The Comets, from Fort Coulonge, pose with their trophy following a dramatic win at the Pontiac Provincial Hockey Tournament
Tim Ferrigan
SHAWVILLE – The Fort-Coulonge Comets played above their usual level (Upper Ottawa Valley Minor Hockey B Division) when they registered in the U18 A Division at the annual Pontiac Provincial Hockey Tournament held the weekend of January 20 to 22, in Shawville. They were on the waiting list for Division B but took the chance when tournament organizers were looking for more teams to participate in Division A.
Their first game was against the Nepean Raiders. In their previous match of the year against the Raiders, the Comets were blown out 8-0. Understandably, the coaching staff wanted to keep this game close. True to form, goaltender Jean-Michel Landry stood on his head, and the team played outstanding defense to pull off a stunning 1–0 upset, with the lone goal coming from Venka Bonnerot.In game 2 they played the hometown long-time rival, Pontiac Lions A club. In a hard fought game, the Comets jumped out to an early lead with a blast by Jordan Acres-Levesque, but the Lions’ Lucas Barre scored late in the game for a 1-1 tie.
The Comets advanced to the Division A final with a semi-final round bye and waited to see who they would play. The Nepean Raiders won their semi-final game to earn a shot at redemption against the Comets.
The final was a gritty battle between these new rivals. With the historic PPT Cup awaiting the winner, the Comets fought through fatigue, stress, equipment malfunctions and injuries to play their best game of the year. It was 0-0 going into the third period, when Hugo Boisvert gave the Comets a lead, but the Raiders quickly answered back. Late in the game, Comet’s defenseman, Javier Morin, blasted the go-ahead goal. The last two minutes were tense: following a late penalty for the Comets, the Raiders pulled their goalie, and kept thepuck in the Comets’ zoneplaying six men to four. However, goalie Landry and the boys fought hard until the final buzzer. It was an amazing game to close out a great weekend of hard fought hockey.
