More to Titans’ record

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This article was published 19/01/2017 (2652 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s been close but no cigar for too long this season for the Transcona Titans boys hockey team.

Heading into the homestretch of the Winnipeg High School Hockey League season, head coach Myles Nykoluk believes his Titans can keep up with any team in the Winnipeg Free Press Division #2. But each player on the team is going to have be all in, every game.

“We can’t have guys going out there and not working,” said Nykoluk, a former Titans player who is now in his second season as bench boss. “Everybody’s got to be contributing. We see flashes of that, but it hasn’t happened consistently.”

After 18 games of regular season play, the Titans have won six games and lost four in regulation. They’ve lost another eight games in extra time.

“It’s not only that,” lamented Nykoluk. “We’ll blow leads.”

In a tight divisional battle where only a couple points separate TCI, Stonewall, Collège Jeanne-Sauvé and Fort Richmond in the middle of the pack, the Titans have seen too many points slip away.

“We definitely have to finish off our games,” said Michael Laden, a 5-foot-9, 140 pound Grade 11 centre. “I don’t know how many times we’ve given up a two goal lead to lose in OT. We need all the points we can get.”

Nykoluk and Laden believe a lack of confidence has the Titans’ second-guessing their play in the final minutes of the games they’ve lost.

“We play our game but sometimes we get into that protect-the-lead hole,” Nykoluk said. “We gotta keep doing what we did early in the game.”

“We think too much about making mistakes,” Laden added. “We should just work to keep scoring.”

A template for the rest of the season could be taken from a December tournament in Brandon, at which the Titans took first place, beating two teams from higher divisions in the process.

“We played so well because everyone wanted to win,” Nykoluk said.

If the Titans can tighten up the final minutes of their game, there are few teams in their division that can keep up.

“Speed is an asset for us,” Nykoluk said.

“When the boys want to come out there and fly, it’s hard for the other teams to break out. It’s a lot of fun watching them play in the offensive zone.”

“No doubt we can play with everyone,” Laden agreed.

Nykoluk said Laden, who is one of the Titans’ alternate captains, is a quiet, natural leader.

“People feed off him,” Nykoluk said. “He’s not going to be the one saying something in the dressing room but he’ll go out on the ice and do what needs to be done. People respect him.”
Nykoluk also praised the other captains on the team.

“Devon Matsumoto … deserved the C in many ways,” he said. “He plays that 200-foot game. If there’s a turnover, he’s the first one backchecking.”

According to Nykoluk, alternate captain Nick Kozak, a forward plays a strong defensive role, is “leading the team, maybe even the league, in blocked shots. He plays for the guys beside him. He wears his heart on his sleeve every night.”

Nykoluk credited defenceman and alternate Noah Lorentz with helping create much of the Titans’ offensive action.

“He’s the quarterback on the D core,” Nykoluk said. “He’s the reason we can move the puck up so well. He wants to put the puck in the offensive zone.”

However the rest of this season plays out for the Titans, they’re well positioned to be a force to reckon with next season. With only three Grade 12 players and a strong contingent of returning Grade 11s and younger players coming up, the future looks bright.

“We have a strong team now, and next year we’ll only be stronger,” Nykoluk said.

The Titans take on Collège Jeanne-Sauvée at the Transcona East End Arena (517 Pandora Ave. East) on Thurs., Jan. 26 at 4:30 p.m.

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