Local Sports

Seven teams hit the ice during the Northern Source Rentals Novice 1 Canadiens tournament held over the weekend in St. Paul, with the host team sneaking into the A-finals with a hard fought win early Sunday morning against the Bonnyville Pontiacs.

“Chemistry on the ice isn’t forced. You can’t just decide that players are going to work well together.

The St. Paul Canadiens returned to their winning ways on Jan. 6, as the second-ranked team in the NEAJBHL took on the Onion Lake Border Chiefs, defeating the team 2-1.

The Bonnyville Sr. Pontiacs picked up two wins in their back-to-back games against the Eckville Eagles. In game one of the weekend, on Saturday, Jan. 7, the play was back and forth all the way through.

There will be a little less elbowroom on the Voyageurs’ bench thanks to the addition of three new players to the team acquired over the break.

Bonnyville bid farewell to a cornerstone in the local chuckwagon scene, the iconic rainbow wagon and its driver Rae Croteau Jr. The third-generation driver retired after the Bonnyville Pro Rodeo and Chuckwagon Championship in July.

The spotlight was on the Town of Bonnyville as it hosted the 2016 World Junior A Challenge (WJAC). In 2015, it was just a dream that the small town would host such a world-renowned tournament, and yet on Dec. 11, 2016 the world came to Bonnyville.

When the going gets tough for a hockey team, one strategy to motivate the players is to shake things up by bringing in a new captain with a fresh perspective, quiet intensity, and skill to boot.

Dan Reid has been among the people fundraising and working to get a planned skate park off the ground in St. Paul for three years.

Eric Dechaine is not your typical hockey player. Sure, he straps on blades and hits the ice, doing his best to put the puck in the net, and he follows the Oilers as much as the next guy, while dreaming of one day playing for Team Canada.