A new brewing company calling Dauphin home will be opening soon.

Obsolete Brewing Co., will operate out of the former Acklands building at 26 2nd Ave. NW.

The idea sprang from the minds of Ryan Vanderheyden, Steven Sobering and Kevin Steinbachs.

“Really, we just talked about it over the course of having beers, really,” said Vanderheyden. “We just talked about how it would be nice if Dauphin had a brewery. And then, at that time, we weren’t thinking about creating one. Then a couple of months down the road, we saw a building available. We went into the building, said, ‘this would be a great place for our brewery,’ and then we started it from there.”

According to Sobering, Vanderheyden is passionate about micro-brewing and beer making in general and already has ties to some micro-breweries in the province.

Sobering has an eye towards tourism and feels a brewery would help attract tourists to the area.

The group found a small batch brewing system and brewed a lot of beer in case they had to brew their product themselves.

“We brewed a lot of beer. It was pretty good. During COVID time, we weren’t able to get together with a lot of people, so we had some small tastings and they went over really well,” Vanderheyden said. “And then we just went through all the steps of finding the right equipment that would fit our size of company that we were going for. And finding everybody to be part of the team that we would need to hire to fit out the building.”

Advertising through the Internet, the group hired Marco Bardelli, a brewer from Brazil, who moved to Dauphin with his wife and two children not long ago.

“He’s replaced us for the brewing, which is probably beneficial to everybody involved. He’s a great brewer that has 12 years of craft brewing experience that will help us out starting up,” Vanderheyden said, adding Bardelli was able to correct some of the things the ownership group was doing. “We didn’t even know what we were doing wrong,” Sobering said.

“Even the equipment fit out, after ordering all our equipment, he did confirm we made the right choices in the size of equipment. But after going through the initial set up, he produced a massive list, like, ‘okay, now you also need this.’ I don’t even think we knew enough to know what we needed. It would have been a real trial and error, whereas now, we can hit the ground running, which is going to be a big benefit.”

The group purchased the lot right next door where Kelleher Ford used to be located and they plan to use that for parking, as well as a patio area, where patrons can sit.

The group, Vanderheyden said, envisions their area of the city as a craft district. The brewery is across the street from a bakery and meat shop, it is within walking distance of the Watson Art Centre and Vermillion Park.

“So people can walk in this area. So we hope we can encourage people to park in our area, come in, have a beer, go shopping at Prairie Supply Co., get some baking goods, a steak for the weekend and they can go home,” he said. “So we’re hoping to create a walking culture in the downtown here, where people can shop and see all the things that we have down here.”

Planning for the brewery began in 2020.

“We incorporated in November 2020,” Vanderheyden said.

Using their small brewing system, Bardelli has already manufactured more than 20 beer recipes. Because it is a small system, the beer does not last because of the tastings the group does.

“I think we have five or six at any given time for tastings. We’ve been touring people through here constantly, just different groups,” Sobering said.

The plan is to have a core line of six to eight different beer recipes, with as many as 20 available for tastings.

“We shifted the business model to be a tourist brewery. We can have a multitude of beers, so that everytime you come here, there will be something new to experience,” Sobering said, adding this will allow them to source local ingredients. There are also plans to produce non-alcoholic beers. “Our brewer makes kombucha, home-made lemonades, gingerale, the list actually goes on,” Vanderheyden said.

“We want the space not to feel like a lounge for people just to come to drink. We want it to be like a family friendly space, so kids can come and get that craft soda. They actually get to experience the new sodas, as well. And their parents can have a beer.”

They also plan to serve coffee.

Currently, the group is waiting for an electrical panel to be constructed. Once they receive that, there will be a bit of a process to get licensed at the provincial level.

“But we do hope to be manufacturing by April or May and maybe a grand opening by June,” Vanderheyden said.

Sobering said the production side of the business will be completed fast, so they can make beer in cans and kegs.

“So we can supply the liquor stores to sell over the counter or kegs in restaurants. But the tasting room will take a little longer, because it’s a different type of occupancy,” he said.

While there will be a learning curve when it comes to distribution, the plan is to provide their product in as many liquor stores as they can, while providing kegs to restaurants.

“And then selling out of the taproom. The best way to get the beer will be to come to the taproom. It will be the freshest. It will be the most variety,” Vanderheyden said.

Short-term there will not be many staff working at the brewery, but as the company grows, so too, will the number of staff needed.

Sobering noted all three partners in the brewery are community-minded.

“We’re all very invested in Dauphin’s prosperity and want to make Dauphin and great place to live. We want to attract some of those visitors, just that little extra step to come to Dauphin,” he said. “If we can sell our beer throughout the province and bring those revenues back here, we can just keep putting it back into the business and back into the community and keep adding more amenities. I think that was one thing all three of us are very committed to.”

