OCSS Returns With An All-Star Lineup Coming March 25, 2023
The next Ontario Coaches Summit is coming March 25, 2023 in Oakville, ON! The event will see top experts from around the world including acclaimed authors, professional coaches, and sport science experts provide tangible takeaways for shaping the future of coaching and sport. Save up to 35% off regular price by picking up the early bird which ends March 12, 2023!
Alvin Williams Sportsnet Analyst & Commentator, Former NBA Toronto Raptors Player & Team Director of Player Developmen tBrenley Shapiro NHL Arizona Coyotes Mental Performance Coach, Founder of Heads Up High Performance & Autho rBilly Bridges 5x Paralympian in Sledge Hockey, Paralympic Gold Medalist, 4x World Champion & MVP, & Role Model
Session Preview: The Tyranny of Talent: How it Compels & Limits Athletic Achievement – Dr. Joe BakerOptimizing Sleep to Awaken the Champion Within: Sleep In To Win – Dr. Amy BenderSports in The Public Interest: How Do We Move Forward? – Aspen Institute Sports & Society …AND MORE!*Coaches can earn 3 NCCP PD Points for attending.*
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Education is a journey, not a destination. Continue your journey at #OCSS.
School Sport Canada is looking to recruit 20-25 participants to be interviewed from provinces across Canada. To be eligible to participate, individuals need to be (a) 18 years of age or older, (b) have played high school sport in Canada for at least one season, and (c) be less than 24 months removed from playing high school sport. Click the link for more information.
The Provincial AAAA High School Hockey Championship banner belongs to the Steinbach Regional Secondary School.
Drew Heide’s power play goal with .9 seconds left in the first period stood up as the winner as the Sabres defeated the Winnipeg High School Hockey League’s Platinum Promotions Division champion Garden City Fighting Gophers 2-1 Monday night in front of over a hundred boisterous supporters of the team at Hockey for All Centre in Winnipeg.
“Amazing and electric,” said the youngest Sabre after the awards presentation. “It was just unbelievable. Can’t believe this many people came out. It was great to see.”
The officials did not signal a goal when Heide beat Gophers netminder Evan Banera.
The two referees and two linesmen huddled behind the Garden City net and discussed the situation for a minute before giving Heide credit for the go-ahead goal.
“I saw the puck go around behind the net and I’m just thinking, gotta swing at it,” said Heide. “Really glad I didn’t take an extra second there. It was a really crazy moment.”
Sabres captain Seth Bergman opened the scoring 8:25 into the first period.
Garden City defenseman Nixon Carriere potted a power play goal 90 seconds later.
Steinbach Regional goaltender Hunter Fehr shut the door the rest of the way and finished the night with 17 saves.
“The atmosphere in the place with all the fans, it’s something I’ve never played in front of before. Just an amazing feeling all around,” said Fehr.
The Fighting Gophers had one last chance for the equalizer with Banera on the bench for an extra attacker and the face-off in the Sabres zone with eight seconds left.
“I just told myself to keep calm,” Fehr said. “The jobs not finished yet. The longest eight seconds of my life.”
The grade 11 netminder was also named the tournament MVP.
“Just a great feeling. I worked really hard for this.”
Seth Bergman, Mark Plett and Lucas Jolicoeur were selected Tournament All-Stars.
The Sabres, who lost out to Lord Selkirk in the WHSHL quarterfinals and then beat the Royals in a wildcard game to get into the field, are the first team from outside the city of Winnipeg to win the Provincial AAAA High School Hockey Championship since Winkler’s Garden Valley Zodiacs in 2006.
“It’s tough to put into words to be honest with you,” remarked SRSS head coach John Laninga. “When I went to the AAAA volleyball championship and the Sabres took that, we went to practice the next day and I said, ‘boys that could be a reality for us.’ The league playoffs didn’t quite go the way we wanted them to, and boy was it tough to get back to the practice ice and work hard but that’s been our MO all year. We’ve got good leadership on this team. We’ve got guys that just push the pace at practice and that’s where it’s got to start. This group of guys committed themselves to greatness and I think that’s what we saw today.”
