Wolves stunned by Ryerson, will have to hope for wild card

Posted March 3, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in Sports | No comments yet

The road to the CIS nationals just got a whole heck of a lot tougher for the Lakehead Thunderwolves.

The Wolves on Friday were shocked 86-70 by the upstart Ryerson Rams in the OUA semifinal in Waterloo, and will have to rely on the lone at-large berth to make the trip next weekend to Halifax.

A selection committee will use nine separate criteria to make their choice, and the defending OUA champion Lakehead Thunderwolves look like a favourable choice under that scenario.

The first deciding factor is regular season record. LU finished 20-2 in OUA play, losing to No. 1 Carleton and to Laurier, no longer in contention.

Games against other teams under consideration are next. The Wolves swept McMaster, playing in the other OUA semifinal against Carleton, and did not play teams in either Canada West or Atlantic University Sport.

Third on the list is game results against non-conference CIS opponents. Lakehead went 3-0 at Christmas in Quebec, the only non-conference action they saw.

Their best five weeks in the top 10 rankings are also factored in. Lakehead entered weekend play at No. 2, a position they held for the past seven weeks.

Playoff performance is the ninth criteria. The Wolves went 1-1, beating Guelph last weekend before Friday's lopsided loss to Ryerson.

The Rams will take on Carleton or McMaster Saturday night for the OUA championship.

OUA West MVP Venzal Russell had 23 points and a dozen rebounds to lead Lakehead. Aaron Best had 26 to pace the Rams.

"Before this weekend we said the successful team would be the one who executed and played the most as a team over 40 minutes. Ryerson did just that as they beat us down the floor and moved the ball much better than we did," LU coach Scott Morrison said in a release.

"Credit to Ryerson players for knocking down big shots and to their coaches for preparing well this week. They deserved the win and we have to take our beating like men. We picked a bad time to play poorly and now we have to live with it and find ways to learn from this experience."

The Wolves trailed 13-0 to start the OUA semifinal, missing their first 10 shots. The recovered towithin 11 at the half, down 45-34, but the Rams went on a 14-2 run to start the third quarter and LU never recovered.
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Getting ready

Posted March 2, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

Thunder Bay will be the capital of the Ring of Fire, at least according to nine provincial ministers who met with city officials earlier this week at the Ontario Good Roads Conference.

But first the community must prove it’s ready to handle the job, said Coun. Joe Virdiramo, chairman of the intergovernmental liaison committee.

“We know there are going to be hundreds of jobs, if not thousands of jobs created in the mining sector, once this thing takes off. Therefore we have to be ready (to meet) the opportunities, training the people who will be in those positions,” Virdiramo told media Thursday at a city hall news conference.

“We need to make certain that we have everything in place, that we have the foundation in place, for the Ring of Fire – the energy thing, the transportation thing. We need to have a plan.”

There are other issues that come into play, he continued, including social and housing issues that must be addressed before Thunder Bay can gain the full confidence of Queen’s Park and, more importantly, the business community.

“All those things need to be looked into seriously and a plan must developed for each one of those so that we are ready to go when anything comes our way,” Virdiramo said.

All-weather roads connecting the Ring of Fire to both Aborignal communities and the rest of Ontario are a big piece of the infrastructure that will be needed.

But which communities will benefit from the roads remains to be seen.

Thunder Bay is a possible hub, and Virdiramo said the city will continue to push on those issues and make sure the government remains “on the right track.”

“Is it going to happen tomorrow? No. I can say that the government is working on it seriously with private partners and the city will facilitate anything we can do in that endeavour,” he said.

Some encouraging signs are already in place, Virdiramo said, including the Ring of Fire co-ordinator.

Virdiramo and several others who make the trek to the Toronto conference defended the size of their delegation, which included Couns. Aldo Ruberto, Brian McKinnon and Ken Boshcoff, Mayor Keith Hobbs, city manager Tim Commisso, representatives of Fort William First Nation and the Community Economic Development Commission.

Several went as members of other organizations, they pointed out, such as Ruberto under the District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administrative Board flag.  Hobbs and Commisso were there as part of the Northwestern Ontario Municipalities Association delegations.

“Everybody was there (already) so we pulled people into our meetings because we’re all Thunder Bay,” Commisso said.
Hobbs extended his trip to meet with Karen Stintz, a Toronto city councillor who also happens to be chairwoman of the Toronto Transit Commission.

He said he planned to discuss the Ontario capital’s light-rail plan and the impact it would have on Thunder Bay, and to thank her for fighting Mayor Rob Ford’s plan to build subways instead.

“If you’re asking if it’s money well spent, well, it’s money well spent,” Hobbs said.

While they didn’t get any specific promises from the province, they have the ears of several cabinet ministers to discuss things like energy supply and pricing, electricity supply to First Nations communities and workforce development.

“It’s to let government know that we’re serious and the city is backing us up,” Virdiramo said.

“They all want to be here,” he added. “Now it’s in our court and we’ll develop all those plans and we’ll certainly invite all those people to meet with us.”

McKinnon pointed to last year’s meeting, which resulted in specifics in highway safety along the Thunder Bay Expressway.
“We asked for safety lights and we were just confirmed this year that we will get them,” he said.

Commisso couldn’t say how much it cost the city to send the delegation to Toronto, but said it is provided for in the budget.
 