Sobering has not heard any negativity around the project, adding people are positive about it.

“People are really excited about it,” he said. “I definitely think it’s going to be a real asset. It might mark a point in time where it’s before-and-after. We kind of want to see ourselves as what we do for Dauphin and this part of the city is what Lakehouse did for Clear Lake when they upgraded. Sometimes it just takes that catalyst, that first step to create that snowball effect. And we’re really hopeful that it’s going to be a hit.”

Following the game, Mar. 3, fans who collected the Dauphin Kings hockey cards had the opportunity to get them autographed by the entire team.

The collectibles were handed out to fans at the game that evening.

The season is over for the Dauphin Clippers hockey team.

The Clippers were swept in their best-of-three Westman High School Hockey League semifinal series by the Swan Valley Tigers.

Swan Valley scored a 2-1 victory in game one, Mar. 7 in Dauphin.

Eli Betcher and Bailey Hunt scored for the Tigers, while Jake Kuzmiak replied for Dauphin.

Owen Martyniuk started in goal for the Tigers and made seven saves before leaving with an injury. Nate Immerkar stopped 33 shots in relief.

Owen Chubka made 28 saves in the loss.

Swan Valley completed the sweep with a 4-1 win in game two, Sunday in Swan River.

Jackson Buchanan gave the Clippers a 1-0 lead after the first period, but that was all the offence they could muster.

Hunt and Tucker Thompson put Swan Valley in front after 40 minutes and Trace Langan and Kash Henkelman scored to seal the win in the third period.

Immerkar made 30 saves for the Tigers, while Chubka finished with 17 saves.

Swan Valley will play the winner of the series between the Neepawa Tigers and Killarney/Wawanesa Raiders. That series is tied 1-1, with game three tonight in Killarney.

In between those games, the Clippers traveled to Winnipeg, Friday, for provincials.

The Clippers came up against the top ranked Garden City Gophers in their opening game, with the Gophers scoring three times in the third period to snap a 2-2 tie and skating to a 5-2 victory.

William Miner and Buchanan had Dauphin’s goals.

The second game of the day, saw the Clippers fall to the fourth-ranked team in the province, the Steinbach Regional Sabres.

Playing their second game in a matter of hours, the Clippers ran out of gas, falling 5-1, with Kuzmiak scoring Dauphin’s lone goal.

Any time you don’t win your final game when you’re in the playoffs, it is a disappointing way to end the season, according to Clippers manager Jason Alf.

“But I can’t fault the guys for the way they played in the last series. They worked hard. I think we were the better team for most of those two games. We just, for whatever reason, we found a bad time to go into a scoring drought,” he said.
As for provincials, Dauphin ran into penalty problems against Garden City, which took advantage, scoring four power-play goals.

“There was quite a few, what I like to call phantom calls in that one. We played them twice and gave up nine goals, seven of which were power plays,” Alf said. “We put all our gas into that one and it left us a little empty.”

That was expected given the quick turn around from their first game. The Clippers gave it their all against the Gophers, then had a brief respite while another game took place, before they hit the ice against Steinbach.

“So not much time to rest. We didn’t have time to go anywhere to eat and Steinbach came in fresh and they looked like a team that was well rested,” Alf said.

Looking back on the season, Alf feels it was a success following a second-place finish in the league standings.

“I don’t think any of us really expected that going into the season to be second place with the five losses and overtime loss and the second lowest goals against, which was another bonus,” he said. “We weren’t sure how the scoring was going to work, because we didn’t have a lot of scoring stars, per se, but we had a lot of hard workers and we spread it around.”

The Clippers will lose about half of their team to graduation, so next season is expected to be a rebuilding year.

“But there’s lots of good players in the area and, as usual, we’ll see what’s coming in the fall. But we hope to be back there in the top eight,” Alf said.

The Dauphin Aspen Insurance U13 Gold team, in action against Rivers, hosted provincials, this past weekend.

After recording a 3-3 tie with Rivers and a 4-1 win over Mitchell in the round-robin, the local hosts were eliminated from the tournament with a 5-4 loss to Rivers.

St. Claude won the gold medal with a 6-0 win over Rat River, while Swan Valley scored a 9-6 win over Rivers to win the bronze medal.

The Dauphin Fusion Credit Union U13 Silver team won bronze at their provincials in St. Adolphe.

After losing their opening game to Morden, 3-2, Dauphin rebounded to beat Stonewall, 5-2.

In the quarterfinals, Dauphin defeated Morden 5-3, then lost to Virden, 8-5 in the semifinals. The bronze medal game saw Dauphin beat Springfield, 7-4.

