Thunderbirds ready for NOJHL final

There will be a lot of new faces, but the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League final is set to be a rematch.

Though there has been some turnover since the last playoff meeting, the Soo Thunderbirds are set to face the Hearst Lumberjacks in the NOJHL final, which begins Sunday night locally.

The two clubs met in the 2019 final, a series in which the Lumberjacks won in seven games before COVID-19 forced the cancellation of the 2020 playoffs and a limited schedule last season.

The Thunderbirds enter the series on the hottest of hot streaks, having won 26 straight games, including sweeping two series to get into the final.

“We’ve gone through our ups and downs even through the streak, which is obviously really encouraging,” said Thunderbirds coach Cole Jarrett. “After February, Cooper Foster took his game to another level and it really showed in the results just the fact that he can take over a game by himself. When you’re part of that, other guys want to follow along. That was one thing that stood out was his consistency through the second half of the season.”

Jarrett added that the goaltending duo of Noah Zeppa and Noah Metivier has become an important factor during the streak as well.

“There were some unknowns with both of them (entering the season),” Jarrett said, referencing their limited experience entering the season. “They both got off to a really good start. We were spinning in circles in terms of our team play, so maybe their early numbers didn’t look as good, but the thing for me is their compete level. It’s not just in game, but it’s also in practice and that’s a big thing for a team to have is both goaltenders taking every rep like it means something. That helps in practice and helps them stay focused.”

Entering the series, Jarrett spoke of getting of to a good start in game one as being important coming off a break.

The Thunderbirds enter the series on the heels of sweeping the Soo (Mich.) Eagles in the West Division final. The team last played on April 23.

“We’ve had some rest here and we haven’t played a whole lot of hockey and they have,” Jarrett said. “It’s going to be really key for us to come out flying. We should have the legs and be ready to go. That Hearst team is battle tested. They’ve come through a six-game series with Powassan and won. They’ve come through a seven-game series with Timmins and won. They’ve played that desperate hockey and have felt it. We had a bit of that against the Eagles for sure. I know it was four-straight, but it was a tough test. It will be a totally different animal playing these guys and going up to Hearst.”

Hearst enters the series after beating the Timmins Rock in seven games in the East Division final, a series that wrapped up on Friday night.

“They play a fast, heavy game,” Jarrett said of the Lumberjacks. “They’ll be hard on us in every battle. We’re expecting a battle. Both games we played against them were tight games, really tight checking and we expect more of the same. They’ve got some weapons up front. They’re dangerous on the power play, so discipline for us will be key. It will be a tough series for sure. Both clubs match up pretty well. They have us in experience being older.”

After Sunday’s series opener, a 7 p.m. start at the GFL Memorial Gardens, game two is set for Monday night, also a 7 p.m. start at the Gardens.

The series then shifts to Hearst for game three on May 5 and game four on May 6.