Beavers, Voodoos on top
Blind River Beavers and Powassan Voodoos are the division leaders through the opening two weeks of play in the 2019-2020 Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League season.
The Beavers have eight points from a perfect record of 4-0-0 atop the West Division and are coming off of a home-and-home, weekend sweep of the Soo Thunderbirds.
Captain Caleb Serre has been a scoring sensation for Blind River thus far as the veteran forward and hometown favourite has six goals, six assists, 12 points.
Meanwhile, second year forward Justin Mauro has yet to score for Blind River but the speedster has recorded 10 assists in the four games to date.
Between the pipes, the Beavers have victories from three different goalies, including 6-foot-7 Jonathan Lemaire.
Lemaire, a 2018 Ontario Hockey League draft pick of the Sudbury Wolves, made his NOJHL debut on the weekend and had 35 saves in a 6-4 win over the Soo Thunderbirds.
Over to the East Division, Powassan has a pace-setting record of 5-1-0, good for 10 points.
Forwards Parker Bowman and Gabinien Kioki have been lighting it up in a big way for the Voodoos with six goals apiece.
And goalie Owen Say has been unbeatable in the Powassan net with a record of 4-0-0.
PHOTO: Blind River goalie Jonathan Lemaire made 35 saves in his NOJHL debut in a road victory at the Soo. (Photo by Bob Davies.)
The quality of hockey in the NOJHL has been incredible and it seems to just get better every year. Nothing is going to come easy for anyone in the east division this year.
Go Voodoos.
Maybe somebody could tell me the actual reason why the Voodoos and Battalion are no longer affiliated.
Armand5 Butler was getting too involved for the voodoos ownerships liking, the coach of the Voodoos still lives with Stan Butler in North Bay, there was also a issue of the Voodoos putting a bid in for the 2020-2021 Dudley Hewitt Cup with them playing games at the gardens, not to mention Wanna bee player advisors that clain the CCHL is amazingly better then the NOJHL. But from what I am told they have mended fences and are still a placement place for certain places, the lumberkings are the main destination though.