River Cats strike Maritime gold in Miramichi
Fredericton Junction squad beats host Sunny Corner in championship game
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For the first time since 2019 and the second time in franchise history, the Tri-County River Cats are Maritime junior C hockey champions.
The River Cats, of Fredericton Junction, hoisted the Maritime Hockey North trophy after defeating the host Sunny Corner Thunder 6-2 in the final Sunday at the 2024 Maritime Junior C Hockey Championships at the Miramichi Civic Centre.
Tri-County went unbeaten at the four-team tournament after winning the New Brunswick Junior Hockey League’s Maritime North title, defeating the Western Valley Panthers of Woodstock in five games in the league final. The River Cats punched their ticket to the Maritime final with a 5-3 win over Nova Scotia’s Southwest Storm in the crossovers.
Meanwhile, the Thunder edged Prince Edward Island’s Pownal Ice Dogs 4-3 in the other semifinal.
Sunny Corner drew first blood 2:12 into Sunday’s contest when Zander Best beat River Cats netminder Nick Parsons on a rebound in close. Tri-County replied 10 minutes later with a shot from Austin Black that beat Thunder backstop Josh O’Neill high glove side.
The Thunder regained the lead at 13:41 with a shot from Brock Matchett that beat Parsons. Ethan Adams evened things up for Tri-County with a power-play marker at 13:52 in the second period while Sunny Corner forward Caidan Duffy was serving a minor and 10-minute misconduct for head contact.
Former Thunder forward Jack Price bent the twine for the River Cats with 44.3 seconds left before the second intermission. Tri-County sealed Sunny Corner’s fate in period three with goals from tournament MVP Ethan Adams at 1:06, Daniel Yaroslavsky at 9:01, and Brody Hayes at 19:04.
Parsons made 26 saves for the victory. O’Neill turned aside 22 saves, but was tagged with the loss.
In round-robin action, the River Cats downed the Storm 11-2 and blanked the Ice Dogs 5-0 before beating the Thunder 3-1. Sunny Corner defeated the Storm 7-0 and thumped the Ice Dogs 11-6. The Ice Dogs doubled the Storm 6-3 in preliminary play.
Canada clinches first at world U18 tourney
Team Canada – led by decorated University of New Brunswick Reds bench boss Gardiner MacDougall – finished first in Group B at the International Ice Hockey Federation’s 2024 World Under-18 Hockey Championship with an 8-1 rout of Team Switzerland on Sunday in Vantaa, Finland.
Canada started slow before erupting for seven goals in period two. Porter Martone led the Canadians with a hat trick, while Tij Iginla, Ryder Ritchie, Kashawn Aitcheson, Marek Vanacker, and Gavin McKenna – the projected 2026 first-overall pick – each added singles. Ryerson Leenders stopped 26 shots in net.
Canada will look to remain undefeated in preliminary play in a date with Team Latvia on Tuesday at 1 p.m. Atlantic time.
Timberwolves lead MHL final
The Miramichi Timberwolves entered Game 4 of the best-of-seven Maritime Junior Hockey League final Sunday at home with a 2-1 series lead over the Summerside Western Capitals.
The Timberwolves took Game 3 by a 4-3 margin April 24 at Credit Union Place after winning the second contest 5-1 April 23 at the Miramichi Civic Centre.
Game 5 goes Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Summerside. If needed, Game 6 is set for Thursday at 7 p.m. in Miramichi. The deciding game is Saturday at 7 p.m. on Prince Edward Island, if necessary.
The series winner will earn the Metalfab MHL Cup and advance to the Centennial Cup tournament, being held May 9 to 19 in Oakville, Ont.
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