The Sudbury Nickel Capital Wolves will face five of the best AAA midget hockey teams from across Canada in Arnprior from April 21 to 27. Here's a look at the five teams they will face in their quest to be the best in the country.
Calgary Buffaloes
Pacific Region Champions
The last time the Buffaloes stepped on the ice at a national
championship, they lost the longest game in tournament history
- a triple-overtime classic to the Prince Albert Mintos in the
2006 gold medal game.  History is on the side of the
Buffaloes, as all five previous trips they have made to the
National Midget Championship have resulted in a medal - one
gold (1989), one silver (2006) and three bronze (1985, 1987,
1998).
Regular season record: 21-9-6. Leading scorer (games played,
goals, assists, points): Brett Switzer 36-28-20-48.
Top goalie (record, GAA, save percentage): Sean Cahill 11-6-3,
2.50 GAA, .918 save percentage. Head coach: James Poole.
Cole Harbour McCains
Atlantic Region Champions
Fifth-place finishers in 2005, the McCains enter the event as
arguably the hottest team in the country, riding an 11-game
winning streak. Facing elimination in their second-round NSMMHL
series against Cape Breton, the McCains won games six and seven
and haven't looked back, sweeping through the NSMMHL final and
the Atlantic Regional.
Record: 33-13-0. Leading scorer: Stuart Lenehan 35-28-14-42.
Top goalie: Philip Wright 2.10 GAA. Head coach: Steve
Crowell
Ottawa Valley Titans
Host team
After a so-so regular season, the Titans really picked up their
play during the closing weeks of the season, and carried their
strong play into the post season, where they won the OEMHL
championship and finished third at the Central Regional.
History is not on the side of the Titans, as just three host
teams (North Hill in 1984, Richelieu in 1990 and Calgary in
1991) have ever won the national championship, although last
year's hosts from Red Deer pushed the eventual champions from
Prince Albert to double overtime in the gold medal game.
Record: 17-17-4. Head coach: Martin Dagenais. No statistics
available.
Blizzard Du Seminaire Saint-Francois
Quebec Region Champions
The most decorated team in national midget championship history
is back for a 14th visit, looking for their 13th medal.
Formerly the Gouverneurs de Ste-Foy, the Blizzard claimed its
second consecutive Quebec championship with a dominating
four-game sweep of Gatineau in the league final, although it
was almost on the wrong end of one of the rarest feats in
hockey in their semi-final - up 3-0 against Collège
Antoine-Girouard, it lost games four, five and six, and needed
a third-period comeback to win Game 7 on the road.
The Blizzard is the only returnee from the 2007 TELUS Cup in
Red Deer, AB, and will look for a fourth gold medal, which
would tie the Regina Pat Canadians for the most national
championships by one team.
Record: 32-12-0-1. Top scorer: Guillaume Asselin 45-24-30-54.
Top goalie: Jean-Philippe Gagnon 19-7-0-1, 2.35 GAA, .904. Head
coach: Serge Beausoleil.
Winnipeg Thrashers
West Region Champions
The Thrashers were the only Canadian Midget team to run the
table during the regular season, going 40-0, and the playoffs,
going 9-0. Despite a loss in the West Regional to the Notre
Dame Hounds, the Thrashers carry an impressive 51-1 record into
the 2008 TELUS Cup, and are only the fifth non-Saskatchewan
team since 1991 to win the West Region. History is on their
side, as the other four teams - Thunder Bay in 1992, 1995, 1996
and 1997, and Brandon in 2004 - all played in the gold medal
game at the National Midget Championship.
The Thrashers will be the host team in 2009 when the national
championship comes to Selkirk, MB.
Record: 51-1. Top scorer: Cole Pruden 40-25-28-53. Top goalie:
Joey Rewucki 21-0-0, 1.18 GAA. Head coach: Kevin Benson.
-With files from Hockey Canada
