All posts by Randy Russon
Calem shows his local Spirit
Calem Mangone is home in Sault Ste. Marie for the Christmas holiday break. And the rookie right wing sensation with the Saginaw Spirit of the Ontario Hockey League helped to spread some holiday cheer to an under 11 team in the Soo.
…[read more]Kam River in command
This is the feel good story of the 2021-2022 Superior International Jr. Hockey League season. That is, the newest competing member of the seven team league is in first place at the Christmas holiday break.
…[read more]The iconic Manitoulin Islanders
They won a mere fraction of the regular season games they played from 2005 to 2011. Yet, 10 years after their departure from the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League, the Manitoulin Islanders are still an iconic franchise, at least to me.
…[read more]Bailey Brkin gets AHL call
Utica Comets of the American Hockey League — the top farm club of the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League — have confirmed that they have signed goalie Bailey Brkin to a tryout contract. The 22-year old Brkin is a former standout with the Soo Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League.
…[read more]Great North takes a break
Holiday season is here for the eight teams of the Great North Hockey League. And a return to play in 2022 will likely depend on a go-ahead from public health units in northeastern Ontario.
…[read more]Brkin is workin’ as a pro
He ended his junior career in style after moving from the Western Hockey League to the Ontario Hockey League and the Soo Greyhounds. And now at age 22, goalie Bailey Brkin is off to a good start in his first season of professional hockey.
…[read more]Dryden rides into the break
A record of 16-9-1 through 26 games will take the Dryden Ice Dogs into the Christmas holiday break with 33 points in the Superior International Jr. Hockey League standings.
…[read more]Old scout still loves the game
He is 70 years old and a cheerful, delightful fellow with plenty of colourful stories to tell from a lifetime in amateur hockey. And besides that, good guy Charly Murray still has much to offer in terms of time, experience, knowledge and a genuine love for the game, especially at the under 18, junior and college levels.
…[read more]Barnard boards the Express
Hard hit by several long-term injuries, the Espanola Express recently added a young forward via Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League trade with the top-ranked Timmins Rock.
…[read more]Dryden on a 10-game tear
It was a month ago and the Dryden Ice Dogs were at the 15-game mark of the 2021-2022 season and below the .500 level with a record of 6-8-1. But Dryden has since won 10 straight games to boost its record to 16-8-1 in the Superior International Jr. Hockey League standings.
…[read more]20-year old stars of Superior
They were all born in 2001. Which means as 20-year old players, they are all in their final season of Superior International Jr. Hockey League eligibility. And the way they are all playing at such a high level leads us to believe that their hockey careers will be far from over when the 2021-2022 season ends.
…[read more]Express gets back on track
A trio of newcomers and a saving relief effort have managed to help the Espanola Express to get back on the right track in the West Division of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]Four-player NOJHL trade
Espanola Express and Sudbury Cubs have pulled the string on a Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League trade that involves four skaters.
…[read more]Good, old NOJHL coaches
It is a junior league that has been a hockey focus of mine for more than 20 years, from around the time that the Soo Thunderbirds became members in 1999. And among the folks who I have encountered and got to know while writing and commentating about the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League is a list of former head coaches.
…[read more]Hearst to Espanola
Alexander Christopoulos is getting a fresh start to his junior hockey career as a 2002 birth year forward.
…[read more]Walleye fishes local ponds
General manager Kevin McCallum has gone east and west across the nation to stock the first place lineup of the Kam River Fighting Walleye of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League. But McCallum has also stayed true to his northwestern Ontario roots of the Thunder Bay district when going fishing for Walleye.
…[read more]Hot on the ice of Superior
There are two teams in the Superior International Jr. Hockey League that are on extended winning streaks of impressive length.
…[read more]On the take in Elliot Lake
Elliot Lake Red Wings of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League are getting oh so very close to a potential takeover.
…[read more]Junior A leagues of parity
There have been times, over the years, when both the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League and the Superior International Jr. Hockey League were ruled by one dominant team. Such imbalance often meant that the crowning of a champion in either league was a forgone conclusion by early in the season. But the times have clearly changed in both the NOJHL and SIJHL.
…[read more]Majors in the win column
It was but a matter of time before the Timmins Majors would score their first victory of the 2021-2022 Great North Under 18 Hockey League regular season. After all, the Majors had been on the losing end of five close contests to the Soo Jr. Greyhounds and Sudbury U18 Nickel Capitals.
…[read more]Kam River via Amarillo
Johnny McCollum is returning to his hometown roots. The 6-foot-2, 195 pound, 2003 birth year defenseman is now a member of the Kam River Fighting Walleye of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League, Hockey News North has confirmed.
