Your kids' hockey team might make you forfeit
Bonjour du Nord — c'est Sudbury, on lâche pas. Let's go.
Okay, ben là, you're not going to believe this one. So, the Soo Jr. Greyhounds, a U18 AA team, they were supposed to play the Copper Cliff Reds right here in Sudbury for the league championship. It's a big deal, eh? Kids work hard all season for this. But the Northern Ontario Hockey Association, they dropped the hammer. They're making the Soo forfeit the whole thing because of a messy dressing room. Voyons donc! Leaving a few water bottles and some tape on the floor in Blind River cost them a chance at a championship. Like, seriously?
### Dirty Dressing Room Drama
I'm drilling down on this one, and it just feels… off. You hear about teams getting fined, maybe a player getting suspended, but a whole team forfeiting a championship game for a messy dressing room? That's a new one, even for Northern Ontario hockey, which, trust me, has its share of quirks. The Copper Cliff Reds, they're based out of Copper Cliff, eh, that old company town. They've got a shot at the title now without even playing the game. It’s hard not to feel for the kids who worked so hard to get here, from both teams, actually. This kind of stuff just leaves a bad taste, like a fresh slag pour on a foggy night.
* The U18 AA Soo Jr. Greyhounds were set to play the Copper Cliff Reds in Sudbury. * The Northern Ontario Hockey Association (NOHA) made them forfeit the game. * The reason? A messy dressing room left in Blind River after a previous game. * The Copper Cliff Reds now get the championship without playing.
For us here in Sudbury, it just reminds you how intense minor league hockey is up here, eh? We live and breathe the Wolves, but these local teams, these kids, they're the next generation. For a championship game that was supposed to happen right here, probably at the McClelland Arena or maybe even Gerry McCrory, to be decided this way? Ça, c'est plate. It’s a tough lesson for those kids, but man, it feels like it has no ore left in it.
Élodie Bélanger-Mikkonen, MiTL Sports Desk, Sudbury.
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