The Chippewa Varsity Boys' Hockey team has qualified for the OFSAA championships.
The victory to allow them to qualify did not come easy.
The Chippewa squad dropped its two opening contests against St. Charles and St. Mary's on Monday which meant a win over the Lo-Ellen Park was a must Tuesday morning if they wanted to qualify for the provincial event.
The Raiders fell behind 3-1 to Lo-Ellen before they rallied for a comeback win.
Carter Thibodeau, Heath Bradley and Hayden Casey scored for Chippewa to make it 4-3 Lo-Ellen. Grade 12 veteran Tommy Pipe became the hero late in the contest for Chippewa, not only scoring the tying goal but scoring the go-ahead goal to put Chippewa in the lead with 6 minutes remaining in the third
Chippewa goalie Vaughn Thomson then shut the door, earning the 5-4 win and an OFSAA berth.
Despite dropping the first two games, Greg Richardson, Raiders head coach, says the competition was tight.
"In all honesty, there was very little, if any difference between the four teams that competed at NOSSA," said the longtime Chippewa hockey coach.
"We had leads heading to the third against both St Charles and St Mary’s, but a couple of untimely penalties and a brief lapse in focus cost us those games.
"As a team, I believe we learned a lot in those games, albeit the hard way. We proved we belonged with the top high school teams in the north and can’t wait to experience OFSAA competition.
"It will be an invaluable experience for our team moving forward, as we expect 14 players to return next season."
OFSAA AAA hockey championships begin for the Chippewa Raiders on Tuesday, March 19 in Brooklin,Ontario.
