OPP wins consolation crown

On paper, Sunday’s consolation final of the Fort Frances Midget ‘A’ hockey tournament had all the makings of a great game.
The contest featured two teams—Fort Frances OPP and Fort Frances Legion—who were extremely familiar with one another, given they compete in the same local house league.
Their most recent clash—on Friday night during the round-robin portion of the tournament—was a see-saw affair in which the OPP rallied from a one-goal deficit in the third period to earn a 4-3 victory.
Indeed, fan expectations were high as the two teams lined up for the opening face-off at the Ice for Kids Arena Sunday morning. But unlike most anticipated games in which the hype outweighs the actual product on the ice, this one did not disappoint.
After no fewer than four lead changes, the OPP finally took control late in the second period and then weathered the Legion’s comeback bid to earn the 6-4 win and third-place finish.
“They played a heck of a game of hockey today [Sunday],” OPP co-head coach Warren Williams said of his team. “We’re very, very proud of the boys. They played really well.
“I don’t think you can find any better hockey than what was going on,” he added. “It was pretty fast, pretty clean, and there were some good hits. The boys put a lot of effort into it.”
“Both teams played well,” echoed Legion assistant coach Dennis Calder.
“The guys are all pretty good hockey players. They can all shoot the puck well,” he noted.
OPP forward Steve Williams scored the game’s opening goal, taking a pass from Darren Foster and beating Legion goalie Nick Kellar to give his team the early 1-0 advantage.
But the Legion tied the game just prior to the first intermission on a fluke goal.
Jason Matthews, looking to relieve the OPP pressure, fired the puck the length of the ice on the OPP net. Goalie Joe McMillen misjudged the play and the puck somehow found its way into the back of the net.
The second period opened with a wild exchange that saw the two teams combine to score four goals in just over a minute.
Legion forward Justin Rose started the flurry—corralling the puck at the side of the net and firing it past McMillen after Curtis Logue partially fanned his shot attempt on a Chris Anderson centering pass.
The OPP wasted little time in responding. After the ensuing face-off, Foster skated down the left-wing boards and fired a shot that appeared to be tipped by the Legion defender before finding its way past Kellar.
The Legion regained the lead less than a minute later as Rose got the puck to Ben Klyne, who slipped a backhand past McMillen low and to the glove side to put his team up 3-2.
The slim advantage lasted no longer than 15 seconds, though, as OPP defenceman Garret Howells took a pass from Neil Roy, made a move to his backhand as he cut in front of the net, and beat Kellar five-hole.
Howells then added two more goals before the end of the period—both on booming slapshots—to earn a rare natural hat trick and give the OPP a 5-3 lead heading into the final 20 minutes of play.
“The big Howells boy has a canon,” Calder remarked after the game. “If he gets a shot away, he scores. He’s a good player.”
Faron Morriseau was credited with an assist on the second Howells’ goal while Roy earned his second point of the game with an assist on Howells’ third tally.
The Legion cut the deficit to one midway through the third period when Jonathon Monahan hit Klyne with a pass in the OPP zone. Klyne circled the net, turned, and fired a wrist shot into the top corner for his second goal of the game.
However, that was as close as they’d come as Williams scored an empty-netter with less than a minute left to seal the victory for the OPP.
The Legion advanced to the consolation final after posting a 1-1-2 record in round-robin play.
They opened the tournament with a 2-2 tie against the Fort Frances Minor Hockey Association. Then after losing 4-3 to the OPP, they tied the Emo Cowboys 3-3 before nipping Kenora Canadian Tire 2-1.
Meanwhile, the OPP earned a spot in the third-place game courtesy of a round-robin record of 2-2.
After dropping their opening game 3-1 to the Emo Cowboys, the OPP rebounded with a pair of 4-3 victories over the Legion and the FFMHA.
But they stumbled in their final round-robin game, losing 9-3 to Kenora Canadian Tire, who emerged as the eventual tourney champs.