The Yellowhead Chiefs navigated one of their busiest stretches of the season this past week, playing three games in five days and coming away with two important victories. The results keep Yellowhead firmly in ninth place in the U18 AAA standings at 12-13, sitting just two points back of Parkland and continuing to push for a climb into the top eight.
The week featured a gritty home win, a forgettable night in Winnipeg, and a strong rebound performance Sunday in Lundar. Now the Chiefs head into another three-game week as they continue their December push.
Tuesday, Dec. 2 – Chiefs 3, Parkland Rangers 2
Shoal Lake Communiplex
The Chiefs opened the week with one of their most disciplined efforts of the season, edging the Parkland Rangers 3–2 in a special-teams heavy contest.
Nolan Kozak got things rolling late in the first, burying his fourth of the season off a nice setup from captain Alec Strachan and Grady McNish. That line—veteran leadership bookended by youthful pace—looked dangerous all night.
Yellowhead extended the lead early in the second when Winston Lepp ripped home his 10th from Ethan Turchinski and Redden Richmond. Parkland replied on the powerplay, but Lepp answered back with another goal on a Chiefs man-advantage, his 11th of the year, restoring the two-goal cushion.
Parkland pushed in the third and cut the lead to one, but goaltender Landon McGregor stood tall, finishing with 31 saves to secure the home win. The game featured an avalanche of penalties in the back half, but the Chiefs handled the chaos well and kept their composure down the stretch.
Saturday, Dec. 6 – Winnipeg Bruins 11, Chiefs 0
Southdale Community Centre
Saturday was a tough one.
The Winnipeg Bruins—one of the league’s top teams and currently riding a 9-1 run—controlled the game from start to finish, handing Yellowhead an 11–0 loss. The Bruins struck three times in the opening period, added six more in the second, and closed out with a pair in the third.
Landon McGregor and Eros shared the workload in net as the Bruins poured 61 shots on target. Winnipeg’s relentless pace and depth overwhelmed the Chiefs on a night where very little went right.
The group did, however, avoid letting frustration boil over—an important sign given how many divisional games remain ahead.
Sunday, Dec. 7 – Chiefs 5, Interlake Lightning 3
Lundar Arena
What makes this Chiefs team compelling is its ability to reset quickly, and Sunday’s road game in Lundar showed exactly that. Less than 24 hours after the loss in Winnipeg, Yellowhead delivered a determined bounce-back effort, defeating Interlake 5–3.
Alec Strachan led the charge with a three-goal, four-point afternoon, scoring twice in the first—including a powerplay marker—and sealing the game with an empty-netter in the dying seconds.
The line of Kozak–Strachan–McNish was dominant again. Kozak added two third-period goals of his own, giving him six on the season, while McNish chipped in multiple assists and helped drive possession throughout.
Interlake made a brief push in the third, tying the game and briefly taking momentum, but the Chiefs responded quickly and didn’t let the Lightning get any traction. McGregor once again was solid, stopping 25 shots for the win.
Looking Ahead
The Chiefs now sit at 12-13 and have won five of their last 10, remaining right in the thick of the middle-pack battle.
A three-game week awaits:
- Dec. 10 – at Central Plains Capitals (Portage la Prairie)
- Dec. 13 – vs. Norman Northstars (Shoal Lake)
- Dec. 14 – vs. Winnipeg Wild (Shoal Lake)
With two home games and a matchup against the struggling Capitals, it’s a prime opportunity for the Chiefs to push their record back to .500 as the holiday break approaches.
The group continues to show resilience, improvement, and emerging chemistry—especially among Kozak, Strachan, and McNish—and looks poised to build on the momentum of Sunday’s strong road win.
