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30 Sports Oakville Beaver Call Today for our Special Promotions 905-304-4774 or 1-866-929-4774 www.uniquepools.ca SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 255) Fax 905-337-5567 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · FRIDAY, JANUARY 4, 2007 Three Rangers teams win titles at Richard Bell tournament By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR Rep hockey seems to agree with members of the Oakville minor peewee AE (additional entry) Rangers. The team of mostly first-year rep players won its third tournament of the season last weekend, capturing gold at the hometown Richard Bell Memorial Minor Hockey Tournament. The minor peewee AE squad was one of three local teams to win Richard Bell championships, joining the minor peewee A and minor bantam AE Rangers, as Minor Oaks Hockey Association teams generally enjoyed a successful tournament. The minor bantam AA Rangers also won medals, claiming silver, and all but three of the 14 local teams participating advanced to at least the semifinal round. The minor peewee AE Rangers, featuring 13 players that were in house league a season ago, won five of their six games at the Richard Bell tournament. They avenged their lone loss, a 3-1 defeat to the Stoney Creek Jr. Warriors in the round-robin, with a 4-3 overtime win over Stoney Creek in the final. "(Our team) has done very well, for a group of house league kids playing against teams that have been together four or five years," said minor peewee AE coach John DaSilva. "Twelve of my kids hadn't played contact before. We just move the puck very quickly, play our positions, stay aggressive in the offensive zone, and maintain our composure and focus." Kevin Cameron was the hero for Oakville in the minor peewee AE final, scoring twice -- including the overtime winner. Colin Song and Daniel Cubric added singles for Oakville, which allowed Stoney Creek to tie the game late in regulation but managed to regroup for the overtime. The Rangers had earned their berth in the title game with a 1-0 semifinal win over Orangeville, as Lain Stoddart provided the game's only marker. "Our goaltending (John Whaley and Vito Peragine) was very strong," DaSilva said, "and Daniel Cubric was probably our premier player in the tournament." Minor bantams down familiar rival Playing older opponents in tournaments earlier this year has paid dividends for the minor bantam AE Rangers. Oakville went undefeated at the Richard Bell tournament, clinching gold with a 4-2 win over the league rival Georgetown Raiders and earning its second tournament title of the season. Rangers head coach Jeff McBain, whose team is 19-2-3 in league play this year, said the squad has stepped up its play since competing in major bantam tournaments recently in Pittsburgh and Chatham. "You raise your level of play when you raise your level of competition," he said. "That's my philosophy." Finishing round-robin play with a 3-0-1 record, Oakville downed the Brampton Battalion 6-1 in the semis to set up the showdown with Georgetown. The Raiders defeated the Rangers in the teams' regular-season openers, but Oakville has won the past two meetings. "I'd say we'd be the two teams that it will come down to for the OMHA (title), based on what I've seen in Ontario so far," said McBain. Derek Sergas and Justin Guida each scored twice in the final for Oakville. Peter Smith (two), John Oldfield, Ryan Stanton, Guida and Sergas tallied in the semifinal victory over Brampton, with Guida and Stanton notching two assists each. Connor Ferris played goal in all but two periods of the tournament for the Rangers as the team's other goalie, Adam Garrie, was ill during early action. Minor peewees break through Feeling a little snakebitten after their first three tournaments of the year, the minor peewee A Rangers finally got some bounces and were able to claim their first gold of the season. Oakville did so in convincing fashion, concluding an undefeated effort with a 52 triumph over the Meadowvale Mohawks in the final. The Rangers jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in that contest, then added two third-period markers after Meadowvale had pulled to within one. "We have just seemed to be an unlucky team this year," said Rangers coach Glen Lacoste. "We went to the finals of a Peterborough tournament and lost a one-goal game... we lost in the Rochester final to Newmarket, 2-0. We'd just come up against some real tough goalies in these finals. Last weekend, the moon and the stars were aligned, I guess." Troy Lacoste, Victor Christiansen, Brandon Hughes, Ben Everett and Patrick Enman scored for Oakville in the win over Meadowvale. Logan Gauer and See Minor page 31 TOURNAMENT WINNERS: The Oakville minor peewee A, minor peewee AE and minor bantam AE Rangers all won championships at last weekend's Richard Bell Memorial Minor Hockey Tournament. Above, members of the minor peewee AE Rangers celebrate a goal in the final against Stoney Creek. Left, Adam Waldbillig of the minor peewee A Rangers fights through the check of two Meadowvale opponents. DEREK WOOLLAM / SPECIAL TO THE OAKVILLE BEAVER www.icesports.com 905-845-6989