Still winless

Rainer Prager says the Thunder Bay Kings deserved a better fate.

Winless at the All-Ontario Pee Wee AAA Championship, his hockey squad held fast and steady Tuesday night against the province’s fifth-ranked team, but fell apart in a five-minute span in the third and fell 8-2 to the Nickel City Sons at Fort William Gardens.

“I thought the kids started off slow, but I think once we made a couple minor line changes that kind of stimulated them and then they actually started playing as they’re capable of playing,” said Prager, whose team dropped to 0-3-1 in the seven-team provincial championship.

“They played really well for the rest of the game, I would say, until the last five minutes of the game. They moved the puck well, they were going toe-to-toe with Sudbury. It is what it is and I think they deserve a lot more credit than what the score indicated in this game.”

The Kings, who never led, found themselves down2-0 before the four-minute mark hit in the opening stanza, Nickel City getting goals from Jordan Spadafore and Landon Thomson, who stole a puck deep in enemy territory and slammed the puck past Thunder Bay goalie Kane Sabbe.

Kings forward Robert Tyska cut the deficit in half at 5:21 of the first, firing a backhand off a Justin Paul rebound that Sons goalie Matty Mahew had no chance to stop.

But then a scramble in front of the Kings net led to a Quinton Bertrand tally, ending Sabbe’s night, replaced by Christian Cicigoi.

Christian Gaudreau upped the lead to 4-1 with under a minute to play in the second, taking a cross-crease pass from Damien Giroux, who later scored his tournament-leading fifth goal.

Giroux, who tops all point-getters with seven points in three games, said he’s not sure what’s gotten into him.

“I never would have thought I would be leading the tournament in points or leading in goals, so I’m pretty proud of myself right now,” said Giroux, who turned 13 a little more than a month ago.

“I’m just burying my opportunities and being at the right moment at the right time.”

In the thick of the playoff race, the youngster said the Sons (2-1-0) just have to keep doing what’s gotten them in this position so far.
“We just have to play our best, give 110 per cent and hope the bounces go our way.”

Father Dan, the team’s coach, said every win and every point at this stage of the tournament, with just four of seven teams advancing to the playoff round.

“You don’t want to lose focus and you want to stay healthy. You don’t want any injuries or suspensions, and you’ve got to keep winning,” he said.

“This was our second game today. It was important for us to keep the lines rolling, keep the kids fresh and get out early. We were hoping to get a quicker lead and focus on that. Thunder Bay played a solid game and kept it tight. Luckily we got a few bounces there at the end.”

Parker Savard added a pair of third-period markers for Nickel City, who scored four times in a 4:29 span after Levi Siau blasted a rebound past Mahew at 3:16 of the final period.

Mark McInroy also scored for the Sudbury side.

The Kings will attempt to win their first game of the tournament on Wednesday afternoon at 4 p.m. against the top-ranked Mississauga Rebels.

York Simcoe Express 6, Northwestern Ontario All-Stars 2: In the 4 p.m. contest the Express overcame an early 1-0 deficit to earn their second win of the tournament. Cameron Busby led the way with two goals and an assist. Jared Neniska and Matthew Binguis scored the All-Stars goals.

Mississauga Rebels 4, Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs 2: Markus Klaise, Riley Damiani, Santino Foti and Nicholas Canade scored to help the Rebels remain undefeated at 3-0-0. Noah Hamilton and Ryan Rosoborough tallied for the Chiefs.