The Terriers managed three of a possible four points from Neepawa this weekend in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL). They won 5-3 in the second of back-to-back games with the Natives at Stride Place in Portage Saturday, after falling 6-5 in a shootout Friday night.

"I thought we played really hard Friday night, and tonight's game was a little bit slower from both clubs," says Blake Spiller, head coach of the Terriers. "We've been playing with 10 forwards here for the last three games, and it's been tiring on us at times but it's not an excuse. (Neepawa) is fighting for their playoff lives here, so they played hard. I thought we played well enough to win Friday, we just made a couple of mistakes. Tonight, I thought we were sound defensively. We didn't have as much jump as we'd like to have but we looked after things away from the puck a lot better."

It was the second of back-to-back games between the clubs, and the aggression showed in the first. A scrum seemed to form anytime a play ended near either goaltender. Portage had fans cheering at the 11-minute mark. Ty Enns let one rip bar-down over Neepawa netminder Tyler Gutenberg's glove on the powerplay to make it 1-0. Defenceman Mackenzie Dwyer notched the only assist on the play. Much like Friday's game, Neepawa tied it up just a minute later. Justin Metcalf split two Terrier defenders on the rush and found Nolan Richards all alone in the slot, he went forehand-backhand to deke out Brock Aiken. Portage lit the lamp one more time to regain their lead a short while later. Nick Doyle scored his first as a Dog with a wrist shot from the point that went top corner. Spencer Kuhlman and Turner Santin drew assists on the play. Jeremy Leipsic had a glorious chance after that. He slid one toward an empty net but defender Josh Blondeau made the save and covered the puck in the crease, and a penalty shot was awarded to the Terriers. Lane Toder took it. He beat Gutenberg, but not the post, so it remained 2-1 to end the period.

Terriers' defenceman Mackenzie Dwyer and Natives defenceman Josh Blondeau had some words after a scrum in the Neepawa end. (Photo by Aaron Wilgosh)

Emotions seemed a little more in check in the second with both teams focusing on scoring, rather than the big hit. Portage assistant captain Chase Brakel took a holding penalty just over a minute in and Neepawa didn't waste any time tying the game 2-2. Richards scored his second of the night with the extra attacker. A point shot got deflected on its way to the net and Aiken got caught going the other way. He managed to make the first save with his left pad but couldn't scramble back to make the second at the back door. Turner Santin continued to make an impact offensively, picking up his fourth goal, and seventh point, in four games. He found a loose puck all alone at the side of the net and made no mistake burying it into the wide open cage.

"We got (Santin) back from Virden early in the season because we thought we needed his physicality," says Spiller. "I think he brings that every night. He plays hard, and may not be the most gifted guy, but he isn't easy to play against. He definitely brings something that we don't have a lot of."

Ty Barnstable and Ty Enns grabbed the assists on the Santin goal. It took over 10 minutes for the next goal to come, and again it was Portage. Chase Brakel stole the puck in the offensive zone and found Jeremy Leipsic all alone down low, who fed James McIsaac in the slot. McIsaac didn't have much behind his shot but Gutenberg wasn't anywhere near him to make the save. Portage led 4-2 on the scoreboard and outshot the Natives 16-13 after 40-minutes.

James McIsaac finished with two goals on the night in the Terriers 5-3 win over Neepawa. (Photo by Matt Hermiz)

Neepawa found the back of the net a little under five minutes into the third. Peyton Malcolm picked the puck up at his blue line, split the Terriers defenders at theirs, and scored high blocker on Aiken on a short breakaway. It was a high paced game after that with both teams exchanging chances on opposing goaltenders. Brock Aiken stood tall for the remainder and held out for a 4-3 Terrier victory.

There was a scary moment late in the period when leading scorer Jeremy Leipsic went down. He took a knee from Skylar Thorsteinson who was awarded a five-minute major on the play. Leipsic didn't return. McIsaac scored his second of the night on the major powerplay. Brakel and Dwyer picked up the assists.

"It was a knee-on-knee," adds Spiller. "I never had a chance to chat with him after the game but hopefully, he's okay."

The Terriers are back in action Wednesday when they host Swan Valley. It's their final home game of the regular season.

Photo Finish for Playoff Positioning

The standings are tight toward the top. OCN and Selkirk sit tied in third place with 79 points, they both have two games remaining. The Terriers sit in fifth with 74 points, and with three games remaining in the season, it is possible for them to still jump into fourth.

"We needed to split with Selkirk. If we did that we'd only be one point back instead of five with a game in hand," says Spiller. "It really doesn't matter who we play because I think that any team is beatable. At the same time, we're going to be in tough with whoever we play. If there is a preference it would be not to go up north to OCN, only because of travel not because of the opponent we'd play."

OCN and Selkirk play each other this upcoming week, so third place will be out of the question for the Dogs. OCN's other game is against Steinbach, and Selkirk's is against Waywayseecappo. If OCN loses both games and Portage wins out, they would control fourth place.