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Hockey Notebook: AAA and Jr. A hockey in full swing

The Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Soo Thunderbirds wrapped up their exhibition schedule over the weekend with a pair of games against the North American Hockey League’s Soo Eagles at Pullar Stadium.

The Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Soo Thunderbirds wrapped up their exhibition schedule over the weekend with a pair of games against the North American Hockey League’s Soo Eagles at Pullar Stadium.

On Friday night the Thunderbirds dropped a 3-1 decision to the Eagles.

Matt Pinder had the lone goal for the Thunderbirds in Friday’s loss.

The two teams returned to action on Saturday night and Nic Tassone had the lone goal for the Thunderbirds in a 7-1 loss.

In goal, Mario Culina got the start on Friday night while Brian Kment started Saturday night.

The Thunderbirds open their NOJHL schedule on Sept. 14 when they host the Blind River Beavers at the John Rhodes Community Centre.

Meanwhile, the Eagles open their NAHL schedule on Sept. 12 when they host the Janesville Jets in the first game of a two-game weekend set.

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THUNDERBIRDS MIDGETS RETURN FROM DETROIT

The Great North Midget League’s Soo Thunderbirds saw their first tournament action of the season in Detroit over the weekend at the Motor City Cup.

The team went 1-3 in their first tournament as a team.

The Thunderbirds opened the tournament against the Minnesota Blades, dropping a 10-0 decision to a highly-touted Blades program.

In game two, the Thunderbirds dropped an 8-1 decision to Detroit Honeybaked/

The team would pick up their lone win of the tournament in game three thanks to a 4-1 decision over the Pittsburgh Predators. Matt MacKay had a pair of goals for the Thunderbirds in the win.

The tournament wrapped up for the Thunderbirds with a 2-1 loss to the Lansing Capitols after a pair of goals in the third period lifted Lansing to the victory.

The Thunderbirds return to action with a weekend set against the Michigan Nationals in Grand Rapids, MI next weekend.

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MINOR MIDGETS PARTICIPATE IN TORONTO TITANS TOURNAMENT

The Soo Greyhounds minor midget team played their first tournament action of the season, finishing the Toronto Titans Early Bird Prospect Tournament with a 1-3 record.

The Greyhounds opened the tournament with a 9-3 loss to the Toronto Jr. Canadiens. Max Khull, Shadow Rueben and Darrell Baker scored for the Greyhounds in the loss.

The team rebounded in game two with a 3-2 win over Grey-Bruce. Khull had a pair of goals in the win while Rueben also scored for the Greyhounds.

The Greyhounds then dropped a 6-0 decision to the Barrie Colts before wrapping up the tournament with an 8-2 loss to the Toronto Red Wings. Khull and Nicholas Smith scored for the Greyhounds in the loss.

The Greyhounds return to action Saturday when they face the Michigan Warriors in the first of a two-game series at Taffy Abel Arena in Sault Ste. Marie, MI. Game time Saturday is 3 p.m. The two teams meet again on Sunday, also at Taffy Abel Arena, at 9 a.m.

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THUNDER OPEN SEASON IN TORONTO

The Soo Thunder opened their major bantam season in Toronto over the weekend where they participated in the Toronto Red Wings tournament.

The Thunder opened the weekend with a 5-0 loss to the highly-ranked Mississauga Rebels. The team managed to rebound to pick up a 3-1 win on Friday night against the New Jersey Colonials.

On Saturday, the Thunder dropped a pair of games, losing 3-1 to the Whitby Wildcats and 3-2 against the Toronto Nationals.

The Thunder will return to action as they host the Northern Ontario Bantam League showcase this weekend.


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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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