Bailee Goodon, Karissa Haney and Bree Vanhove. The Wildcats now wait to see who they will play in the second round.

WILDCATS PLAY EXHIBITION GAMES

After a twelve day layoff the Westman Wildcats hit the ice this past weekend with two exhibition games in preparation for the upcoming playoffs. In the first game the Cats took on the Westman Senior Ladies in Hartney Friday evening. It was soon evident that there was some rust due to the lay off for the Cats while the Senior Ladies came skating hard and trying to take advantage of the Cats, the first period was fairly evenly played with both teams having scoring chances. In the second the Senior Ladies picked up their play and the Cats were slow to respond. The Senior Ladies were able to take advantage of a Cats penalty and got the only goal of the period. The Wildcats came out in the third after regrouping at the break and showed a strong determination to win by scoring on the first shift of the period. This seemed to give the team a lift as they started to play a stronger game with good puck movement and skating  and scoring 3 more goals. This gave the Cats and call up goaltender Sarah Paulson a 4-1 win. Point getters in this game: Karissa Kirkup 1 goal and 2 assists, Jessica Vallotton 3 assists, Samantha Dyck 1 goal, Amanda Coey 2 goals, Sarah Paulson 1 assist and Bree Vanhove 1 assist.

The second game of the weekend found the Cats in Melville Sask. for a noon game on Sunday. This was a rematch of two weeks earlier in which the Cats lost a 2-0 game. This game was much the same as the last with scoring chances at both ends of the ice. The Cats were able to score at 7:26 of the first. This was the only score until midway through the third when the Cats took a penalty and Melville capitalized 10 seconds into their power play and tied up the game and this was how game ended 1-1. The only goal of the game for the Cats was scored by Samantha Dyck assisted by Jessica Vallotton.

The Wildcats will now start the first round of MFMHL playoffs with a best of 3 series against the Central Plains Capitals. Game 1 is in Hartney on Tuesday, March 1 at 8:00 p.m., Game 2 is in Portage on Friday, March 4 at 7:30 p.m. and Game 3 (if necessary) is in Hartney on Saturday, March 5 at 7:00 p.m.

Also returning to the Wildcats lineup after spending the last 10 days in Halifax at the 2011 Canada Winter Games is Kiara DeKezel who proudly represented the Westman Wildcats on Team Manitoba U-18 Female Team. Team Manitoba had 6 wins and 1 loss but the loss came in a crucial qualifying game which relegated them to the placement games and a fifth place finish.

Westman Wildcats Coaching Positions

 The Westman Wildcats Female Midget Regional hockey team, in association with the Westman South region, is currently seeking applicants for all coaching positions for the 2011-12 hockey season.

 The Wildcats have a strong tradition of excellence and have secured both Provincial and National Championship titles since their inaugural season. The team plays in the MFMHL (Manitoba Female Midget Hockey League) and participates in a number of elite AAA female tournaments across Western Canada and the Northern United States. The team practices and plays out of Hartney, Manitoba.

The Hiring Committee is looking for enthusiastic, organized, self-motivated individuals that are positive in their approach to the game, and dedicated to excellence. The successful candidates must have strong communication skills.

 All Head Coach applicants must have minimum “Development 1” coaching certification.

All Assistant Coach applicants must have minimum “Coach” certification.

 All interested individuals please submit your resume and cover letter to:

 Guy Williams

gwill@mymts.net

 When submitting your application, please specify whether you are applying for the Head Coaching or Assistant Coaching position.

 Deadline for applications: March 8, 2011