Manitoba Herd

The Manitoba Herd is a ringette team in the National Ringette League's (NRL) Western Conference. The team is based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The team was previously called the Manitoba Intact.

Manitoba Herd
CityManitoba Winnipeg, Manitoba
LeagueNational Ringette League
ConferenceWestern
Founded2016
Colours       
Head coachAndrea Ferguson
Websitenationalringetteleague.ca/MHerd
Previous franchise history
Manitoba Intact (2016–2021)
Championships
Best finish6th (2021)

Team history

The Herd were founded in 2016 as the Manitoba Intact. They took their name from a corporate sponsor that made a Manitoba team's return to the NRL possible after the province's previous entry folded in 2013 due to financial difficulties.[1] Winnipeg-based teams had a longer history with the NRL, but were hampered by the league's demanding travel. The Winnipeg Prairie Fire had been an on-ice success, finishing in second place in the Canadian Ringette Championships in what would be their final season in 2013.[2][3] For several years the province also hosted a second NRL team, the Manitoba Jets.[4] Those teams made an effort to host games in other areas of the province, such as Steinbach, which hosted a series between the Prairie Fire and Edmonton WAM! in 2013.[5] The establishment of the Intact, then, filled a significant gap for the National Ringette League. In 2021, the team rebranded as the Manitoba Herd, a name that had been used informally in the past to reference Manitoba's ringette squads at the Canada Games.[6]

Manitoba hosted the 2018 Canadian Ringette Championships, which includes the NRL playoffs, in Winnipeg.[7] Manitoba won its opening series against the BC Thunder to advance to the Elite Eight, but did not manage to win another game and finished in 8th place. Manitoba again defeated the Thunder in a knockout series in 2019, and ultimately finished in 7th at the national championships.[8] The 2020 and 2021 championships were ultimately cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

After play resumed in 2022, the team put added emphasis on growing the game locally and saw larger crowds supporting the team.[9] In 2022, Herd player Belle Paisley was named to the Canadian junior national team ahead of the World Ringette Championships, where Canada won silver.[10]

The Herd's current head coach is Andrea Ferguson, who was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame in 2022 for her contributions to ringette. Ferguson is a former national junior champion and captain of the Prairie Fire who also won the player-of-the-year award in the Finnish Elite League in 2003.[11]

Mascot

In 2016 the Manitoba Intact, the precursor to the Manitoba Herd, acquired a mascot, a Bison named "Mani".[12][13]

Season-by-season
Season[14] League Conference GP W L OTW OTL Pts GF GA
2021–22 NRL Western 19 10 8 1 0 20 104 102
2022–23 NRL Western 24 8 15 0 1 16 130 149

Rosters

Current roster
2022–23 Manitoba Herd
#[15]PlayerPosition
4Kaylee Spearing
6Josée Roy
9Kelsey Gillan
15Mikayla Pacholek
16Nicole Girardin
19Belle Paisley
22Samantha Renooy
24Raeanne Wysocki
29Caroline Girardin
32Kiana HeskaGoalie
52Brett Van Nieuw Amerongen
63Karlee Jansen
65Sam Heinemann
66Taylor Hildebrand
71Janelle Wotherspoon
81Alexsi Kavvadas
86Nicole Desrosiers

References
  1. Rosset, Mitch (2016-11-22). "Manitobans welcome National Ringette League's return". Global News. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  2. The Canadian Press (2012-04-03). "Winnipeg's Prairie Fire beat Calgary at ringette nationals". Global News. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  3. "Calgary RATH takes national ringette title". Waterloo Region Record. 2013-04-07. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  4. Saper, Avi (2011-01-12). "Ringette tourney draws teams from across the land". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  5. Geisheimer, Kevin (2013-02-01). "Ringette's NHL Equivalent in Steinbach". Steinbach Online. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  6. Dawkins, Glen (2015-02-16). "Off to flying start". Winnipeg Sun. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  7. "Manitoba hosts 2018 Canadian Ringette Championships". Steinbach Online. 2018-04-09. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  8. Booth, Mark (2019-03-26). "Thunder's bid for NRL Championships falls short". Richmond News. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  9. Rasche, Teagan (2023-03-12). "'We want to grow the sport': Manitoba Herd ringette team host top talent". Global News. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  10. Peters, Judy; Koop, Carly (2022-05-28). "Local ringette player heading to Finland for World Ringette Championship". Steinbach Online. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  11. Harzing, Richard (2022-09-29). "Hall of Fame Inductee Spotlight: Andrea Ferguson". Sport Manitoba. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  12. NRL Manitoba @TOBANRL (20 October 2016). "Manitoba's NRL team is looking for some energetic, enthusiastic, entertainers to become the personality of the team's new mascot – "Mani"". Twitter. National Ringette League. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
  13. NRL Manitoba @TOBANRL (22 October 2016). "Mani's debut tonight at Dakota. @MBRingette". Twitter. National Ringette League. Archived from the original on 24 July 2023. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  14. "NRL/LNR Standings". National Ringette League. Retrieved 2023-07-18.
  15. "National Ringette League". nationalringetteleague.msa4.rampinteractive.com. Ringette Canada. 2023. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
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