The Steinbach Pistons kicked off their 2026-27 Manitoba Junior Hockey League season with a 3-1 road victory over the Winkler Flyers on September 18 in Winkler, Manitoba. Goaltender Lincoln Molind stopped 21 of 22 shots in his first regular season start for the Pistons and was named the game’s first star.
The Flyers scored first midway through the second period on a two-on-one rush finished by Steven Foster from Carson Hiebert. Steinbach responded with three unanswered goals. Eric Han, William Picklyk, and Olivier Mathieu scored for the Pistons, with assists going to Gavin Haslam, Malachi Thiessen, Cullen Ingebritson, and captain Cole Cairns. Han also dropped the gloves with Flyers captain Kam Thomas in a fight that energized both benches and the crowd.
Molind, a 19-year-old from Middleborough, Massachusetts, joined the Pistons in August from the Brooks Bandits after playing in Finland during 2024-25. His 21-save performance set the tone for a team featuring significant roster turnover. Head coach and general manager Paul Dyck, in his 15th season with the club, has described this year’s group as a work in progress after returning only a single-digit number of players.
The win in Winkler gives Steinbach a strong start to the new campaign. The team plays its home games at the Southeast Event Centre, and fans can see the Pistons next at home on September 25, 2026 against the Neepawa Titans, according to Steinbach Pistons.
