The good news, from the standpoint of Silver Stick Tournament organizers, is that the event continues to draw well from areas across Ontario, outside of simply the North.
The bad news, from the standpoint of local teams, is that the challenge to advance to "International Silver Stick" competition is substantially more difficult than some 20-25 years ago, when the bulk of the entries were NOHA carded opponents.
The annual Sudbury Regional Silver Stick tournament kicked off yesterday. The event wraps up with finals on Sunday. You can follow the results on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/Sudbury-Regional-Silver-Stick-1471213036458462/) and on Twitter (https://twitter.com/sudburyregional).
Yet the local minor hockey talent, across the board, continues to embrace the mountain that stands before them. "Last year, we beat the top team in the tournament (Gloucester) in the round robin to advance to the semis," said Sudbury Major Bantam "AA" Wolves forward Jack Heaphy.
"But then we lost to them in the semis, so that was disappointing."
The Bantam Wolves will welcome both the Kanata Rangers and North York Knights to their division, along with their more traditional rivalries with the Nickel City Sons and Sports Gold Rush from Sault Ste Marie.
According to Heaphy, his team will enter this tournament with cautious optimism.
"It's mostly the same guys (on our team) as last year," he said. "It's good, because we already know most of the systems. We get the early step on teams that have a lot of new players, which helps us."
"But we have to put the puck in the net, because we haven't really been doing that very well lately," Heaphy added. "We have to keep the pressure on the other team, when we're in their zone, and keep our focus."
Much like the Major Bantams, the lineup of the Sudbury Major Atom "AA" Wolves enjoys a great deal of familiarity within the group. That said, the bulk of this team were members of the Copper Cliff Minor Atom Redmen one year ago.
Along with the new uniforms, the young lads also welcome a new face behind the bench, as Barry McCrory begins a new coaching cycle with a whole new group of youngsters.
"He's a little more strict," said high-scoring forward Atom Thususka.
"Our practices are similar to last year and the ones in years before, maybe a little harder. The breakout is about the same, and we do a lot of passing, skating and shooting drills."
Thususka is no stranger to the rinks, a frequent visitor during the local playing days of his older brother, Ryder, who now suits up with the Upper Canada College Blues.
"Well, he's a defenseman and I'm a forward, so I didn't pick up that much," said Atom.
"Forward is more fun, because you get to go up, shoot a lot, and you get to score."
Coming off a silver medal performance at the Mississauga Cup earlier this fall, the Major Atom Wolves will join more than 80 teams gathering in Sudbury from Thursday to Sunday, with play taking place in Garson, Walden, Copper Cliff, as well as at the Gerry McCrory Countryside Sports Complex and Carmichael Arena.
Championship finals are slated for Sunday, with action beginning at 8 a.m. and running through until roughly the mid-afternoon.
