The Greater Sudbury Cubs are in Calgary this week in a 10-team contest to secure the Centennial Cup and title of Canada’s best junior A hockey team.
Their first game will get underway tonight at the Max Bell Centre in Calgary, where the Cubs take on the Grand Prairie Storm of the Alberta Junior Hockey League at 9:30 p.m. ET.
The Cubs secured their place in the national tournament on April 30, when they defeated the Hearst Lumberjacks 6-4 to earn the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League title at the close of a seven-game affair.
The local team’s playoff record was 12-3, and their season record topped the league at 44-6-1-1.
There are 12 players on the Cubs’ roster who also competed in last year’s Centennial Cup in Oakville, at which the Cubs notched one win and three losses.
They have a strong team this year, a media release issued by the NOJHL noted.
“Led by playoff MVP, Cubs centre Lucas Signoretti was a force in the postseason,” they wrote.
“He paced all league skaters in offensive production, collecting 36 points in 15 outings on a league-best 17 goals and 19 assists. His four game-winning markers were also the most. ... He had points in 14 of 15 games, including 11 multi-point efforts. Collecting 101 points in the regular season, Signoretti earned a second straight NOJHL MVP award, thus becoming only the second player in league history to capture back-to-back MVP laurels and first to do so since the 1965-66 campaign.”
Forward Daks Klinkhammer wrapped the postseason with 10 tallies and 14 assists for 24 points, while forward Nolan Newton notched 22 points.
On defence, Spencer Horgan led all NOJHL blueliners in scoring with 25 points, including 14 in the league finals. Defenceman William Haley followed him with five, while Alexandre Valade had four.
Goaltender Karsen Chartier went 11-2 in the NOJHL playoffs with a 3.15 goals-against average and a save percentage of .909, and his two shutouts topped all league netminders.
Joining the Cubs at the Centennial Cup are:
- Grand Prairie Storm (playing the Cubs at 9:30 p.m. on May 9)
- Northern Manitoba Blizzard (playing the Cubs at 9:30 p.m. on May 10)
- Trenton Golden Hawks (playing the Cubs at 6 p.m. on May 12)
- Kam River Fighting Walleye (playing the Cubs at 2 p.m. on May 14)
- Calgary Canucks
- Melfort Mustangs
- Rockland Nationals
- Valleyfield Braves
- Edmundston Blizzard
Featuring two divisions of five, the top team in each group will earn a direct berth to the semifinals, which will take place on May 17.
The game to determine the 2024-25 Centennial Cup champion will air live on TSN at 7 p.m. ET on May 18.
All other contests will be streamed live on a pay-per-view basis via HNLive.ca.