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Emergency session

Posted February 24, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

Thunder Bay’s deputy police chief says he’s not sure what the short-term ramifications will be when OxyContin disappears from city streets over the next few months.

Certainly demand for the drug will drive up prices and there will likely be consequences until the supply dries up completely, Andy Hay said Thursday, after a hastily called strategy session to deal with the problem that brought together health, police and drug strategy officials to discuss what could be looming.

“Any time the demand for a drug or the price increases, the associated risks socially increase too,” said Hay, after the hour-long emergency meeting concluded.

“But you have to remember too, we’re talking about a drug that will no longer be available. So within a 30 to 60 to 90 days time, that drug will no longer be available, so that risk will be eliminated at that point. It will go on to some other drug that will carry the same potential.”

Still, until then, once it is delisted on March 1, it will garner a higher demand on the streets, Hay admitted.

He’s less concerned, criminally speaking, with what will happen to addicts who can no longer get their fix.

Hay said it’s unlikely the withdrawal symptoms will result in more work for the police force.

“I don’t know that the withdrawal will lead to more crime, but I think definitely with the withdrawal that you’re looking at more health care needs,” Hay said. “There are going to be people in need that are going to be in more of a health crisis. As far as withdrawal, that always raises concerns about other things, whether they’re going to get the proper health they need.

“There’s also the psychological effect on families, they’re employments, suicide. All of these things become an issue with withdrawal, not just the criminal aspect.”

Long-term, Hay has higher hopes.

“Hopefully it will eliminate much of the crime that’s in the community,” he said, “and the OxyContin scourge in Thunder Bay will be effectively lessened.”

Health officials say the company that manufactures its replacement, OxyNeo, has put safeguards in place to ensure it won’t be as easily illicitly used.

“It is being marketed as less easily tamperable, so people can’t divert it, crush it, inject it as easily,” said Patty Hajdu, the city’s drug strategy co-ordinator, adding both the Ontario Drug Benefit Plan and Health Canada are changing the way people can access OxyNeo.

“The process to access it is far more restrictive. It can take up to three months for people to access that prescription. So it’s going to be much more difficult for people to access it in prescription form.”

She acknowledged the tighter controls could hurt those who actually need the drug for pain management.

“But there are other very effective opiate-based medications that physicians are able to prescribe and hopefully we’ll be able to work with physicians in the community to do some education, and I’m sure there’s some processes going through their governing body as well,” Hajdu said, blaming pharmaceutical marketing of the benefits and safety of OxyContin, and not the doctors who prescribed the drugs, for the current abuse problem."

Police are unsure what drug might replace OxyContin on the addiction chart in Northwestern Ontario, where some First Nation’s communities claim up to 80 per cent of the population is addicted and have called on governments of all levels to be proactive before the drug is taken off the shelves next week.

“Heroin could be a possibility,” Hay said, “although heroin really isn’t a familiar drug in Thunder Bay. We expect other drugs other than heroin. Drug dependent people are very creative, so there are a lot of drugs out there that are over-the-shelf, prescription drugs that are used illegally for improper purposes.”

Coun. Rebecca Johnson, who attended the meeting, said police have identified an issue facing the community and decided to be proactive about it, rather than reactive.

“I think that’s very commendable of them,” Johnson said. “I think from here now what we have to do is enlarge that. It’s a community issue and it’s been identified as such, and we have to look at how we can put some education in place as well as try to address the issues that are going to become imminent in our community.”

According to the Ontario Addiction Helpline, OxyContin rates at rehab centres have tripled in recent years.
 
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Falcons fly

Posted February 22, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in Sports | No comments yet

Karissa Kajorinne says it’s not easy finding volleyball players at St. Ignatius High School.

She could have fooled the Hammarskjold Vikings.

Kajorinne, one of four basketball stars masquerading as volleyball players for the Falcons, on Tuesday completed an impressive double, helping St. Ignatius capture its third straight senior girls’ volleyball title.

It was Kajorinne’s second title of the school year, having already powered the Falcons to a senior girls basketball crown.
“In basketball we have a bigger club program I feel. So St. Ignatius had a good core group of basketball players,” Kajorinne said Tuesday, after the Falcons took out the Vikings 3-1 to win the championship, on home court nonetheless.

“As for volleyball, it’s a little bit harder. We’re like the little team that could. We started at the bottom and worked our way up. It feels good to have two (titles) now under our belts.”

It hasn’t been easy, she added.

“We’ve put in lots of hours and we practice as much as we can. I’m glad we’ve gone this far, now we have to win at NWOSSA and hopefully make it to OFSSA, like the team did last year,” Kajorinne said. “I never thought the team would make it this far this year, so it’s a nice feeling with all the injuries that we had.”

Teammate Katelyn Andrea, who plays power for the Falcons, agreed it felt great to take home the title, especially where they came from.

“At the beginning of the season we started off really slow, but I’m really glad we came back to win it,” she said.

The Falcons started 1-5, winning their final eight matches to finish second in the regular season standings behind the Vikings, who wound up 11-3, dropping just eight sets along the way.

Andrea said the Falcons are notoriously slow starters, and even though they took the first set 25-17 before falling 25-23 in the second set, it took them some time to pick up the championship pace.

“Usually we try to pick it up when it really matters,” she said.

They did just that on Tuesday.

