Mitch Calvert
The Fort Frances Canadians took bronze at a hockey tournament in Wayzata over the weekend.
The local Midget ‘AA’ squad opened action with a 3-2 win against Wessey’s Boys, getting goals from D.J. Bombay, Jordan Sinclair, and Tim Sharp.
They then tied Burnsville 2-2, getting a pair of goals from Sinclair, before falling short of advancing to the tournament final with a 4-1 loss to Brookings.
“They were a bunch of big boys, and one of the big factors in our loss was the large Olympic surface we were playing on,” Canadians’ assistant coach Marcel Pagee said.
“We kind of rushed ourselves, used to the North American game where you have a smaller surface and have to react a little quicker, and guys were turning the puck over in the neutral zone and at our blueline.”
Ryder Woolsey netted the lone goal in the loss to Brookings.
The Canadians redeemed themselves, however, with a 5-3 over Bloomington-Jefferson in the bronze-medal game, getting two goals from Jeff Cridland and singles from Sharp, Brett Bodnarchuk, and Colin Barton.
“It was a really deep tournament, talent-wise,” Pagee noted. “The guys played intense, and we had different guys burying the puck.
“It was a good weekend following up the week of practices and two victories [last weekend], and everybody is on a good roll right now,” he added.
The Canadians were in International Falls yesterday for a game against the Broncos’ junior varsity team (the outcome was unavailable prior to press time), then they will travel to Grand Rapids for an exhibition tilt Saturday.
