A new four-storey mural on the south wall of the Palomino Club at 436 Main Street commemorates the Winnipeg Victorias, the three-time Stanley Cup champions from 1896, 1901, and 1902.

According to a Winnipeg Free Press report by journalist Taylor Allen, SRS Signs & Services Inc installed the artwork. On November 5, the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame & Museum (MHHOF) formally introduced the mural. Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham joined several speakers at the announcement.

The mural is a personal moment for Dave Benson, whose grandfather, Robert Benson, played for the Victorias. “You come down Main Street from the south, and you see it from three or four blocks back,” he told Allen for the Winnipeg Free Press. “I just feel absolute pride.”

The project marks the MHHOF’s 40th anniversary and coincides with the upcoming 130th anniversary of the Victorias’ first Stanley Cup win. MHHOF president Jordy Douglas said the organization aimed to make a visible statement. “We chose a wonderful artist, the colours pop, and we left enough room on that wall so when the Jets win the cup, they can go right next to them,” he said to the newspaper.

Artist Jen Mosienko created the mural with assistant Emmit McGregor. Mosienko, whose husband is the grandson of hockey star Billy Mosienko, has completed several public artworks in Winnipeg, including a mural of her husband’s grandfather and a Pray for Ukraine piece.

Heritage and histories

As reported by the Winnipeg Free Press, the mural required three years of planning and multiple location considerations. Because the Palomino Club building is a designated heritage structure, officials did not permit the artists to paint directly on the wall. Instead, the team produced the image on 24 panels, and SRS Signs installed them.

Mosienko told Allen the team worked in a space with a 4.2-m (14-ft) ceiling and first saw the mural assembled only after crews mounted it outdoors. “I think for me, the initial relief was ‘OK, it all matches up,’” she said.

The mural highlights an early chapter in Winnipeg’s hockey history. In 1896, the Victorias defeated Montreal 2–0, becoming the first team outside Quebec to claim the Stanley Cup. When they returned home, thousands gathered on Main Street for what is considered the first Stanley Cup parade, the Free Press noted. The team won the trophy again in 1901 and 1902.

Original story: https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/featured/2025/11/05/victorias-day-in-november