The Falcons built a 13-7 lead in the third set and pulled away from there, showing their dominance again in the fourth when they leapt out to a 12-4 advantage. The Vikings pulled to within four, rolling off four straight points to close the gap to 20-16, en route to a 25-18 championship clinching win.

St. Ignatius coach Jonathon Lopez said he was proud of what his girls accomplished, coming together as a team to win the Superior Secondary Schools Athletic Association crown.

“The girls played really well. They’ve been playing really great. They’ve won their last eight games so they just continued their momentum really well tonight,” Lopez said.

Our girls became really dedicated toward the end and they just grew together and played really well together.”

The Falcons will play the NWOSSA final Friday and Saturday at home.

St. Ignatius also captured the junior girls championship, falling in the first set to the Hammarskjold Vikings before winning the final three by identical 25-14 scores.
 
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Mauro family issues statement

Posted February 16, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

The family of Thunder Bay Police Sgt. Jim Mauro blames the “absolute power” of the police chief position for the situation Mauro is facing.

The suspended officer was a no-show on Wednesday at the opening day of a hearing looking into allegations of misconduct , stemming from a letter he allegedly signed and sent on then Thunder Bay Police Association president Keith Hobbs, now the city’s mayor.

Mauro’s family issued a statement on Thursday questioning the process that led to Mauro’s predicament.

“He can charge any officer and then he can hand-pick the prosecutor and the hearing officer,” the statement reads.

“It has been confirmed again that the letter in question is truthful, factual and accurate. This is really about an abuse of power and what happens to any police officer in Ontario who may choose to challenge the decisions of a chief on behalf or in his capacity as a union officer.”

The family said they will have more to say at a later date.

Mauro failed to appear again on Thursday for the second day of the three-day tribunal. Officials decided to proceed without him. 

Hobbs, who testified Thursday, called it a witch-hunt.

Follow Leith Dunick on Twitter: @LeithDunick 
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Wolves hang on

Posted February 12, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in Sports | No comments yet

Thomas Frazee hasn't been setting the world on fire with his goal-scoring ability since joining the Wolves at Christmastime.

But he showed on Saturday night he knows what to do with the puck in the clutch. The North Vancouver native one-timed a snap shot past Kurt Jory 7:34 into the third period, just his third goal of the season, but certainly his most important.

It proved to be the winner as Lakehead hung on, after blowing an earlier three-goal lead, to complete the weekend sweep of the Brock Badgers with a 5-4 triumph.

More importantly it sends the Thunderwolves into the playoffs on a modest two-game winning streak, ready to take on the Guelph Gryphons on the road on Wednesday night.

However, Frazee said, nearly giving the game away wasn't exactly how they wanted to win.

"Obviously it wasn't something we wanted to do," he said, lingering on the ice post-game to turn over his game-worn third jersey to a lucky fan who won it in a silent auction.

"I thought for a little bit in the second period we sat back a little bit and didn't play as well as we should have. But at the end of the day we got two points and that's all that matters."

Still, he'll take the sweep, which gave the Wolves a season-ending 19-9-0 record, good for second place in the OUA West.
"We knew it was huge to get two big wins and make sure we had lots of momentum going into the playoffs."

Mitch Maunu, playing in his final regular season game at Fort William Gardens in a Thunderwolves uniform – and scoring his fourth of the year on breakaway pass from Ryan Magill that put LU ahead 2-1 midway through the first – said it wasn't a pretty win.

"But you know what, a win's a win no matter what from here on out, no matter how you do it. It doesn't need to be pretty and we showed that tonight. We had a little bit of a letdown, but yeah, we battled back and that's what playoff games are going to be like.

"It's just going to be a grind, right to the end."

For the second straight night the Badgers, who finished 13-14-1 and will play Waterloo in the opening round of the playoffs, scored first when Thomas Stajan deflected a Kaine Geldart pass behind a surprised Alex Dupuis 4:19 into the contest.

Ryan McDonald tied it less than two minutes later, pouncing on a juicy rebound and knocking past Jory. Maunu, not normally a rushing defenceman, found himself ahead of the play on the Wolves second goal, a dandy three-way passing play that started with Victor Anilane making a great outlet pass to McGill at the Badgers blue-line.

"It was great," Maunu said. "I'm not known for my scoring. I was actually surprised it went in. I thought he stopped it. But it felt great to do that in my final game here in the regular season.

"I just saw a hole and I like to jump though the seams every once in awhile and I got the puck, a great play by Magill, and luckily it went in."

Three minutes into the second and Mike Quesnele ripped a shot through traffic that eluded Jory, then with the Wolves down a man, Andrew Wilkins broke free on Jory, made a nifty deke on the Badgers netminder and it was 4-1 with half the game in the books.

Slowly, but surely, Brock , who out-shot the Wolves 41-29, including 19-6 in the third, began to crawl back into the contest.

Daniel Tanel notched his first of the season to pull the Badgers to within a pair, the first of two power play goals Brock would score on the night.

Less than two minutes later, at the 18:30 mark of the second, Dylan MacEachern hit the post, scooped up the rebound and the lead was trimmed to one, with 20 minutes left to play.

Ryan Allen tied it on the power play at the three-minute mark of the third, but Frazee took matters into his own hands at that point.

"(Keith) Grondin and (Jake) Carrick did a great job getting it in on the forecheck and Carrick made a great pass out front and I was lucky enough to beat the goalie," Frazee said.

