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22 Sports Oakville Beaver SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 255) Fax 905-337-5567 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2007 Major breakthrough year for Minor Oaks Success of local hockey teams attributed to player selection, initiation program C urious about the current direction of the Minor Oaks Hockey Association? Try doing a quick scan of the TriCounty Minor Hockey League standings. MOHA teams have enjoyed tremendous overall success so far this season, highlighted by the ten squads that won regular-season league titles -- double the amount of the next-closest centre (Brampton). Included in that mix are five single-A teams, led by the novice A Rangers -- a team that did not taste defeat (25-03) throughout the entire season. The minor atoms, atoms, peewees and minor bantams also won division crowns, each winning 20 or more games and finishing with an aggregate record of 82-12-18. Double-A teams have also posted impressive results, with the minor atoms, atoms and minor peewees winning their league titles with a combined record of 64-9-11, and the bantams (17-5-6) finishing a strong second. In triple-A, the minor peewee Rangers rolled to a 25-2-1 season mark and a division championship, while the minor atoms -- 226-4 as novices a year ago -- improved to 21-7-4 and third in their league. Oakville's triple-A midgets, meanwhile, are 21-3-4 this year and still have a chance to overtake the 2006-07 Tri-County/ SCTA division titles · Oakville · Brampton · Burlington · Caledon · Halton · Hamilton · Orangeville · Ten other centres 10 5 2 2 2 2 2 1 (Midget AAA season not yet completed) Burlington Eagles for top spot in their division. MOHA's AE (additional entry) teams have also fared well, as the minor peewees won their league with a 22-5-1 record and the bantams placed fifth with a 17-9-2 finish. Overall, pretty impressive results, to say the least. "I'm hoping this season is showing us we're back on track," said Keith Murray, spokesperson for the MOHA. "The last two years (in triple-A) we were a combined 30 games under .500 both years, and this year we're almost 30 games over .500. It's a big swing, but it's only one year. I'd like to see it be a trend." So, how to explain the breakthrough year, possibly the best overall season in MOHA history? "One of the reasons for our improvement is we have kids playing at the right level," Murray said, noting the association implemented a rule last season requiring children to play at their designated level (triple-A, for example) or compete in an older age group in house league. "The coaches have done a good job picking at the triple-A level, and there hasn't been a ripple effect. You'd think if you lost triple-A players (moving them up from the previous season), that would affect the lower tiers, but it hasn't." The best example of that might be the minor atom age group. Coaches Paul Harvey, Duncan Harvey and Reggie Nesu drastically overhauled the triple-A team this season, bringing in 11 new players while moving two of the returning forwards back to defence. That hasn't hurt the single- and double-A clubs, however. The minor atom A Rangers, OMHA finalists in 2006, went 21-3-4 in league play this year, as did the defending OMHA champion AA Rangers. "Forget any coaching or what we did; we put the right players on the team," Duncan Harvey said. "It didn't seem to affect the single- and double-A teams. It shows how strong that age group is." The success of the minor atoms, as well ASHLEY HUTCHESON / SPECIAL TO THE OAKVILLE BEAVER SOLID SECOND: Jeff Pinto captained the Oakville bantam AA Rangers to a 17-5-6 mark in TriCounty league play this season. as a decent overall showing from the novice age group, could be seen as dividends from the MOHA's initiation program. That program, sponsored by Tim Hortons, concentrates on skill development for pre-tyke players, under the supervision of trained instructors. Each weekend, the ice at River Oaks Recreation Centre is divided into smaller pads by temporary miniature boards, allowing youngsters to spend more time handling a puck. John Butler, who has overseen the program since its inception five years ago, says it has quickly become a model for other hockey associations. "We had people come to us each weekend to have a look, and now I go rink to rink and I see the small boards and the smaller (three-by-five-foot) nets," he said, adding parents in Oakville often find other programs to complement the training their children receive in the Tim Hortons Initiation Program. "A lot of communities have picked up on it." A strong house league program can also See Strong page 23