Posted by Greater Sudbury Northern Life 
I suppose one could argue that you really can't have an
intense, deeply-rooted rivalry when one of the teams has
existed for less than two years. But that would be splitting
hairs.
Back to a time a decade or two  before all of the young
athletes - who will take the ice, donning Sudbury and Nickel
City jerseys this weekend at both the midget and bantam AAA
level - were even born, kids represented the city and district
in their own version of  turf wars.
The current crop of NOBHL (Northern Ontario Bantam AAA Hockey
League) and GNML (Great North Midget League) stars might find
it hard to believe, but there was a time when both groups could
operate virtually independently.
The Sudbury Minor Hockey Association was a self-contained
organization, running divisions from atom through midget, all
stocked with five to six city teams within each age grouping.
Same story in the Nickel District loop as mainstays like Valley
East, Rayside-Balfour and Walden were joined each year by teams
from Capreol, Onaping Falls and Coniston.
Over time, dwindling numbers gave way to interlocking schedules
which eventually gave way to merged leagues - an absolute
necessity in order to provide some amount of competition.
But through it all, the dividing line has always been drawn in
the sand. The almagation of municipal government services did
little to dissuade the rivalry existing when the city and
district lock horns. And the latest installment - which kicks
off Saturday - promises to be a dandy, as the defending Telus
Cup champions Nickel Capital Wolves prepare to face the Nickel
City Sons in GNML action.
Coming off a sub-par season, the Sons have had to sit back and
acknowledge grudgingly the accomplishments of the city folk.
Most Great North observers had pegged the Sons and Wolves at a
relatively even level, joining the Soo North Stars as the
likely top three. Nickel City would boast an offense ranking
among the league's best, second only to the Stars in goals
scored.
Meanwhile, the defending champs were continually reminded this
"was not the team of one year ago."
With just six players returning from the 07-08 squad, the
Nickel Capital Wolves' dreams of anything close to a repeat
would be built from the back-end out, focusing on a commitment
to team defense to keep them in every game.
Over the past five months, Sudbury has scooped up the bulk of
bragging rights, picking up five straight victories before
dropping the season finale at the end of January. But these
teams are very well-matched.
It would be next to impossible to discuss the NOBHL semifinal
between the Sudbury Bantam AAA Wolves and Nickel City Sons
(formerly Onaping Falls Huskies) without acknowledging how
close these teams are on ice.
The two local entries in the five team loop have gone
head-to-head in NOBHL regular season play 10 times this year.
On seven occasions, the game has been decided by a single goal,
while two contests ended in ties.
The Sudbury Bantams lineup has produced a little more offense
than the Sons while Nickel City fought the Soo right to the end
as the league's top defensive team.
The bantam Sons captured an amazing six wins by the slimmest of
margins over the Wolves, lifting the team past Sudbury into
second place in league standings, with just a five point
difference between the two.
Of the names to watch, the Nickel City tandem of Mitchell Byrne
and Cody Gratton could shoulder the load offensively, while
Sudbury counters with a one-two punch of Steven Johnston and
Brandon Jones.
The respective defensive units will be anchored by the likes of
Kyle Fransen (Sby) and Cameron Ayotte (NC), but it will
surprise few if this best of five affair boils down to
goaltending.
With all four goalies having seen action regularly through the
year, don't be shocked if the hot hand of Andrew Lefebvre
(Sby), Max Veilleux (NC), Zach Rolston (NC) or Mario Parisotto
(Sby) proves to be the difference.
Yes, there is plenty of talk locally that in time, Sudbury will
feature a single AAA organization representing an entire
regional area. But for now, we'll be sure to enjoy this rivalry
while it lasts.
Randy Pascal is the voice of Personal 10 Sports and the founder of SudburySports.com.