Mike Hammond, with a sharp-angled shot at the goal line, finished the evening's offence, beating Jory for the ninth of his freshman campaign.

Claw marks : Forward Devin Welsh was also honoured before the game as a fifth-year senior … Lakehead scratches include Luke Maw, Riley McIntosh, Jadran Beljo, Jason Grecica, Adam Sergerie and third-string goalie Josh Mrakic … The playoff matchups are set. Western, losers of its final two games, will play Laurier. Brock and Waterloo and York and Windsor are the other first-round series. In the OUA East, McGill plays Queen's, UQTR tangles with Ryerson, Nipissing draws Ottawa and Toronto and Carleton will hook up … Matt Caria finished 16th in the OUA scoring race, with 32 points in 21 games … Wilkins's shorthanded marker was his third of the season, second in the OUA behind McGill's Maxime Langelier-Parent … Hammond finished third among rookie scorers with 27 points, four fewer than Thunder Bay's Zach Harnden.

FIRST PERIOD
Scoring : 1. Brock, Stajan 12 (Geldart, Jones) 4:19. 2. Lakehead, McDonald 8 (Caria, Frazee) 6:03. 3. Lakehead, Maunu 4 (Magill, Anilane) 10:30. Penalties : Schram BRO (holding), McDonald LAK (unsportsmanlike conduct) 2:03, Bonawitz BRO (holding) 7:12, Schram BRO (cross checking, roughing), MacEachern BRO, Hammond LAK, Menard LAK (roughing) 14:02, Caria LAK (interference) 15:28, Smeltzer BRO (unsportsmanlike conduct) 20:00.

SECOND PERIOD
Scoring : 3. Lakehead, Quesnele 9 (Fillman, Dupuis) 3:04. 4. Lakehead, Wilkins 10  (unassisted) 10:25 sh. 5. Brock, Tanel 1 (Stajan) 16:38 pp. 7. Brock, MacEachern (K. Geldart, A. Geldart) 18:30. Penalties : Maunu LAK (cross checking) 3:00, Boudreau BRO (high sticking) 5:20, Bench minor LAK (too many men) 9:28, Allen BRO, Carrick LAK (unsportsmanlike conduct) 13:19, Boudreau BRO (slashing) 14:14. Wilkins LAK (cross checking, misconduct) 16:12

THIRD PERIOD
Scoring : 8. Brock, Allen 6 (Smeltzer, Brochu) 3:00 pp. 9. Lakehead, Frazee (Carrick, Grondin) 7:26. 10. Lakehead, Hammond () 18:03. Penalties : Menard LAK (hooking) 1:37, Smeltzer BRO (high sticking), Frazee LAK (elbowing) 14:11.

GAME DATA – SOG – Brock 7-15-19-41, Lakehead 11-12-6-29; Power plays (goals-chances) – Brock (2-5) Lakehead (0-5); Goaltenders – Brock: Kurt Jory, Lakehead: Alex Dupuis; A : 2,850.
 
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Police nab $32K worth of Oxycodone

Posted February 9, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

The Combined Forces Organized Crime Unit has arrested a pair of Thunder Bay residents in a search that netted police $32,000 worth of Oxycodone pills.

Police also recovered $11,750 in cash and a small amount of cocaine in the bust, which resulted from a Feb. 8 Controlled Drug and Substances Act search warrant being executed at an unnamed south side hotel.

A male, aged 38 and female, aged 22 have been taken into custody and face several charges, including possession of Oxycodone for the purpose of trafficking, possession of cocaine, possession of proceeds of crime over $5,000, breach of probation and breach of undertaking.

Police did not name the suspects.

The investigation continues.
 
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Sanctions continue

Posted February 2, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

Party sanctions against Thunder Bay’s two NDP MPs are still in place, but both area Parliament members assure constituents that there’s still a lot of work for them to do.

John Rafferty (NDP, Thunder Bay-Rainy River) and Bruce Hyer (NDP, Thunder Bay-Superior North) were punished by the NDP’s interim leader Nycole Turmel in November after the local MPs voted with the government to end the long-gun registry.

The punishment means nether MP can speak or ask questions in the House. They can’t travel for business with the exception of moving between their riding and Ottawa. The y were also stripped of their critic roles and kicked off committees.

Those sanctions were still in place when MPs returned to the House this week after a six-week hiatus.

Rafferty said it will stay that way until the long-gun bill passes third reading. When that happens is anyone’s guess, the MP said.

“I did hear a rumour that they are trying to get finished with the issue this month,” Rafferty said.
Hyer said third reading was originally supposed to come up this week, but was removed.

The timetable change leads Hyer to believe that the Conservatives won’t bring it up until after March so that they can use it to apply pressure to the NDP when it chooses its new leader.

Regardless, they both say the sanctions haven’t kept them from doing their jobs.

Rafferty said he continues to work toward improving rural broadband Internet. He’s also trying to get a one cent increase to the gas tax and change the formula so cities are funded not just by population, but also by geographical area.

The move would bring an extra $500 million to municipal infrastructure he said.

“There’s still lots and lots of work I can do not just in the riding but here in Ottawa,” Rafferty said.

Hyer added that from getting a fire truck for Whitesand First Nation to convincing the Conservatives to extend a federally-funded program for the defunct Terrace Bay Pulp, he’s had no shortage of work. 

