Powassan Voodoos goaltender Owen Say and Head Trainer JJ Johnson will be returning to the team with some hardware.
The pair was a part of Team Canada East at the World Junior “A” challenge, who took Team Russia to overtime in the gold medal game but couldn’t push it past the finish line as they fell 2-1.
Johnson says he enjoyed his experience in British Columbia.
“Only word I have to describe it is bittersweet,” Johnson said. “We were right there and had a tough call go against us in overtime. I’m so proud of the guys for fighting every step of the way and proving to everyone that Canada East has what it takes to compete at this level. Personally, that win against the United States was the greatest game of my career and I’m so glad that I had Owen to share it with. These memories will last a lifetime and they’re even better because I had Owen with me.”
In order to get to the gold medal game, the team defeated Team USA in thrilling fashion, 2-1 in a shootout on Saturday. The US was the betting favourites heading into the game.
Say and Johnson weren’t the only representatives of the Northern Ontario Junior League (NOJHL) at the tournament, however. Corey Beers, the head coach of the Timmins Rock, was an assistant coach on the team and Nicholas DeGrazia from the Rayside-Balfour Canadians represented the league well.
Cole Craft, a North Bay native, who plays for the Rockland Nationals in the Central Canada Hockey league, was also a member of the team.
