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AAA Midget hockey returns

After a year without one, Sault Ste. Marie saw the return of Triple-A midget hockey on Wednesday night at the Essar Centre. The Soo Thunderbirds AAA Midget team took to the ice as they faced the Sault Ste.

After a year without one, Sault Ste. Marie saw the return of Triple-A midget hockey on Wednesday night at the Essar Centre.

The Soo Thunderbirds AAA Midget team took to the ice as they faced the Sault Ste. Marie, MI based Soo Indians in exhibition action.

Wednesday was the first of six meetings between the two teams this season as they skated to a 3-3 tie.

The Thunderbirds took a 3-1 lead through one period before the Indians scored a pair of goals in the third period for the tie.

“Overall, for our first game it was a pretty good effort,” Thunderbirds coach Jim Capy said following the tie.

“Our roster is still a work in progress, we’re not done yet,” Capy said. “Based on what I’ve seen (Wednesday), we’re going to have a pretty good rivalry and our team will be very competitive wherever we play.”

The game marked the first game of the new season for both teams.

“I liked the way we battled back in the second and third periods but at the same time there’s a lot of work to do,” said Indians coach Pat Carricato, “It’s Sept. 3rd and we’ve only had a couple days of practice to work on our systems. The positive part is the kids battled back and they didn’t quit on each other.”

For the Thunderbirds Capy noted the difference in the game over the final two periods.

“We stopped shooting in the second and third periods and (the Indians) got physical with us,” Capy said. “The effort was good. Sometimes when you’re tired, you make some mental mistakes that you wouldn’t normally make. That’s where (the Indians) were a little bit ahead of us.”

Both teams will be in action this weekend in Detroit at the annual Motor City Cup tournament.

The Thunderbirds open the tournament on Friday when they face the Minnesota Blades at 1:15 p.m. The Thunderbirds are in a division that also includes Rochester AAA and the Pittsburgh Predators.

The Indians open the tournament on Friday morning at 8:30 a.m. when they face Team Ohio.


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Brad Coccimiglio

About the Author: Brad Coccimiglio

A graduate of Loyalist College’s Sports Journalism program, Brad Coccimiglio’s work has appeared in The Hockey News as well as online at FoxSports.com in addition to regular freelance work with SooToday before joining the team full time.
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