“While some of my rights have been taken away, my workload has not,” he said.

They are also still part of the House duty roster, which makes sure there are enough NDP MPs attending various meetings on Parliament.
Although it was the party that sanctioned the two MPs last year, Hyer said he’s still not sure who had the final decision.

“I’m not sure whether the current interim leader drew this up on her own, or whether she is having her strings pulled by somebody in the party,” he said.

Based on the MPs he’s spoken with, Hyer said a majority of the NDP caucus supports Rafferty and him. 
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Winning continues

Posted February 2, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in Sports | No comments yet

Lonny Bohonos was a winner in his Superior International Junior Hockey League coaching debut.

Marc Nother made 34 saves and Brandon Warmington notched a pair of goals, leading the Thunder Bay North Stars to a 4-0 win over the powerful Wisconsin Wilderness on Wednesday night, stretching their winning streak to four games, equalling a season high.

"It's a big win for us. We wanted to get the win for Lonny in his first game as a junior coach here. It's huge for our team, a big confidence boost to win against Wisconsin and it looks like it's a turning point for everyone," Nother said.

"That's probably our most complete game from the forwards all the way back to the D. So I think we're all happy with the win."

Warmington, who's lit the lamp five times in nine games since joining the Stars from the Markham Waxers, said the adversity surrounding the SIJHL club, as tough as it's been, may have united the players and willed them to the win.

"We had a great team effort out there. It seemed like we all came together," Warmington said. "We weren't really expecting a coaching change, but it seems like it's been working for us. Everything seems to be working out there, we just got a 4-0 win."

Bohonos, though not completely satisfied with the way his new troops played, nonetheless was happy to start out a winner.

"It's good for our hockey club. Obviously Wisconsin is a very good hockey team. I'm obviously happy, but there are a lot of things we need to work on. Our PK did a very good job and our goaltending was outstanding," Bohonos said.

"But I felt there were too many undisciplined penalties and we have to cut those down. We got lucky. They've got a really good power play and we can't give teams that many chances because eventually they're going to capitalize."

The Stars were a perfect 10-for-10 while shorthanded and caught Wisconsin goalie Tanner Millron, who leads the league with a sparkling 1.46 goals against average, on an off night.

Michael Orosey, whose been hot of late, struck first, stepping across the blueline and ripping a slap shot past Millron at the 5:40 mark of the opening period.

Less than two minutes later Kyle Lapenskie doubled the North Stars lead in similar fashion, ringing it off the post and into the net for a 2-0 lead they'd take into the break.

Warmington jumped on a loose puck in front of Millron late in the second, pounding it home for the only goal of the period, and iced the contest at 3:34 of the third, stealing the puck from Wisconsin defender Christian Belobaba and waltzed in alone on Millron to score the final goal of the game.

"I had a couple of goals tonight, but I had good line-mates who got me the puck. It's great to play with good players," Warmington said.

The Stars and Wilderness play the second of three in a row on Friday at the Gardens, then hit the road for a dozen straight to wrap up regular-season play.

First period
Scoring : 1. Thunder Bay, Orosey 7 (Ma. Fox, Osborne) 5:40. 2. Thunder Bay, Lapenskie 18 (Mi. Fox, Mascarin) 6:56.  Penalties : Lapenskie TB (interference) 10:00, Blacksmith TB (high sticking) 11:48, Ma. Fox (delay of game ) 17:49.

Second period
Scoring : 3. Thunder Bay, Warmington 4 (Rempel, Wolframe) 17:11. Penalties : Dietrich WIS (hooking) 2:45, Osborne TB (high sticking) 18:47, Dubinksy TB (hooking) 19:58.

Third period
Scoring : 4. Thunder Bay, Warmington 5 (Rempel) 3:34. Penalties : Blacksmith TB (tripping) 4:37, Tilley TB (holding) 10:17, Mi. Fox TB (high sticking double minor) 11:18, Osborne TB, Hendrickson WIS (unsportsmanlike conduct) 12:11.

Game Data – SOG – Wisconsin 10-14-10-34, Thunder Bay 8-12-7-27; Power plays (goals-chances) – Wisconsin (0-5), Thunder Bay (0-1); Goaltenders – Wisconsin: Tanner Millron, Thunder Bay: Marc Nother; A : 336.

 
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Search on the river

Posted January 26, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

Police say it’s likely someone went through the ice on the Kaministiquia River in the past 24 hours, but it appears whoever it was got out on their own.

Const. Julie Tilbury of the Thunder Bay Police Services is urging anyone who might have been in the area recently to come forward so they can officially close the case.

The call came just before 1 p.m. on Thursday, reporting a hole in the ice with tracks leading to the water’s edge near the Mountdale Road boat launch.

“Apparently some people were down here at lunchtime, observed a hole in the ice and observed what they believe to be tracks. A search of the area has been done by fire rescue, with negative results,” Tilbury said.

“Thunder Bay police are asking if anyone was down here today, or in the last 24 hours and went through the ice, to give us a call so we can clear this incident and make sure there is no other searching we should be doing.”

Tilbury said it’s hard to say how fresh the hole in the thinner-than-usual ice cover on the river is.

“Right now they’ve checked the area and with the weather conditions, it’s hard to tell. However right now they do believe somebody may have walked out on the ice, possibly fallen through and they believe this person has come back out of the area.”

