MEMBERTOU, N.S. — Levi Denny wasn’t the first to hoist the cup, but when he did the Kameron Junior Miners goaltender was saluted by his teammates with smiles and heartfelt applause for his efforts in helping them win the Atlantic junior ‘B’ hockey championship.
The 20-year-old from Eskasoni turned aside 22 of the 23 shots he faced to lead the host Miners to a 4-1 win over Newfoundland and Labrador’s Mount Pearl Junior Blades in the championship game of the 2018 Don Johnson Memorial Cup before an enthusiastic and appreciative crowd of around 1,200 at the Membertou Sport and Wellness Centre on Sunday.
Not only was Denny named the tournament’s most valuable player, but he also came up with a concise and accurate reason as to why the Miners were triumphant.
“We played our best hockey of the season during this tournament,” said Denny.
“All the guys played well, everybody contributed, and the guys kept things clear in front of me, so I had a good look at most of their shots – it’s just great to win it here at home.”
The Newfoundland squad rallied in the second period when James O’Brien finished off an offensive foray to level the score. However, the hosts were not to be denied and just over a minute later Nolan Smith marked the final game of his junior career with a power play goal to put the Miners up for good.The Junior Miners opened the scoring five minutes into the opening period when defenceman Brody McCarron grabbed a loose puck, dipsy-doodled past a Blades player and fired the puck past Mount Pearl goalie Brandon Short
Just minutes later, Noah Perry scored a short-handed goal to extend the Miners lead. Perry, who was named player of the game, would also tally into an empty net to cement the win with just over two minutes remaining in the third period.
Head coach Ryan MacDougall said the win capped off a tremendous season, the team’s second since relocating from Glace Bay to Membertou prior to the 2016-17 campaign.
“The boys played great, they played their hearts out and they deserve this,” he said. “We had good energy all tournament, the boys were up for this and we built on our great playoff run, so it was a great tournament and it couldn’t have ended any better.”
The Miners went undefeated in the five team round robin before once again beating Nova Scotia rival East Hants Penguins 5-2 in one of two Saturday semifinal matches. Mount Pearl rolled to a 5-0 win over the Prince Edward Island champion Western Red Wings in the other semifinal game.
Like his teammates and many in the crowd, 21-year-old forward Nolan Smith couldn’t keep the smile off his face after the game.
“That was nice to get – I can’t really put it into words yet, but what a great way to finish my career,” said Smith, an engineering student at Cape Breton University.
“But, no studying tonight – now we celebrate!”
On the other side of the ice, members of the Mount Pearl squad could only look on as the Miners celebrated.
“Hats off to the Miners, they played well and deserve the win – we gave it all we had, but came up a bit short,” said Blades captain Michael Barnes. “But it was a great tournament and we want to thank the Miners for putting on a great competition.”
The five team, season-ending tournament also featured New Brunswick champion Moncton Vito’s.
The Miners, who captured the Nova Scotia Junior Hockey League title this season, are the first team from Cape Breton to win the championship since the Cape Breton Alpines claimed the title in New Waterford in 1997. They’re the fifth team to win an Atlantic junior ‘B’ crown, following the Alpines, the Sydney Millionaires (1989), Glace Bay-Sydney Metro Bees (1972) and the Strait Pirates (1968).
Tournament Roundup
2018 Don Johnson Memorial Cup Awards
• Champions – Kameron Junior Miners
• Runners-up – Mount Pearl Junior Blades
• Tournament MVP – Levi Denny, Miners
• Championship Game MVP – Noah Perry, Miners
• Sportsmanship Award – Patrik Landy, Moncton Vito’s
All-Star team
• Goalie – Levi Denny, Miners
• Defence – Adam Nolan, Mount Pearl
• Defence – Chris Osmond, Miners
• Forward – Mitchell Johnston, Miners
• Forward – Chasse Gallant, Western Red Wings
• Forward – Jesse Hamer, East Hants Penguins
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