Emma Jensen won the Dauphin Ladies Bonspiel over the weekend.

Jensen and her team of Lane Prokopowich and Becky Friesen, beat Tiffany Armstrong in the final of the first event, sponsored by Eastside Furniture.

Pam Scott was third and Janelle Lach was fourth.

Theresa Payette won the second event, sponsored by Love and Persson Group. Payette and her team of Kaitlyn Payette, Paige Sahulka and Lisa Sahulka, beat Melissa MacQuarrie in the second event final.

Third place went to Bev Hess and in fourth place was Dawn Steiner.

Norma Johnson and her team of Pearl Maksymetz, Kayla Gillis and Terri Todoruk won the third event, sponsored by Fusion Credit Union. They defeated Kelli Zeiler in the final. Kerri Wieler was third and Leanne Fedak was four

The City and Rural Municipality of Dauphin hosted the annual Firefighters Appreciation Dinner, Mar. 8.

The evening included several presentations, including, from left, Devin Kiesman, Chris Davidson, Jordan Steiner and Mitchell Kanton, who all received their five-year service medal.

Also recognized were Conrad Demeria for 10 years of service, Cameron Popiel and Sabrina Anderson for five years of service.

David Clark was recognized for 34 years of service prior to retiring and will receive his award at a later date.

Also at a later date, Wayne Wells will receive the Manitoba Association of Fire Chiefs Long Service Award, and Alvin Bogoslowski will receive the Governor General’s Exemplary Service Bar for 40 years of service.

Fabien Carriere was also recognized for completing his Level 2 exam prior to resigning from the department.

The Dauphin Clippers advanced to the Westman High School Hockey League semifinals with a two-game sweep over the Glenboro/Carberry/Baldur Wildcats in their best-of-three quarterfinal series.

Tyron Sweetman scored twice to lead Dauphin to a 5-3 win in game one, Feb. 28 in Dauphin.

Jake Kuzmiak, Trayden Guiboche and Braydyn Paskaruk each had a goal and an assist, while Owen Chubka made 23 saves in the victory.

Preston Shearer, Nathan Dyck and Carter Elliott had the Wildcats’ goals and Sawyer Wiebe had 29 saves to his credit.

In game two, Wednesday in Glenboro, Ethan Carnegie scored the winning goal 14 seconds into overtime to lift the Clippers to a 4-3 win and the series sweep.

Logan Chapman scored twice in regulation for Dauphin, with Kuzmiak adding a single.

Chubka had a busier night in game two, making 35 saves.

Griffin Anderson, Trey Dickson and Shearer scored for the Wildcats, while Wiebe made 28 saves.

Clippers manager Jason Alf said the Wildcats came out with a lot of pride after allowing six goals in each of the two games between the two teams in the regular season.

“They wanted to redeem themselves. They’re a very hard working team and we knew they weren’t just going to lay over. Playoffs are a new season, so they came out like we thought they would and gave us a good run,” he said.

Alf feels the team was able to stay disciplined, which was a factor in the series win.

“And we really tried to make an adjustment to the way they came out in game two. They didn’t give us a lot of room to do things and their barn is a little bit smaller than ours, so that made it a little more difficult,” he added. “But we never gave up. We never got down. We had three one-goal leads in that game. And really, we just put the pressure on in overtime and didn’t try to do anything fancy. Just kind of muck around and play that gritty hockey and try and score that way. And that’s what worked.”

The Clippers will now face the Swan Valley Tigers in the best-of-three semifinals, with game one tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Credit Union Place.

Game two will be in Swan River, Sunday at 5:30 p.m. Game three, if necessary, will be back in Dauphin, Mar. 14, at 7:30 p.m.

The other semifinal will see the Killarney/Wawanesa Raiders take on the Neepawa Tigers.

On Friday, the Clippers will be in Winnipeg for the AAAA high school hockey provincials.

Their first game is at 11 a.m., against Garden City, followed by a game at 3 p.m. against Steinbach.

The semifinals will be played Saturday, with the championship, Monday at 6:30 p.m.

Several Parkland minor hockey teams won medals at provincials this past weekend.

The host Grand Plains Hawks won gold at the Female U13 Rural B Provincials in Grandview, Sunday, scoring a 4-0 victory over Stonewall, with every goal coming in the third period.

Connelly McDonald scored twice, while Tori Luhowy and Brookelynn Hess added singles. Hess also had three assists.

The Dauphin U15 Kings won the gold at the U15 Rural A Provincials in Morden, beating Brandon in the final, 3-2.

Landyn Garton scored twice, including the winner with less than two minutes remaining, to lead Dauphin to the win.

