BY SCOTT HUNTER HADDOW
They have a lot to prove.
The St. Charles Cardinals boys hockey team is
gearing up for war in the Ontario Federation of School Athletic
Associations (OFSAA) 'AAA' hockey championship in
Windsor.
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The St. Charles College Cardinals
hockey club is confident heading into the All-Ontario
tournament. The Cards and their coaching staff believe
the club has a legitimate chance to win the gold medal.
They play their first game Wednesday. |
The tournament, featuring the best AAA high
school hockey teams from across the province, begins Wednesday,
March 30.
The Cardinals have already proved their
mettle in getting to the OFSAA championship tournament.
Earlier in March, the Cards defeated the
Confederation Chargers three-games-to-one to claim the city
championship.
Then, the Cards rolled through the Northern
Ontario Secondary School's Athletics (NOSSA) championship,
downing North Bay's Widdifield Wildcats in the final game
2-0 to become the Northern Ontario champions.
Now, the Cards focus is on the big prize - to
be crowned the best high school boy's hockey team in the
province.
"We were the favourites this year in Sudbury,
right from the beginning of the season," said head coach Mike
Fox. "The players took it upon themselves they were going to
try and succeed at the highest level possible in the city and
at NOSSA, and they did. Now, they want to make noise and
perform well down at the OFSAA championship."
Preparation for the OFSAA championship
isn't an easy chore, especially when the Cards don't
get to see their competition too much during the regular
season.
"It's very difficult preparation," said
Fox. "We have seen some of the teams when we participated in
tournaments in North Bay and Burlington earlier this year. We
have seen OFSAA-calibre teams at these events. On a couple of
occasions, we have played these OFSAA teams, and played them at
an optimum level, so we have an idea of what our competition is
like."
The Cards are a well-rounded bunch and the
tone of their play was set early in the season.
"In the first tournament of the year, in
Lively, we ended up winning it, and our team came together at
that moment," said Fox. "We have had a solid effort from our
defence corps this year.
"They have turned things around from last
year. Our defence is big and can hit, but at the same time,
they can move the puck out of our zone. We also have some
offensively gifted forwards with scoring potential.
"Our forte amongst our forwards is their
ability to forecheck and keep the other team hemmed up in their
own zone. We do play well in our own zone and break out well.
If we can keep that going, then we can succeed. In the past few
weeks, our goaltending has come on strong. Throughout the year,
it was the suspect area of our team, but in the last couple of
weeks, our goaltending has improved and kept us in tight
games."
Fox has his troops battle-hardened.
"We have to be tough in Windsor,"said Fox.
"We have to be able to absorb punishment and give it out. OFSAA
is a torture test for teams. We play four round-robin games in
two days. If we make the playoffs, then we play two more games,
followed by a championship game. Potentially, you could end up
playing seven games in four days, so your team has to be tough
physically and mentally. It's a very tough brand of hockey
down there."
The Cardinals' players predict they will
be in the hunt for the gold medal.
"We knew we could get to OFSAA," said captain
Jeff Mussen. "It was our goal all year. Now, it's just a
matter of getting it all together and putting it all on the
line.
"We have to play as hard as we can down
there. We have a lot of good players, so as long as everybody
gives it their all, then we have a really good shot. We know
there will be a lot of great competition there, but gold is our
ultimate goal. We want to get out of our division first, and
then see what happens in the playoff round. We want to make the
best of this chance."
The Cards are eager to show the rest of
Ontario what Sudbury is made of.
"Everybody thinks we are a joke coming from
Sudbury," said Darren Fabiilli. "We want to prove we are real
contenders and that we can go for the Ontario
championship."
The Cards play their first game on Wednesday,
March 30.
So far, through exhibition, regular and
playoff games, the Cards have forged a record of 25-7- 4.
The Cards roster includes Jesse Eibl, Greg
Zacher, Kyle Francis, Ryan Leroy, Bobby Marion, Matt Kinnear,
Kris Purawec, Darren Fabiilli, Kevin Ricciuto, Curtis Moores,
Josh Mayne, Jeff Mussen, Shawn Pajuluoma, Trevor Gibbons, Chris
St. Jean, Jacob Kaven and Dave Carr, head coach Mike Fox,
assistant coaches Brain Ceppetelli, Bepi Polano and Trevor
Henry, as well as trainer Shawn Pitfield.
