Mohawks continue winning ways

Two more Kahnawake Minor Hockey Association (KMHA) teams have been crowned Eastern Hockey League (EHL) champions, with the U11B and U18B Mohawks getting the banner and earning their place at the Lac St. Louis regionals, which will be in Chateauguay this coming weekend.

“I’m very proud of the team. The team has come so far,” said Kyle Zacharie, U11B manager and assistant coach.

They won their EHL finals thanks to a 2-1 win against the MRO Devils, a team that had only lost twice the entire year.

“We knew what they could do, and seeing their record, it makes you think,” said Zacharie.

On Tuesday night, MRO came out very strong, controlling shots and offensive zone time. But Kahnawake resisted the Devils’ offensive barrage, thanks to great defensive play and a successful return to the net for Masen McGregor-Brown, who had been absent the previous few games due to a tryout opportunity in Boston.

“Our goaltender had an amazing game standing on top of his head,” said Zacharie.

“It was a great opportunity for him to get back in the net and really show what he’s capable of doing. And he did a great job.”

The final few seconds saw one last, desperate attempt from MRO to tie the game.

With the extra skater after pulling their goalie, the Devils had an offensive zone faceoff with five seconds left.

“There was a lot of stress and a lot of anxiety in those last few seconds,” said Zacharie.

MRO won the faceoff, but the buzzer-beating shot was blocked by a defender, deflecting harmlessly into the corner to give Kahnawake the win.

Zacharie said that the best part of the season and the run was seeing the whole team improve and play together to get to this point.

“They’re still learning how to play the game. For most of them, it’s their first time playing a full-ice hockey game, because at U7 and U9 age, you’re still playing half-ice. We probably had 35 offsides in a game, because they are still learning that offsides exist. The whole game changes for them,” said Zacharie.

He saw a completely different team than the one that started the year.

“I am super proud of the progress that they made, the attitudes that they have from learning how to win with pride, but also how to lose with pride as well.”

Another growth opportunity has been the sheer number of comebacks or overtime and shootout wins the U11B team has gotten done to stay alive in their playoffs.

Both of those were necessary for their semi-finals game against the MRO Demons, dubbed by sports commentator Brandon Bordeau as the “Mount Royal Miracle.”

“That was an amazing game to be a part of,” said Zacharie.

Kahnawake started that game up 2-1, but after a 15-minute injury delay and some controversial penalties - Kahnawake was assessed a major penalty that was seemingly backed up by video from the stands, although Zacharie was not sure exactly of the circumstances - MRO scored three times in short order to double up the Mohawks.

Kahnawake responded before the end of the period to close the gap. MRO made it 5-3 early in the third, and after some back and forth hockey with chances for both sides, until very late in the period when Kahnawake made it 5-4.

“From there, it just ignited the entire team,” said Zacharie.

With 90 seconds left in the game, the Mohawks tied it to send it to overtime. Despite starting the overtime period shorthanded as a result of the earlier major penalty, per league rules, it only took 45 seconds for Bubby Hemlock to score his fourth of the game to send Kahnawake to the finals.

“I think that’s actually the first time that I’ve ever seen a comeback that big before. Seeing that is absolutely unbelievable,” said Bordeau, who has been in the arenas commenting as many playoff games as he’s been able to for his “Baby Blue Memories” YouTube channel.

Zacharie also said that without the two goalies that filled in during the playoffs while McGregor-Brown was away, Holden Beaton, and Ryan-Odynn Whiteduck, they would not have been able to advance, and both were present to receive medals and be with the team for the finals.

Going into regionals, Zacharie said the team would not be changing how it prepares or its mindset, even if the stakes are going up a notch.

“Nothing comes easy, but the team is prepared, and the team is confident in what their abilities are. And even when they get down in a game, they’ve seen it, and they’ve proved to themselves time and time again that no matter what, they can come back, they have the skill and the ability to do it, and as long as they believe in themselves, they’re capable of doing anything,” said Zacharie.

Their first regionals game will be Saturday, April 5, at 10:30 a.m. at Kim St. Pierre Arena against the Mercier Braves.

The U18B Mohawks will be joining them for regionals, with their first game being April 6 against the Mercier Braves at 6:30 p.m. at Leo Crepin Arena. To get their championship banner, the U18B team beat their division’s MRO Devils 5-1, with goals from Ethan Brascoup, Bowen Deer, Joren Norton, and a pair from Daly Lazare.

“I’ve got a strong and resilient group of players this year. They worked their asses off to get to this point,” said U18B head coach Ronnie Stacey.

The U18B coach said that there was no love lost during the regular season between MRO and Kahnawake.

“The MRO teams were strong, and they liked to chirp. They chirped from the last game of the season all the way to the championship game. But my guys kept their heads, kept their cool and showed on the ice and with composure what champions are,” he said.

He added that the work was not done just yet, and they have their eyes set on regionals.

Unfortunately, not all Kahnawake teams won their finals.

The U21 Junior team’s inaugural season came to an end following a 4-3 to the Pierrefonds Barons in their playoffs, ending their strong first year.

The U13C Mohawks, for their part, fell just short, after a close 3-2 loss to the Westmount Wings.

“The kids really had a good year. Even just making the finals is great. I think what happened is the guys came out a little bit flat,” said Lou Ann Stacey, manager of the U13C team.

Penalty troubles also cost them, with two powerplays for Westmount directly leading to goals.

It was a tightly-contested game, which Stacey said was not surprising considering Kahnawake and Westmount were respectively the best and second-best teams in their division.

Stacey said that as the season progressed, the U13C Mohawks got better and better - and the other teams did, too.

“You can see the improvement, especially for C,” said Stacey. “Almost every game, it was different kids that were stepping up, we were not relying on one player a lot.”

Another factor in their progression, according to Stacey, has been winning.

“A lot of these kids haven’t really won very much in the past,” said Stacey, referring to past seasons where the Mohawks often had short playoff runs or did not make the playoffs at all if that was possible in their leagues.

“Some of the parents wrote in that they thought it was a good season, and their kids enjoyed playing, and that they had fun on the team. That’s what hockey is all about. Don’t get me wrong. I’m competitive, and I like to win. But you have to think of the other side of it, too,” said Stacey, who is also the director of the U15 age group.

“Fun is what is keeping kids in the sport. Oftentimes, you’re starting to see by this age, a lot of kids lose interest, especially when they’re on teams that don’t win. If you’re not winning and you’re getting killed all the time, it’s no fun.”

Bordeau echoed that statement, seeing from the stands that the kids were really enjoying their playoff runs, and he was very glad to see Kahnawake have strong performances.

“It’s been quite a thrill to watch, from a commentator’s perspective. The games are exciting. The games are intense. The fanbase is extremely into the games, and the players on the ice, they believe more this year than the last few years that I’ve seen, that they have a chance,” said Bordeau.

That has translated to away games feeling like home games due to Kahnawake community members showing up to the games to cheer the teams on, and to a lot of interaction on his social media posts of the YouTube videos of the games.

With regionals coming, the good times are not over just yet.

“I can’t remember the last time Kahnawake had two teams playing the regional championships. That certainly adds another element of excitement and happiness and something to look forward to,” said Bordeau.

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