Ethan Zalischuk had Dauphin’s other goal.

The U15 Kings also won gold at the U15 Rural C Provincials in Melita.

Zak Fillion scored twice, with Kingston Stirling and Ayden Bradley adding singles. Xander Perih picked up the shutout in goal.

Dauphin brought home a silver medal from the U11A Provincials in Swan River.

The Kings fell in the gold medal game to the host Swan Valley Stampeders, 9-3, with Zayne Guiboche, Jaxon Casavant and Emmett Murray scoring for Dauphin.

Grand Plains won the bronze medal at the Female U11C Provincials in Teulon, beating Neepawa, 4-1. No online game summary was provided.

McCreary scored a 10-2 win over Elm Creek to win the bronze medal at the U11C Provincials in Hartney. No online game summary was provided.

Dauphin hosts the U13 Rural A Provincials, this weekend.

The Dauphin Kings moved back into a playoff position following a split of a home-and-home with the first-year Niverville Nighthawks.

Niverville scored a controversial 3-2 shootout win, Friday in Dauphin.

In the five-minute overtime, the Kings thought they had scored the winning goal, but the referee had blown the play dead before the puck crossed the line.

In the shootout, Josh Paulhus, Niverville’s second shooter, skated in and made a shooting motion, missing the puck. He made another shooting motion and scored on the second try, which the on-ice officials counted, giving the Nighthawks the victory.

According to Kings head coach and general manager Doug Hedley, the referees stated Paulhus faked a shot, before he scored.

“He shot twice. There’s no doubt about it,” he said. “We asked if we could appeal a shootout decision, but we can’t. The league has no process in line to appeal a referee’s decision on a shootout goal. There’s nothing else, it’s just a judgement call.”

Dauphin got a measure of revenge two days later with a 7-4 win in Niverville.

“I’ve been really proud of the guys and the way they’ve been playing, because since we beat Steinbach on the Friday at home, we’ve had that urgency, that compete level. Sure we’ve gotten some tough breaks, but we played well enough,” he said. “We stuck to the process in Niverville and we bent a little bit, but found a way to get it done. So that’s the biggest thing, is finding that resolve, that rebound ability and that push back that makes a team tough to beat in playoffs.”

Sunday’s win was the 349th of Doug Hedley career as Kings head coach, moving him one ahead of his former assistant, Marlin Murray.

For Hedley, it is just a number. What is more important to him is the people and players he has worked with over the years.

“Obviously, it’s been an honour and priviledge to coach them. But it’s just a number to me. What it does make you do, is reflect on the players and coaches I’ve worked with in Dauphin,” he said. “It’s more about who I’ve worked with and what they’ve gone on to do later.”

One of the things Hedley has focused on over the years is developing players to get to the next level.

“Hockey is such a great sport. There’s so many life skills to learn in a team sport like hockey, whether it’s being a teammate, whether it’s getting a long with guys, whether it’s learning how to commit to getting better every day,” he said. “All those things are life lessons and a lot of players that I coached have gone on to have successful careers. That means the most to me.”

While he is grateful for the opportunities to coach the Kings on three different occasions, winning, Hedley said, is about more than the success of players and coaches on the ice, noting the board of directors and scouts put in a lot of work, as well, making it a true team effort in building a winning culture.

With three points over the weekend, the Kings improved to 28-21-2-2 for 60 points, moving into the fourth and final playoff spot, one point ahead of the Waywayseecappo Wolverines.

The Kings can widen the spread from the Wolverines tonight when the two teams meet in Waywayseecappo at 7:30 p.m.

On the weekend, Dauphin faces the Centennial Cup host Portage Terriers, Friday in Portage and Saturday in Dauphin. Both games begin at 7:30 p.m.

Hedley feels the younger players will benefit from playing such tightly contested games this late in the season, adding the Kings have beaten Portage in both games they’ve played this season.

“They’re rolling right now, so it’s going to be a great test for us, a good challenge. That’s the kind of team you want to be playing down the stretch because you don’t want to be taking anything for granted,” he said.

Kings court:

Defenceman Aidan Brook was a finalist for the Brian Kozak Memorial Award as Top Defenceman, which went to Winkler’s Trent Sambrook.

Selkirk’s Lucas Brennan won the Steve “Boomer” Hawrysh Memorial Award as Most Valuable Player.

The Ed Belfour Top Goaltender Award went to Swan Valley’s Kobe Grant, while Carter Cormier of Selkirk won the Kim Davis Rookie of the Year Award.

Ryan Botterill of Portage won the Frank McKinnon Award for hockey ability and sportsmanship and Virden’s Tyson Ramsey won the Muzz McPherson Memorial Award as Coach of the Year.