Railers aim to build fan support

There are some who feel it’s time to get the Transcona Railers back on track.

Greg Pinette, new assistant coach of the team, wants to bring Railers hockey back into the spotlight in Transcona.

“A few years ago it was more popular,” he said. “Going to a Railers game was the thing to do.”

Whatever caused the decrease in interest in the team, from both players and fans, during the last few seasons, Pinette wants to reverse it.

“I think if we can get more fans back in the stands it will attract more players in the next few years,” said Pinette.

Only 22 players tried out for the team this year, which is a weak turnout in comparison with other Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League (MMJHL) teams.

The Charleswood Hawks, last year’s league champions, had between 40 and 50 players at tryouts,. The St. Boniface Riels and the River East Royal Knights each had more than 35 players try out.

“I know there is a lot of good players in the area,” said Pinette who coached junior hockey before moving to the MMJHL. “I’ve coached a lot of these kids when they were 11 and 12 years old.”

This year’s team is very young because more than half of last year’s squad graduated from the league.

“We have some really good young hockey players,” he said. “In the next few years, we are going to be able to contend.”

The Railers made the playoffs last season, finishing eighth out of 10 and ahead of the Seven Oaks Raiders and the St. Boniface Riels.

Peter McCarthy, a.k.a. Joe Gatorade the equipment manger, would like to see the team finish higher this year and go further in the playoffs.

“Last year, we made the playoffs but we had to play the first-place Charleswood Hawks in the first round,” he said.

McCarthy sees a lot of potential in this year’s team and hopes to see the community take more of an interest.

“They look like a team that’s coming together really well,” he said, adding that he is pleased with the arrival of Pinette. “He’s an exciting coach, very enthusiastic.”

The Transcona Railers’ opening game is Sept. 30 against the Charleswood Hawks at the Eric Coy arena.

The team’s first home game is on Oct. 2 against the St. Boniface Riels at the Roland Michener Arena at 7:30 p.m.