Follow Leith Dunick on Twitter: @LeithDunick
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Stars lose third straight

Posted January 22, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in Sports | No comments yet

The Iron Range Ironheads exploded Sunday for three first-period goals and held on to down the Thunder Bay North Stars at the annual SIJHL Showcase in Duluth.

Casey Skolnik, Benjamin Brouillard and Spencer Peratalo scored a pair of power play goals and a shorthanded marker in the first 12:50 of the game to sink the Stars.

Sam Dubinsky and Brennen Dubchak tallied 83 seconds apart in the third, but try as they might, the North Stars could not net the equalizer.

Colton Ishmael made 38 saves to earn the win. Carter McEachern was yanked after just 2:43, allowing goals on his first two shots. However replacement Marc Nother, who allowed the third goal, was tagged with the loss, stopping 25 of 26 shots.
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Michael Power dies

Posted January 19, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

Michael Power, the longtime mayor of Greenstone, and before that Geraldton, has died at age 69.

Power, who stepped down before the 2010 municipal election, at the time cited his wife’s help for his decision.

He first moved to Geraldton in 1969 and combined to serve nearly 30 years as mayor of the two communities. He was first elected in 1976. Power also spent three terms at the head of the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association.

Upon announcing he was leaving municipal politics, Power said it was time to move on, as difficult a decision as it was.

"Would I like to stick around? You always want to stick around, but there is always a time to move on, and you need to realize, I have given, I have done what I can. I’ve worked with a group of people. We’ve achieved a lot together. It’s time for somebody else and put themselves forward to achieve it," Power said.

This is a developing story. More to follow…
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Dealing with pain

Posted January 19, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

Robert Sugarhead’s shirt comes complete with a buttoned-up collar. 

“I’m wearing a tie and trying to be professional,” the Fort Hope First Nation’s resident says, with the tie loosely around his neck, featuring a full Windsor knot and perfectly placed dimple. It’s a sure sign he takes time and care with his professional attire. 

Just 88 days ago, Sugarhead didn’t bother with ties. Making sure he appeared professional took a backseat to his then top priority – feeding his prescription drug addiction.

“I use to take anything just to get a fix,” he says, recalling the days not too long ago when the drug dependency ran his life. “It was very small here at first. It was Percocet first.”

The Percocet that once did the trick couldn’t satisfy the addiction anymore.

“I turned to OxyContin when I was older … People were looking to find a bigger high and I was one of those guys.”

Sugarhead says drug use was a way to deal with boredom, and didn’t realize he was using the narcotics to help deal with pain. All his previous attempts to drop his addiction ended in relapse.

The problem became so serious that Sugarhead found himself resorting to theft to help pay for his habits.

But crime is not part of his life anymore.

Today Sugarhead is a role model, a youth outreach worker for his community’s school and one of the success stories from Fort Hope First Nation’s homegrown detox program. 

“It was a good choice for me because I was heading down the wrong way,” he says.

"In Fort Hope, there was no place to deal with your problems. Now there is. This detox thing came into the community and I was on the list and I was on the bottom. By some chance I was bumped up.”

And as a youth outreach worker, his goal is to help students with their own drug dependency problems.

Fort Hope’s detox program was created after the community declared a state of emergency in 2011.

The First Nation hoped they could bring more attention to the community’s prescription drug problems by calling the state of emergency. Since then, Health Canada has provided the community with Suboxone, which helps people addicted to opiates deal with the withdrawal symptoms.

But Suboxone alone can’t cure the community of its problems. The First Nation lacked a facility that could help deal with the mental health aspects of drug addiction.

That problem led Fort Hope to create a solution in August 2011 – a detox clinic that could provide local addicts with the services they needed.

Operating inside a converted home, the clinic started with four community members per session. Demand was too much for the original four, so the clinic expanded to allow 10 people to receive treatment.

There are now plans to expand, and bring the clinic’s capacity to 20.

Elizabeth Atlookan, health manager at Fort Hope, says the program’s waiting list is huge.

The community was supportive of the clinic, but admits that Fort Hope needs more than a house-turned-detox clinic snuff out to its prescription drug use epidemic.

“A lot of members in our community are using OxyContin,” Atlookan says.

“It’s really crippled our community. We renovated this house, but we are going to outgrow it very quickly. We have seen improvements. People have gone back to work and taken care of families.”

She says many turn to drugs to deal with pain, and adds that it isn’t an uncommon problem in remote First Nation communities in the North.

When Health Canada arrived to give Suboxone, she says federal health regulations wouldn’t allow the nurses to administer the drug at the clinic.

Like many social problems, money was also a hurdle in the community’s efforts to create a solution.

“We’re talking about big expenses here,” she says.

“We’re talking probably a lot of money to really fully meet the epidemic proportion of this prescription drug abuse in the North. We’re hoping Health Canada will work with us. Right now they have put in an interim funding for a nurse and we’re going with that. Hopefully, with all the media attention we will get all the help we need.”

 
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Snowarama returns

Posted January 12, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in Sports | No comments yet

For eight-year-old Zachary Pylychuk, the annual Snowarama for Easter Seals Kids is all about outdoor fun and fulfilling his need for speed.

