Playoff prizes potted in one fell swoop

Posted by Sudbury Northern Life 

It was one of those decisions that is all too rare within the circles of minor hockey. A change that was almost universally acclaimed as a step in the right direction, and received near unanimous support from all those involved.

A few years back, the Nickel District Minor Hockey League (NDMHL) decided to forgo the concept of the playoff series at levels peewee and below. Rather, the NDMHL initiated a weekend tournament format, handing out all 10 divisional trophies over the span of three or four days.

With ice time availability, team plans, March break and countless other challenges standing in the way of completing certain post-season match-ups, the move was a welcomed relief to coaches and parents alike.

This past weekend, the Nickel District gang staged its playoff weekend at three local arenas, and while some of the results were quite predictable, a handful of championship affairs managed to provide a great deal of excitement.

In novice play, the Sudbury Bulldogs - who lost just one of 24 regular season encounters - completed the post-season sweep, chalking up four straight victories while surrendering just a single goal against. Sudbury blanked the Valley East Rebels 4-0 in the final, garnering the Dan Susteric Novice A trophy.

Braedan Dumais paced the Bulldogs' attack with a two-goal effort, with singles coming from Carter Wachnuk and Mathieu Dokis-Dupuis. The Al Arbour Novice B hardware was awarded to the Walden Devils, courtesy of a 5-1 championship game win over the Nickel Centre Flyers.

Callum Dolphin enjoyed a two-goal outing to lead the way for Walden, with singles coming from Brandon Atkins, Matthew Kvaltin and Samuel Sirkka. Logan Davidson replied with the only Nickel Centre goal.

Dominance reigned atop the minor atom division, as well. Just a few weeks removed from capturing the NOHA minor atom A banner, the Valley East Rebels completed an impressive season with a 6-0 whitewashing of the Sudbury Bulldogs, to lay claim to the Al Secord A championship.

Bradley Chenier added two, while Alexandre Baronette, Ryan Boudreau, Cameron Mostoway and Damien Giroux each added one, in the Valley East goals, as the 1999-born Rebels attempted to follow in the footsteps of two successful major atom teams in the past two years.

There was a great deal more excitement for the minor atom B final, as the Sudbury Lady Wolves enjoyed a 2-0 lead late in the gold-medal game, only to see the Manitoulin Panthers send the game to overtime on goals from Trenton Bond and Jackson Linklater.

Roughly three minutes into the second overtime period, Alyssa Charsley took a centering pass and slid it home for the game-winning marker, earning her team the George Armstrong B championship trophy. Haley Moskal and Ashley McKerral had staked the girls to a 2-0 lead earlier in the game.

The Toe Blake championship A banner was on the line as the Valley East Rebel Major Atoms attempted to add the playoff title to their regular season crown. And while the Walden Devils had managed to get the better of the Rebels on a couple of occasions early in the season, that wasn't the case this past Sunday as Valley East bounced the Devils 5-0.

Broedy Bertrand (2), Brad Boivin, Dustin Theriault and David Ranger all managed to find the back of the net for the Rebels - one of four local teams preparing for upcoming OHF championships on Easter weekend.

As was the case in the minor atom division, it was the B championship which provided the bulk of the drama. Evan Davies netted his second goal of the game, with just 51 seconds remaining, to lift the Copper Cliff Redmen past the Rayside-Balfour Tigers 4-3. The fifth-place finishers in regular season play walked away with the Gerry McCrory banner.

Nicholas Greasley and Patrick Lapointe rounded out the scoring for Copper Cliff while Austin Burke, with two, and Korbin Cecchini-McAuley replied in a losing cause for the Tigers.

Perhaps the most well-contested of all was the A championships at the minor peewee level, which should come as no great surprise as the Sudbury Bulldogs, Walden and Copper Cliff were separated by just six points atop league standings.

When the dust settled on Sunday, it was the Bulldogs who emerged carrying the Eddie Shack Trophy, knocking off the Walden Devils 5-3 in the final. A well-balanced Sudbury attack saw Bradley Sutton, Duncan Stewart, Pierce Wallingford, Brad Mackenzie and Cameron Quenville all find the back of the net for the Bulldogs.

Jason Bednarski answered with a pair of goals for Walden, with Curtis Schryer chipping in with a single. In the Jim Pappin B final, Connor Vaillancourt netted a pair of goals, helping to lift the Copper Cliff Redmen past the Valley East Rebels 4-0. Tyler Soulliere and Matthew Lewis rounded out the scoring for the victors.

And finally, the major peewee grouping rounded off the festivities out in Azilda, as the Copper Cliff Redmen, yet another OHF qualifying team, squeaked past the Sudbury minor peewee AAA Wolves 2-1 to secure the Art Beaupre A championship. The Valley East Rebels fought back from an early 2-0 deficit, doubling the Nickel Centre Flyers 6-3 and walking away with the Frank St. Marseille B banner.