Sabres advance to AAAA hockey final
Written by Clayton Dreger
Steinbach Regional will play for a second Provincial AAAA championship banner this school year.
Three months after the SRSS varsity boys volleyball team captured the championship banner in a five-set thriller over the St. Paul’s Crusaders, the Sabres will face the Garden City Fighting Gophers in the Provincial AAAA High School Hockey Championship final Monday (6:30 p.m.) at Hockey for All Centre in Winnipeg.
Dominic Rooney, Theoren Koop and Colton Wiebe each had a goal and an assist as the SRSS held on for a 4-3 victory over St. Paul’s Sunday afternoon.
“It feels surreal to make it the Provincial Championship final,” texted SRSS head coach John Laninga. “Solid goaltending from William (MacDonald) and Hunter (Fehr) led the way along with relentless forecheck and plenty of back pressure.”
Koop scored with 20 seconds remaining in the opening period and Drew Heide’s goal with eight seconds left extended the Sabres lead to 3-0.
Troy Boughton and Porter Holland scored third period goals for the Crusaders and cut Steinbach Regional’s lead to 4-3.
William MacDonald who made 30 saves in net for the SRSS, shut the door on St. Paul’s over the final 14 minutes.
Laninga noted the extra day off was beneficial as the semifinals were delayed for 24 hours because of the snowfall warnings issued Saturday for all of southern Manitoba.
“We had a heavy practice on Thursday to prepare for an intense weekend. I think it helped us get off to our ideal start against St. Paul’s today and we had lots left to give in our own zone as we won battles and protected the lead late in the third.”
“The maturity of our team was evident in the celebration after today’s win against St. Paul’s with the realization that the job is not yet complete,” added coach Laninga. “Our program has never defeated a St. Paul’s Platinum Promotions teams before, but we know that we are going into the final as the underdogs against Garden City. We will game plan accordingly and try to build off the round robin loss on Friday night – a game that we felt like we played some our best hockey of the season.”
The Winnipeg High School Hockey League Platinum Promotion Division champion Fighting Gophers, who edged the Westwood Warriors 2-1 in the other semifinal Sunday, defeated the Sabres 2-1 in the round robin finale for both teams.
It’s been a dream season — so far — for the Garden City Fighting Gophers.
The Gophers went 20-0-1 during the 2022-23 Winnipeg High School Hockey League season and 44-1-2 overall en route to a Platinum Promotions Division title. The only blemishes on their record? An overtime loss in the regular season with a regulation defeat and OT loss in the playoffs.
Despite all that, head coach Dustin Hughes has a healthy appreciation for the other five teams at the AAAA provincial boys hockey championship, which opens Friday at the hockey for all centre.
“All the teams are here for a reason,” said Hughes on Tuesday. “We had a very challenging final series against a really good St. Paul’s team. Westwood is as good as it gets in terms of their top-end talent and Steinbach has been progressing really well all year and I do have a lot of respect for how they play as well. And I’m sure that the rural teams will have a say by the end of it as well.”
Garden City Fighting Gophers (ranked No. 1)
The Gophers are blessed with high-end offensive talent. Centres Colson Smith and Lucas Desousa were 1-2 in league scoring, each averaging more than two points per game.
Forward Owen Lourenco, who had 30 points in 19 games before injuring his left shoulder, returned for Games 2 and 3 of the city final only to sustain a season-ending injury to his right shoulder of the series-clinching win. He will be missed.
Garden City can also expect offensive production from defenceman Nixon Carriere, who was fourth in league scoring with 39 points in 24 games.
“We were close in 2018 and 2019 but I would say this is definitely the best overall team,” said Hughes, who took over the program in 2018 and guided his squad to a third-place finish at the 2019 provincials. “At the end of the day, they’re the team (that) got it done and came together at the right time and has been battling hard and bringing a positive attitude all year. And we’re definitely hoping that we can sustain that for one more week.”
St. Paul’s Crusaders (No. 2)
The defending provincial champs are not favoured after going 24-8 in the regular season and 26-11-1 overall, losing a three-game city final.
