The Minor Midget division within the Northeast Houseleague Hockey loop may only be two years old, but that hasn’t stopped it from gathering plenty of supporters. Count SMHA Bulldogs head coach Steve Lauzon and staff among the converts. 

“The risk of injury is minimized so much given that you’re not dealing with kids ranging from 14 to 17 years old”, explained Lauzon. Of course, having an eleven team grouping that has proven extremely competitive hasn’t hurt the cause either. 

In fact, it appeared that the Sudbury Minor Hockey Association would probably field a single houseleague minor midget entry until the abundance of kids from the “AA” system forced the SMHA to rethink that strategy. 

Enter the Bulldogs and the SMHA Red Wings. The local minor hockey association decided to allow coaching staffs from both organizations to hold a dual “evaluation” process prior to having the two groups draft their respective teams. 

The second SMHA entry in this division allowed Lauzon to join forces once again with long-time coaching buddy Mark Palkovits, not to mention re-acquainting himself with a good portion of the youngsters who would don the Bulldogs colours this year. 

“It made it really easy to step in and coach these kids – there’s only a handful that I didn’t know before hand” said Lauzon, drawing on his previous coaching experience, not only in hockey but also within the soccer and lacrosse ranks. 

With somewhere in the vicinity of two-thirds of the Dogs roster having played NOHA hockey at some time,  Lauzon admits that the coaching staff enjoyed a solid foundation from which to mould this team. 

“Having the players have some exposure to hockey systems really helps”, he said. While the talkative bench boss has crossed paths with many of his players in years gone by, the reality for this squad is that very few have played together on an on-going basis moving forward. 

But as the Bulldogs near the end of their regular season schedule, the team sits solidly in fourth place, sporting a record of 12-6-2 and coming off a very good weekend of play, with strong outings against both the Espanola Ice Dogs and Valley East Desjardins Food Basics, the teams occupying the top top spots in league standings. 

“I think we’re right where we want to be right now – peaking at just the right time”, suggest Lauzon. “The camaraderie in the dressing room is there – there’s not an urgency to necessarily win every game – it’s very much about fun for these boys.” 

And Lauzon points to one of the many “characters of the game” that he has encountered over the years as just one example of why coaching can be so much fun. “I’ve had this kid on and off for about six or seven years. He’s definitely the most “gaseous” guy that I’ve ever coached”, laughs Lauzon. 

He recalls with fondness many a stern pre-game or mid-game hockey discussion that would suddenly become secondary to the players’ thoughts as the “odour” of personal gas worked its way through the room. 

“He’s done this on and on for years…and I wouldn’t want to change him one bit. He’s just a great kid, and he really helps keeps things light”, notes Lauzon. “His priority is not hockey – his priority is fun and you have to have one like this in your dressing room.” 

The SMHA Bulldogs roster for 2007-08 includes: Carter Drake, Michael Baas, Chase Assiniwe, Damien Mullen, Justin Palkovits, Kutis Lauzon, Doug Bennett, Alex St Laurent, Brandon Piche, Erik Duhamel, Nathan Martin, JF Cameron, Wyatt Yallowega, Cody Lemieux, Joey Terrell, Hayden Sherrington and Ben Terrell. 

Coaching staff is comprised of Steve Lauzon, assistant coaches Mark Palkovits and Dan Piche , trainer Mark Baldisera as well as team manager Kathy Palkovits.