For other children with disabilities, it’s an opportunity to enjoy life to its fullest, thanks to the fundraising side of the annual event on the trails surrounding the Grand Portage Lodge and Casino.

“We have a lot of fun,” Zachary said on Thursday, at the launch of this year’s event, set for Feb. 4. “There are two to three snowmobile trails. And last year I got to go on a snowmobile run. It was very fun. We were going very fast and we got to scare our family members.”

Snowarama, which has been taking place for 37 years across Ontario, was designed to help raise money for Easter Seals through pledges collected by local snowmobile clubs.

First started in 1975 by wrestler Whipper Billy Watson, the inaugural Snowarama raised $130,000 at 12 events staged across the province.

Since then it’s raised a combined $16.5 million for Easter Seals.

“Snowarama is very important for Easter Seals. It’s one of the few events that a lot of the kids like, because they get to see the snowmobiles started and they get to look at the snowmobiles from close up,” Zachary said.

Each event is unique, local organizers said.

The Northern Minnesota challenge features a complimentary spaghetti supper and dancing, featuring the music of Bon Jovi tribute band Bed of Roses.

Tony Swader, vice-president of the Grand Portage Trail Riders, said their ninth annual event should be all set to go, the latest drop of snow helping fill out the trails.

“Right now our trails have been dragged and we’ve got some grooming done. Over on the Gunflint they’ve got some grooming done, so I think we’ll be OK, as far as the trails go. There’s a three- to five-inch base in Portage, a six- to seven-inch base over at the Gunflint and about 16 inches of snow in the woods,” Swader said.

“So a couple more shots of snow and we’ll be OK.”

Swader added it’s all about the children, whose families often face enormous financial challenges. It can cost between $10,000 and $40,000 a year to raise a child with a physical disability, something most can afford on their own.

“We want to help the kids like Zach and all the other kids up here in Thunder Bay get the things they need to get on with life and make life a little bit better for them,” he said.

To participate or donate, phone Rhonda Harrison at 345-7622 or visit www.snowarama.org.
 
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Coming down

Posted January 12, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

It was the home of champions, but on Thursday the former Thunder Bay Curling Club was reduced to rubble to make way for an 88-unit condominium unit.

A pair of excavators moved in to begin the work at 9 a.m., to begin the demolition of both the curling club and the adjacent clubhouse, a move that is expected to keep the nine-hole Thunder Bay Country Club viable for another 100 years. The plan also includes a new 10,000 square foot clubhouse.

Club president Bob Swan called it a fantastic day.

“This has been a project that’s been going on for a couple of years and this is the culmination of the first step and I can’t wait to see super structure go up,” he said. “We’ve got a great project going on here.”

Swan, who said the club is still going strong after 102 year of operation, said it was simply time to revitalize the facilities on the Golf Links Road property.

“We haven’t used it as a curling club for about seven years. You know, it was kind of starting to look like a bit of an eyesore.”

Several years ago the club had sought to expand to 18 holes, and had even considered purchasing Centennial Golf Club, building an 18-hole course on that property and shifting locations. But that deal fell through and this more than makes up for it, Swan said.

The members are thrilled to see the development take shape, he added.

“It just shows that we’re committed to being here and we’re happy being in the middle of town,” Swan said.
“We have a real gem right here. And we have a very strong membership. It’s almost full. We don’t have a lot of room for new members.”

The new clubhouse is a bonus too, despite how well the existing one has served the members over the years.
Golfers will have to make do without for a summer, he said.

“There will be one year with a little bit of upheaval, but after that, it’s going to be fantastic.”

Club officials partnered with real estate mogul Robert Zanette on the project, which is expected to be completed by fall 2013, with the clubhouse opening in time for that summer’s golf season.

Zanette, pointing to the new Quality Market store across the street, the proximity to Lakehead University and the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, called it a trophy location for condominium development in Thunder Bay.

The demand certainly proves his point.

“We’ve been building condos for 20 years across North America and it’s pretty hard to beat a site like this,” he said.

“We’ve never had a project that was virtually entirely spoken for prior to breaking ground. That doesn’t mean everybody’s going to come on board, but we basically have more names than units and we’ve never been in that position, so we’re pretty happy with that,” said Zanette, noting that the condo market in Thunder Bay has nonetheless likely reached its saturation point, with this and other planned developments in place.

Units are expected to sell for between $275,000 and $600,000.

Thunder Bay Curling Club was home to the Helen Sillman rink, the 1971 and 1972 provincial women's curling champions. Bill Tetley (1972) and Al Hackner (1992) won Northern Ontario crowns on the men's side.
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Mistaken salary

Posted January 5, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

A mistake put the head of troubled Global Sticks Inc. on the province’s last sunshine list.

The list, which discloses public sector workers in Ontario who make more than $100,000 a year, had Global Sticks’ president Reggie Nukovic making nearly $125,000 of public money in 2010. Natural Resources minister Michael Gravelle said it was a mistake.

The company has received nearly $7 million from the province. When Global Sticks received the funding package, Nukovic accidentally filled out a salary disclosure letter that he’s not required to sign as a for-profit company.

“It was a mistake certainly  I was as shocked as anybody else would have been when I was informed that indeed he was on the list,” Gravelle said Wednesday after being informed of the disclosure by Thunder Bay Television.

“(Nukovic’s salary) is certainly not part of taxpayer funded dollars.”