“I think being an underdog is not a bad thing at all,” said Crusaders coach Rob Puchniak, the long-time bench boss of the school’s No. 2 team before taking over the No. 1 team from Andrew Harder in 2022-23. “Garden City is very strong team and they’re deserving as the favourites for sure.
“I think that we’ve got to approach this with some humility and realize that we’ve got to be a very hard-working team to compete against the likes of Garden City and the other talented teams that are here.”
The WHSHL’s best defensive team is anchored by blue-liner Jack McFeetors. Forwards Dario Macchia and Jonah Crossland both averaged a point per game.
Westwood Warriors (No. 3)
Westwood is winless against Garden City in 2022-23 but managed two regular-season wins over St. Paul’s en route to a 19-4-1 record. However, the Warriors were swept in the post-season by the Crusaders and will be looking for a rebound performance.
Leading scorer Tristen Arnason and Madden Parnell are key offensive performers.
“We have a shorter roster compared to other teams,” said Warriors shutdown defenceman Jarrett Ross. “We’ve got our three lines and our three pairs of D compared to some teams with four lines. But we did it last year like that, too, and so we’re used to playing short.”
Steinbach Sabres (No. 4)
The Sabres have established themselves as contenders with a balanced offence that boasts high-scoring forwards in Mark Plett, Theoren Koop and Lucas Jolicoeur.
Steinbach went 14-6-4 during the regular season. But three of those defeats were 4-1, 4-2 and 4-2 decisions to Garden City, while two losses to St. Paul’s were tight games.
The Sabres have shown they can hang around with the league’s heavyweights and now they’re aiming to show they can beat them, too.
“That’s the plan and that’s the hope,” said Sabres coach John Laninga. “We’ve got that wild-card label, but we feel like we’re right there in the mix. And we’re a confident group heading into this weekend and looking forward to playing some some good, tough hockey games.”
Dauphin Clippers (No. 5)
Sparked by forwards Logan Chapman and William Miner and goaltender Owen Chubka, the Clippers went 26-5-1 during the Westman High School Hockey League regular season.
They have a tough schedule, facing Garden City and Steinbach in games only four hours apart Friday.
Portage Trojans (No. 6)
The Zone 4 champions, led by MVP and captain Alex Van Deynze, went 20-4 during the regular season but will be missing one of their big guns this weekend.
High-scoring forward JJ Oke is attending a family function and will not participate.
“He was our leading scorer throughout the regular season this year so he was obviously a big part of it,” said coach Dave Van Deynze. “But we feel like we’ve got some depth and we’ll move some things around and we’ll be ready to go.”
Ryan Crosina (Cedars Christian), Viv Anderson-Francois (St. John’s), Jason Mvundura (Deer Lake), Jackson Tonsi (Nanaimo Christian) Jay Smiens (Unity Christian)
Cohen Cadieux (John Barsby), Jeremy McInnis (Westsyde), Nathan Chiang (Pacific Academy), Jaden Mesfin (Pacific Academy) Jose Zaluaga (King George)
BCSS AWARD BOYS BASKETBAL
AAA
AAAA
Champions
St Patrick Regional Secondary
Semiahmoo Secondary
Finalist
Dover Bay Secondary
Fleetwood Park Secondary
Tournament MVP
Irish Coquia (St Patrick)
Torian Lee (Semiahmoo)
Most Outstanding Defensive Player
Spencer Tatlock (M.E.I.)
Andre Juco (Semiahmoo)
Championship Player of the Game
Jovin Sunner (St Patrick)
Quinn Keast Foundation Player of the Game
Cole Bekkering, (Semiahmoo)
Most Sportsmanlike Team
North Delta Secondary
Braich Foundation Most Inspirational Player
Walker Sodaro (Keowna)
Most Inspirational Team
Kelowna Secondary
Wink Willox Most Sportsmanlike Team
W J Mouat Secondary
School Spirit Award
Fleetwood Park Secondary
First Team All Stars
Kaden Carrion (St. Patrick), Gabe Vig (M.E.I,), Dylan King (Lord Byng), Harvir Hothi (North Delta) Luke Linder (Dover Bay)
The 55th Annual Athlete of the Year Awards is tomorrow – congratulations High School Female Athlete of the Year Award Finalists: Lauren Clements, Maelle Hodgson, Rupinder Johal, Marina Rodocaj and Rory Rothnie. Thank you to @BCLC for presenting this category!
