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Midget Canadiens end season of domination with league championship win

The St. Paul Midget Canadiens have had their fair share of success this season, which came to a peak Monday night as they competed against the Irma Aces for the NEAHL Tier II midget hockey league championship.
The Midget St. Paul Canadiens had a season to rememer, duriung which they dominated league play, which lead to 7-4 league championship win over the Irma Aces Monday March
The Midget St. Paul Canadiens had a season to rememer, duriung which they dominated league play, which lead to 7-4 league championship win over the Irma Aces Monday March 21st.

The St. Paul Midget Canadiens have had their fair share of success this season, which came to a peak Monday night as they competed against the Irma Aces for the NEAHL Tier II midget hockey league championship. Although the Canadiens were not able to continue on in provincials this year, they were dominant in league play, going 18-1-1 during the regular season. Earlier in the year, the Canadiens had some games versus fellow league teams where they dominated, but Coach Bob Gagne mentioned that all of the teams in the league improved throughout the year. “The boys really had a great year, we started strong, and grew even stronger as the year went along. The rest of the teams in the league got stronger as well, as our game against some of the teams were very close near the end of the season and during the playoffs.”

During the North playoffs, they were 4-1, taking them to the finals against the best team in the Tier II south portion of the league, the Irma Aces who were 10-4-3 in league play, and 3-1 in their playoffs. “We had a close game against Mallaig in the 1st round, and then Lac La Biche also gave us a run for our money in the second round. We split the first two games against Irma but came out with a win on Monday. Our success in the playoffs was due to us not only having a strong team but the boys really bought into our system and that was very important.” said Gagne. The St. Paul Midget Canadiens brought home the 2016 NEAHL Tier II midget hockey league championship banner, with a 7-4 victory over a strong Irma team that could simply not match the high-pressure style that the Canadien’s were playing.

For three 3rd year players Canadien’s, it was their final season in the Canadien’s minor hockey system, as Levi Labant, Logan Hellquist, and Nathan Skrypan are all graduating from high school this year. “I think with it being those boys last year, the rest of the team made sort of a silent vow to win the league championship for those guys in their last year and they did just that.” added Gagne.

Looking forward to next year, the Canadien’s lose three players, but have some strong bantams that will be moving up a level next and help the team next year says Gagne. “We will miss the three boys we’re losing this year but the future for the St. Paul Midget Canadiens is definitely bright. With the bantams that will be joining our team next year and our current teams core, we will have a solid team that will challenge to make it to provincials as well as compete hard at provincials.”

The St. Paul Canadiens Midgets hockey have had many wins over the years, and in the coming season they hope to keep that tradition going for at least one more year.

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