…[read more]Elliot Lake chasing Espanola
It is not quite yet the midway point of the 2021-2022 regular season but there is a potential chase in the making for the fifth and final playoff spot in the West Division of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]Hectic week for Sault High
It is a three game slate of activity for the Sault High Blue Devils this week with one road tilt and two home matches.
…[read more]Busy Beavers by trade
Kyle Brick has been wearing his general manager’s hat over the past few days. As Hockey News North was first to report, the coach and GM of the Blind River Beavers of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League made three separate transactions.
…[read more]Hounds shine at Silver Sticks
Coached by former Ontario Hockey League standout Craig Kennedy, the Soo Jr. Greyhounds under 12 boys made some history at the recent Whitby Silver Sticks AAA hockey tournament.
…[read more]Stick-handling in the rinks
I am not going to dwell on the recent head scratching, mind boggling, and downright maddening decisions made by the brain trust at Algoma Public Health as to which local hockey groups and teams can only practice while others that APH refers to as “elite” teams are allowed to continue to play.
…[read more]High tide of the East side
Just call them the Big Three. Timmins Rock, Powassan Voodoos and Hearst Lumberjacks are in a frantic race for first place in the East Division of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]Walleye heads up Superior
Four points are all that separate the top four teams of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League. And it is the league’s newest team, the Kam River Fighting Walleye, that leads the way.
…[read more]Blind River to Dryden
Dryden Ice Dogs of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League have netted a new goalie via the Blind River Beavers of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]Dogs of Dryden on road run
Like ’em or not, the big, bad Dryden Ice Dogs are sledding their way towards the top of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League standings.
…[read more]CCHL to the NOJHL
He is headed north. James Ingram, a 2003 birth year forward and Ontario Hockey League under 18 draft pick of the Sarnia Sting in 2020, is moving on from the Central Canada Hockey League to the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]Notre Dame to Blind River
Already in good shape with a record of 13-7-2 — which has them in second place in the West Division of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League — Blind River Beavers have added a forward from the Notre Dame Hounds of the Saskatchewan Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]Dryden to Wisconsin
Defenseman Mitchell Battersby is on the move in a Superior International Jr. Hockey League trade that has been confirmed by Hockey News North.
…[read more]Rock on in Timmins
They are Rock solid up front and on the back end. Just past the one third mark of the 2021-2022 regular season, the Timmins Rock has the best winning percentage of any of the 12 teams of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]Success beyond the game
He got to live the hockey dream at the local level before playing in the university and minor pro ranks and — ultimately — on the international stage. And now, good guy John Glavota is firmly established in his hometown of Sault Ste. Marie as a top producing real estate agent.
…[read more]Kam River has net worth
This is as good of a goalie tandem as there is in the Superior International Jr. Hockey League. To be sure, Austin Madge and Eric Vanska are two big reasons why the Kam River Fighting Walleye is in first place in the tightrope standings of the seven-team SIJHL.
…[read more]Crosstown SIJHL transaction
Defenseman Brad Fortier won’t have to leave home despite being involved in a Superior International Jr. Hockey League trade.
…[read more]U18 Hounds are lead dogs
Soo Jr. Greyhounds are in first place among the eight teams of the Great North Under 18 Hockey League and also have players who are leaders on the individual statistics chart.
…[read more]Flint via northern Ontario
They may be based in mid Michigan but the Flint Firebirds have a firm player and scouting connection to northern Ontario.
…[read more]Kam River, Dryden on a roll
How sweep it is! Kam River Fighting Walleye and Dryden Ice Dogs both posted perfect weekends in making their own statements in the standings of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]Big game for Camaryn Baber
Saginaw Spirit overcame a 4-0 deficit with six goals in the final 27 minutes of the game to score a stunning 6-4 Ontario Hockey League road decision over the Kitchener Rangers on Friday.
…[read more]Spotlight on 10 north teams
There is a tidy total of teams from the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League and the Superior International Jr. Hockey League that have stood tall through the first few months of the 2021-2022 season.
…[read more]DHC host officially confirmed
We have known about this for several months. And now it has finally been made official as to who will be the host entry for next spring’s Dudley-Hewitt Cup, Central Canada junior A hockey championship tournament.
…[read more]Sault High skates into ’21-22
Blue Devils. At Big Bear. On the Eagle. First pucks of the 2021-2022 hockey season will drop for the Sault High Blue Devils this weekend.
…[read more]East side contention
Powassan Voodoos, Timmins Rock and Hearst Lumberjacks are the forces to be reckoned with in the East Division of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League while the fourth seed French River Rapids have remained within range of the big three.
…[read more]Kam River lands 270 lb. Walleye
Hulking forward Colin McLeod has signed with the Kam River Fighting Walleye of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League via the Lomond Lakers of the lower level Heritage Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]