The 55th Annual Athlete of the Year Awards is tomorrow – congratulations High School Male Athlete of the Year Award Finalists: Laon Kim, Walker Sodaro, Logan Thiessen, Aidan Turner and Jimmy Zaborniak. Thank you to @FNHIC_BC for presenting this category!
BREAKING NEWS! YHS TIGERS 2023 ALPINE SKI PROVINCIAL CHAMPIONS
The defending provincial champions have repeated winning the 2023 Alpine Skiing BC Championship this week at Sun Peaks Resort. The Tigers young BC Championship Ski Team includes Grade 8 Sarah K.; two Grade 9s, Alexa F. and Isabelle Q.; two Grade 10s Nicole W. and Ruby F., and one Grade 11, Maddie W. Not a single skier graduates so pencil in the Tigers as favourites again in 2024! Our Snowboard Team is small and includes two Grade 12s Dylan P. and Ruby W., and Grade 9 Macy W.
On Monday, in the Ski GS race, Nicole W. won gold while Maddie W. took the bronze. All six YHS skiers placed in the top 23 in BC. On Tuesday, our Snowboarders raced the GS course. Dylan P., Ruby W., and Macy all raced well out of the total field of over 60 snowboarders. Lyra X. qualified for Canada Games and was unable to join the Tigers at Sun Peaks. We hope to continue to grow the snowboard team next season.
On Wednesday, the Terrain GS race took place and again, YHS owned the top of the podium with Maddie W. winning gold, Nicole W. placing 4th, Sarah K. placing 7th, and Alexa F, placing 8th. All six Tigers placed in the top 20. The top four finishers in each race score points for YHS while the others play a big role in placing ahead of other schools’ top four skiers; thus helping the Tigers take home another title. It is a full team contribution.
Most schools have two or three top skiers but YHS has incredible depth. The depth extends to several very talented skiers who are not participating at BCs. The Tigers Ski Team includes approximately 30 students; only the top six form the team to compete at BCs. YHS has a smaller Snowboarding Team which we are hoping continues to grow next season.
This year, I attended the BCs and had the chance to see our skiers race. This is an impressive group who train hard, are courageous competitors, and have fun and support one another. I am very proud of these student-athletes.
A huge thank you to the team’s committed coaches Ms. Matthews and Mr. Lum. They bring their knowledge and experience along with their fun and professionalism. The work done behind the scenes is intense and of course, race days are cold and long. The entire team supports one another and it was a joy to watch.
Thank you as well to the many parents who go above and beyond in supporting this team. The YHS Ski and Snowboard program was founded in 2006-07 behind the incredible support of a group of “ski parents”. Over the years, new generations of ski parents have stepped in to help and this tradition continues. Thank you!
The Great Lakes Wolfpack won the boys’ team title at the OFSAA wrestling championship in Ottawa this week.
The Wolfpack also tied for second in the overall standings, but those results are being rechecked, because Great Lakes may have won the overall team title as well.
Brampton Fletcher’s Meadow is first in the unofficial standings with 159 points, one more than Great Lakes and Hamilton Bishop Ryan.
Two Wolfpack wrestlers also won individual gold. Kelso Jennings was first in the boys’ 95-kilogram division and Lucy Butler was first in the girls’ 38 kg division.
Jaylene McLean of Great Lakes won silver in girls’ 44 kg. Mason Flett of Great Lakes won bronze in boys’ 89 kg.
Duke Butler of Mackenzie (boys’ 51 kg), Jakob Wildschut of Great Lakes (boys’ 61 kg) and Bella Round of St. Patrick’s (girls’ 115 kg) won fourth-place medals.
Brock Callister of Lambton Central (boys’ 72 kg), Matt Anderson of Great Lakes (boys’ 77 kg), Griffin Wittliff of St. Patrick’s (boys’ 95 kg) and Devyn Manning of North Lambton (girls’ 54 kg) were fifth.
