Locals get results at provincial tournament

Players from Kanesatake had success at the recent Sherbrooke Provincial Female Hockey Tournament.

At the end of the third period of the finals game, the Laurentides Mistral girls’ U12B hockey team was down 2-1 before they secured a goal to tie the game and head into overtime against the Sherbrooke Phoenix.

Ienonhkwatsheraháwi Nicholas, number 47 on the Mistral, said her team was quick to score the winning goal.

“When we won, I was holding this big trophy, and it was just a rush of emotions,” said Nicholas, who is 12. “It was really cool.”

Her teammates and coaches all screamed with joy when the team scored the winning  goal.

“It meant a lot to me,” said Nicholas. “I found that winning a tournament makes me stronger as a player because it encourages me to get better and try and practice more.”

Nicholas said her parents always come to cheer her on, usually bringing accessories like horns to encourage her. But, for the final game, her parents brought something memorable to encourage Nicholas – a cowbell.

Nicholas has only played hockey on an official team for the past year, and she enjoys the action playing right wing.
“To be honest, I chose that position because I found that I was really good at being offence rather than defense because defense is, in my opinion, really hard,” said Nicholas. “I can’t stay in one place. I don’t know – I have to move around.”

The team is now preparing for the regional games. Nicholas plans to continue with the Mistral next season.

The coaches and other players mainly speak French, which has been a learning curve for Nicholas. Despite the language differences, she said her coaches and teammates are mindful to speak with her in English at practice and in games.

“I made a friend on my team, and she speaks English, so that’s really cool,” she said.

Nicholas is a multisport athlete. She is on the Rotiwennakéhte Elementary School’s volleyball team and part of the Kanehsatake Warriors lacrosse team. She loves the life lessons that come with playing sports.

“I like how even if you lose, you’re still proud of yourself because you did well,” she said. “And it doesn’t matter win or lose, you’re still trying your best.”

She is grateful for the advice of her dad, Deven Nicholas, throughout the season, and looks up to her mom, Patricia Kahentanó:ron Gabriel, and “how she doesn’t give up.”

Gabriel said it was a challenge at first to learn how to switch from lacrosse to hockey, but that Nicholas learned quickly how to skate and hold her stick.

“Watching her play is always so fun for me. I’ve watched her gain so much confidence in herself. It’s really beautiful to see,” said Gabriel.

Players got a medal to keep for their win at the tournament, which Nicholas hangs in her room on a Boston Bruins medal hanger given to her by her tóta.

Moving forward, Nicholas wants hockey to be a bigger part of her life.

“I plan on making it far in hockey,” said Nicholas. “It’s one of my favourite sports.”

U15B Mistral make semis

Lexie Nelson fell in love with hockey when she first began playing at five years old.

“It’s fun,” said Nelson, who is 13.

“You also have friends there that are also really nice, and then the girls on the team too, they’re amazing.”

On Sunday, her team, the Laurentides Mistral division U15B girls, lost 2-1 to the Gatineau Torpilles at the semifinal game of the Sherbrooke tournament.

For Nelson, her love of the game includes grappling with the losses.

“It’s just a game, and I had fun playing even if I didn’t win,” said Lexie.

After the semifinals game, she asked her dad, Jonathan Nelson, the same routine question as they headed home.

“Most of the time when we get into the car, I ask what to improve on when I’m on the ice,” said Lexie, who plays as number 83 on the team.

“She loves her hockey,” said Jonathan, who is also an avid hockey player. He likes to support his daughter by cheering her on and coaching her.

“I’m proud to watch my daughter and the rest of my kids play hockey and love the sport that I grew up loving,” said Jonathan.

Lexie made two assists and scored two goals in the tournament. She played centre for the first time this year, a position she has wanted since last year.

“I went and tried it, and I really liked it, and I was pretty good at it,” said Lexie.

As a centre, Lexie must support both the defense by backchecking opponents trying to score, as well as support the offense, by passing the puck to the right and left-wing players and scoring .

“You have to be everywhere on the ice,” said Lexie.

Jonathan notices his daughter’s hockey skills have improved after playing in the new position.

“Playing in a different role on a team has made her a little bit better of a hockey player,” said Jonathan. “She’s able to visualize the ice a lot better and make plays a lot better as well.”

One more regular season game remains for Lexie’s team, which will be played at the Place Bell arena in Laval, Quebec, this weekend.

This won’t be her first time in a big arena.

At 11, she even got to play in a match in Montreal’s Bell Centre. She remembers skating onto the ice in the large arena and seeing herself on the giant screen.

“It was pretty fun. The locker rooms were huge and clean, and the bathrooms were ginormous,” said Lexie.

“On the players bench, all our feet, all our skates were dangling. We couldn’t touch the floor when we were sitting on the bench.”

Lexie is excited to play more hockey with her team as the Mistral heads into the regional games.

“The team feels a bit sad because the season is coming to an end, but we’re also excited to play some more,” said Lexie.

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Hadassah Alencar, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter