Many were the Ontario minor hockey teams travelling to provincial championships last weekend, near and far.
Few were those for whom the stars aligned, creating a magical run and a lifetime of memories to some very fortunate young boys and girls.
Both the Sudbury U15 BB Lady Wolves and the Barrie U13 AAA Colts found themselves in that select crew, and, to a lesser extent, the Sudbury U11 BB Lady Wolves.
Arenas throughout the GTA were kept busy as hundreds of girls hockey teams made their way to the “Big Smoke”, contesting some thirty or so OWHA banners that were up for grabs.
With four tournament victories already to the credit in 2024-2025, the U15 BB Lady Wolves were one of a handful of the SDGHA rep teams carrying legitimate medal hopes into provincials last week. Still, with 17 of their 22 tournament games to date decided by two goals or less, nothing was guaranteed.
Wins over the Nepean Wildcats (2-0), the Scarborough Sharks (6-0) and the Lindsay Lynx (3-2) allowed the locals to advance to the final eight, where they took a 1-0 lead over the Southpoint Stars into the final minute of play as Alexie Miller netted her 7th of ten goals on the weekend.
But with 0.03 showing on the clock, Southpoint scored – and coach Rob Mininni and staff were forced to fight through the emotion of the moment to ensure that the lessons they have shared every single game of the year shone through when they needed them most.
“We told them to keep doing what you’re doing,” said Mininni. “You can’t worry about things you can’t control. You can’t play with fear, so don’t be afraid to make mistakes. They bought into the vision, they bought into the process.”
And they were rewarded when Mila Kidd netted the game-winning goal as Lauren Bois and Melody Lavergne drew assists.
Next up, the Temiskaming Shores Puckhounds. Through a dozen previous encounters this past winter, the Sudbury girls had never prevailed. Not once. Came close several times, but no wins over the Tri-Towns to speak of.
That would change when with under a minute to play in the semi-final match-up, Hailee Paradis tipped a point shot from Melody Lavergne, sending the Lady Wolves to the final with a 2-1 victory.
There, the Keene Wolverines awaited, a side that had surrendered just one goal in their four previous encounters heading into the gold medal affair. The teams traded regulation time goals, setting the stage for a little overtime play.
In girls hockey, however, a “little” overtime play takes on a whole new meaning.
Well into the fifth ten minute session that followed the supposed final buzzer, Sudbury caught a break. With Alexie Miller bolting out from the penalty box, her team having worked tooth and nail to kill off an untimely infraction to their leading scorer, a stretch pass lane opened.
Catching the sight of Miller from the corner of her eye, defenceman Brooklyn Mininni swept out a perfectly timed backhand pass, hitting the sniper in stride. Moments later, the Sudbury bench erupted as coach Mininni remained thankful for the teachings of a lifetime spent in golf.
“When we’re nervous, we take a deep breath and squeeze our hockey stick for 30 seconds,” he said, sharing a strategy that was offered to him by a golf sport psychologist. “It releases the tension – and it’s a tactic that we use all the time.”
Joining goaltender Abigail Ouimet on the roster (she would play every single game the entire year between the pipes) were Grace Demers, Quinn Houle, Maya Croskery, Kayleigh Crew, Presley Brennan, Lauren Bois, Ava Cloutier, Eva Haraschuk, Ella Gatien, Penelope Ouimet, Sofia Mallozzi and Evelyn Joly (as well as the girls previously mentioned).
Though expectations for the Sudbury U11 BB Lady Wolves were far more modest, the only other local team to advance to Sunday play at the OWHA Provincials rode a second shutout performance from Maeve Mahoney and a last second breakaway goal from Danica Beaudry to finish round robin play at 3-0.
In the Sunday morning semi-final, the Lady Wolves and Toronto-Leaside Wildcats traded a total of four goals, the contest deadlocked at 2-2 and heading to overtime. Then second overtime. A few minutes into the fifth period, Leaside would strike, forcing the northern squad to try and find a way to re-group and console the youngsters, with bronze medals still on the line.
In typical girls hockey fashion, scoring was limited as the Lady Wolves and London Devilettes battled for bronze. Tory Thibault broke the ice late in period two, finishing off a play that also included helpers from Clara Savignac and Danica Beaudry. Maeve Mahoney would hold that 1-0 score intact until Amélie Thompson netted an empty-netter as the buzzer sounded, giving Sudbury a 2-0 win and a third place finish.
After cruising through round robin play with a 3-0-0 record, the U15 A Lady Wolves were sent packing by the Brampton Canadettes in quarter-final play, edged 3-2 on Saturday night.
A first game 3-1 loss to the Toronto-Leaside Wildcats in a contest the U15 AA Lady Wolves would dearly like to have back negated a pair of wins to close things off as a 2-1-0 record wasn't enough to move the top five time along.
Similar story for the U18 A Lady Wolves, also posting a record of 2-1-0 but coming up short of winning their pool. The U13 A Lady Wolves undefeated at 1-0-2 but ironically would lose the tie-breaker to the only team they beat (Brantford Ice Cats - 2-1-0).
The Sudbury U13 BB, U18 AA and Senior B teams all notched on win in three tries while the U18 BB, U11B and U11 AA squads all had a tough go of it, finishing at 0-3-0.