Great Lakes won the boys’, girls’ and overall team titles at the SWOSSAA championship recently. Manning was voted best LKSSAA female wrestler at the meet, while Wildschut shared the SWOSSAA boys’ MVP award with Daniel Piccolo of Windsor St. Joseph’s.
The SWOSSAA boys’ champions included Butler (51 kg), Wildschut (61 kg), Artem Greer of Great Lakes (67.5 kg), Callister (72 kg), Anderson (77 kg), Flett (89 kg), Jennings (95 kg) and Hayden Wilson of North Lambton (130 kg).
The SWOSSAA girls’ champions included Butler (38 kg), McLean (44 kg), Adelia Kontonova of Great Lakes (51 kg), Manning (54 kg), Breanna Trudgeon of Great Lakes (61 kg), Abby Willis of Great Lakes (67.5 kg), Victoria Guerette of St. Patrick’s (77 kg) and Round (115 kg).
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OFSAA Wrestling Championships make triumphant return
The OFSAA Wrestling Championships are underway at TD Place, and more than 700 students from across Ontario are taking part in the largest high school wrestling tournament in the country.
After a hiatus of three years due to COVID, the tournament is back, and it has added more spots for girls.
“This year we have the same amount of weight classes for both boys and girls. Before we only had 14 weight classes for girls. Now we have 17. So there’s more opportunity for girls to get involved. There’s a pathway for them to compete,” said Guy MacDougall, OFSAA Wrestling Championships Co-Convener.
For Grade 9 student Myla Blackshaw, this is her first provincial tournament, and she is excited to be part of it.
“It’s kind of overwhelming, but it’s really exciting to know that I can be involved in something like this so young,” said Blackshaw. “I like that you can always work on yourself and there’s never a limit of how good you can get.”
Meanwhile, Grade 11 wrestler from Bill Crothers Secondary School, Nathan Persaud, pinned his opponent in his first match. Even though he was nervous to be part of such a big event.
“Once I got that cross ankle, I was really in my zone. It’s like one of the biggest ones in Ontario, so my nerves are at an all-time high. But once I got on the mat, it’s all business,” said Persaud.
The tournament is more than just wrestling for some athletes. For Great Lakes Secondary School Grade 12 wrestler Abbagail Willis, the team environment helps her get through life situations.
“Coming here is way more than just wrestling. It’s a team. It’s building skills. I’m gonna be using this for the rest of my life,” said Willis.
“This is the pinnacle of our season, and it’s something that everybody, all the athletes and coaches look forward to,” says Willis’s coach Eric Clarke. “And it’s nice that it’s back. So we missed a couple of years with COVID obviously, so it’s nice to see it back. This is this is what we look forward to all year.”
As wrestlers take the mat, family members in the stands share their excitement.
“She’s on in number 406, I believe, is her next one. So yeah, we’re excited. Just so proud of her,” said Mary Chaulk, Myla’s grandmother.
Blackshaw won her second match of the day by making the adjustments she needed to. And she’s hoping to be on the podium when it’s all over.
“I went in with a game plan. It didn’t go too well,” says Blackshaw. “But you can always adapt to how it goes and figure it out.”
About 1,000 matches were held today, with the championships taking place Wednesday at 2 p.m.
Getting StartedNCCP TrainingPrograms & ResourcesEvents 
Alvin Williams Sportsnet Analyst & Commentator, Former NBA Toronto Raptors Player & Team Director of Player Developmen
Brenley Shapiro NHL Arizona Coyotes Mental Performance Coach, Founder of Heads Up High Performance & Autho
Billy Bridges 5x Paralympian in Sledge Hockey, Paralympic Gold Medalist, 4x World Champion & MVP, & Role Model 
Session Preview: The Tyranny of Talent: How it Compels & Limits Athletic Achievement – Dr. Joe BakerOptimizing Sleep to Awaken the Champion Within: Sleep In To Win – Dr. Amy BenderSports in The Public Interest: How Do We Move Forward? – Aspen Institute Sports & Society …AND MORE!*Coaches can earn 3 NCCP PD Points for attending.*
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