Gravelle has asked the Ministry of Finance to remove Nukovic’s name from the list and wants the government to look into whether the letter is necessary for for-profit company funding packages in the future. He said the disclosure wasn’t fair to Nukovic.

“I feel somewhat embarrassed may I say on our behalf,” Gravelle said.

As for Global Sticks, which has been shut down since November, Gravelle said the province is in communication with the company to see about restarting.

We have certainly made it clear to the company that we’re prepared to look at a potential to defer some of their required payments if they are able to come up with the extra private sector dollars they believe they need to get things restarted,” he said.

“It’s important thought that with all the public dollars that have gone into it that we see some private sector support."

Nukovic said he's not concerned that his name ended up on the list as the company has nothing to hide.

He added that he hopes to have employees back to work as early as Jan. 15.

 
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Repairs needed

Posted January 5, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in News | No comments yet

A ship in Thunder Bay’s port is in need of repair after a New Year’s Eve incident.

A large boom, used to load and unload cargo, on the ship Sagniaw collapsed onto a dock while the ship was moored at Thunder Bay Terminals.

Thunder Bay Port Authority CEO Tim Heney said this type of incident is a first.

“Fortunately there were no injuries and the ship is currently in a safe position,” Heney said.

Solutions are being worked on right now.

Thunder Bay does have facilities to fix the problem.

Heney said the boom will need to be removed before the ship can move, possibly to the ship yard for repair.

But that could take some time, he added.
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Top 10 sports

Posted January 2, 2012 by ThunderBayClassifieds.ca in Sports | No comments yet

It was a bit of an oddity in Thunder Bay in 2011, with the Stanley Cup coming nowhere near the city, after Jordan Staal and Patrick Sharp won the prestigious trophy in 2009 and 2010.

Uncharacteristically the Lakehead Thunderwolves hockey squad was unceremoniously bounced from the postseason in the first round, a first in team history, a story in its own right. But there was plenty to like about the Thunder Bay sports scene this past year, starting with a hoops squad that showed once and for all it belonged with the big boys. Here is our look back at the top 10 sports stories of 2011.

1. Proving 2010 was no fluke , the Lakehead Thunderwolves men's basketball team returned to nationals, winning an OUA championship in a stunning upset of the No. 1 Carleton Ravens. The trip to Halifax marked the end of the road for guard Jamie Searle, where the Wolves lost their opener, but won their two consolation matches to finish fifth.

2. For the third time in four seasons , the Thunder Bay Chill made their way to the Premier Development League's final four weekend. Led by Brandon Swartzendruber, Gustavo Oliveira, Nolan Intermoia, Wilson Neto and local boy Stephen Paterson, the Chill proved once and for all, even with a semifinal loss, that they're the circuit's model program these days.

3. Michael Somppi, Andy Shields and Erin Tribe showed they belonged on the national stage, earning their way to world ski championships at the national time trials held at Lappe this past January. Somppi and Tribe made the under-23 team, while Shields, with wins in three of four races at the trials, captured a bid on the national junior team. All three ski for the National Training Development Centre Thunder Bay squad.

4. Cold weather aside , Thunder Bay proved an excellent host for some of the province's most underrated athletes. Special Olympians couldn't say enough about the city and its people, as they competed at the Ontario Winter Games in skiing, snowshoeing, curling, figure skating and speed skating at a variety of venues throughout the city.

5. Sault Ste. Marie's Brad Jacobs had all but resigned himself to runner-up status at the Northern Ontario men's curling championship, but got the surprise of his life when Thunder Bay skip Joe Scharf sailed his final 10th-end stone through the house, giving Jacobs a steal of three and a trip to the Brier. Scharf only needed a draw to the eight-foot for the win.

6. Tasia McKenna may or may not be the best basketball player to suit up for the Thunderwolves women's team. But one thing's for sure, she is the most prolific scorer. McKenna, now an assistant under Jon Kreiner, broke Kathy Harrison's two-decade-old career mark of 1,968 in February, against the Brock Badgers in her final regular season contest.

7. Multi-sport athlete Robbi Weldon and partner Lyne Bessette took home four visually impaired tandem cycling gold medals at the 2011 Parapan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. As a result of their success, the duo were named Canada’s flag bearers in closing ceremonies. Weldon is a former cross country skier who took part in the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver.

8 Like her brother Joe Scharf , curler Krista McCarville came up one game short in her quest for another trip to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. The Thunder Bay skip, who curls out of the Fort William Curling Club, couldn't get past Ottawa's Rachel Homan in the provincial final, denying her foursome a fifth berth at the national championship.

9. After nine years of playoff success , the Lakehead Thunderwolves were ousted by Waterloo in the opening round of the playoffs, bringing to a close what might have been the team's most disappointing season yet. The Wolves also said goodbye to a number of veterans, including captain Jordan Smith, forwards Brock McPherson and Kris Hogg and goalie Kyle Moir, to name just a few, ushering in a new era for the perennial powerhouse.

10 Marc Staal's hockey career appears to be on hold , thanks to a hit from brother Eric. The New York Rangers defenceman finished the 2010-11 season, but recurring headaches and other concussion-like symptoms have shelved the former first-round draft pick for the entire current campaign. The Rangers moved Staal, who got married this summer, to the long-term injured reserve list to clear up cap space, further clouding when he might return. Staal has resumed skating on his own.
 
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