THUNDER BAY – The All-Ontario U15 AAA championship begins Thursday afternoon at the Fort William Gardens with the host Thunder Bay Kings and five other teams vying for provincial hockey supremacy.
Here’s a glance at the six clubs and the respective branch associations they are representing during the four-day event, that wraps up Sunday:
Hockey Northwestern Ontario: Thunder Bay Kings
Head coach: Joe Ritson
As the host team at this year’s All-Ontario U15 AAA event, the Kings will look to excel on home ice in their quest for the provincial title.
In 13 NOHL contests throughout the campaign, Thunder Bay went 10-1-0-2 overall.
Their leading scorer in NOHL play was Cullen McCormack, who averaged two points-per-game with 26 in total on 14 goals and 12 assists.
Defenceman Bentlee Wiwcharyk was next on the squad in offensive production and he collected 14 points from the backend with seven tallies and as many helpers.
The duo of Ryder Milani and Alex Simeoni sat third with 11 points each, while Luke Ritson had 10.
Goaltender Declan Scott was 6-0-1-0 in NOHL regular season action with a 1.07 goals-against average, with Maddox Boutette going 4-1-1-0 and a GAA of .307.
In the NOHL playoff tournament, Thunder Bay went 2-3 overall, falling to the eventual winner Soo Jr. Greyhounds (3-2) and the Sudbury Wolves (3-0) before rebounding with back-to-back shutouts of the North Bay Trappers (6-0) and the Timmins Majors (5-0).
They were then clipped by Sudbury 6-2 in the semifinals.
The Kings’ top point-getter in the playoff tourney was Colin McDonald, who collected six points, while the four-pack of McCormack; Ritson; Simeoni and Jesse Ukrainec had four each.
Minor Hockey Alliance of Ontario: Elgin-Middlesex Canucks
Head coach: Pat Powers
Elgin-Middlesex finished in first place in the Alliance U15 AAA standings with a 25-2-4 mark.
Hosting the Alliance championship tournament, the Canucks ran the table going a perfect 5-0, including doubling up the Chatham-Kent Cyclones 4-2 in the final.
Going unbeaten in their four round robin games gained them a berth directly to the title game.
There they outscored their opposition by a 17-2 count, and posted a pair of shutouts, with victories versus Chatham-Kent (3-1); Windsor Jr. Spitfires (5-0); Brantford 99ers (7-0) and the Waterloo Wolves (2-1).
Hockey Eastern Ontario: Ottawa Jr. 67s
Head coach: Matt Shahen
As part of earning their way to Thunder Bay, Ottawa earned top spot in the HEO regular season table with a record of 15-9-4, including being an impressive 8-1-1 in their last 10 outings.
As part of an overall 10-2-0 postseason run, the Jr. 67’s moved to the HEO U15 AAA final.
Ottawa got by the upset-minded Eastern Ontario Wild, winning the best-of-seven affair in six games, featuring a 3-1 triumph in the finale, led by an Adrien Faubert hat trick.
Northern Ontario Hockey Association: Soo Jr. Greyhounds
Head coach: Cole Jarrett
A familiar opponent of Thunder Bay, Sault Ste. Marie joined the Kings in competing in the Northern Ontario Hockey League in 2025-26.
The Jr. Greyhounds dominated the NOHL regular season slate with a stellar 33-2-1 record.
Hosting the NOHL playoff tourney back in late March, the Soo were a perfect 6-0 on home ice, registering round robin results over the Kings (3-2); Timmins Majors (8-3); Sudbury Wolves (4-3) and the North Bay Trappers (7-2).
In the semifinal, the Soo stopped Timmins (6-2) before shutting out Sudbury (5-0) to hoist the trophy.
Their leading scorer in the playoffs was Lukas Maninos, who amassed 17 points in six games, on eight goals and nine assists.
Maninos also led the way in the regular season with a league-best 54 points to his credit.
The Hounds’ trio of Benjamin Campbell, Wyatt Jarrett and Matti Lappalainen were next on the squad with six points apiece.
Soo netminder Benjamin Clayton was 4-0 in the playoff, while sporting a crisp 1.65 goal-against average.
Carter Rome was 2-0 with a 2.65 GAA.
The duo were 14-1-1 and 12-1 respectively in the regular season.
Greater Toronto Hockey League: Vaughan Kings
Head coach: Chris Stevenson
The highly touted Vaughan side dominated the U15 AAA division in the GTHL this season going a perfect 33-0-0 in the 12-team field, while averaging nearly six goals a game and conceding just over one against per outing.
Continuing their winning ways in the postseason, the Kings swept the North York Rangers in three straight in the quarter-finals and then crowned the Toronto Young Nationals in semifinal action, in the minimum trio of outings.
A stiffer test in the GTHL final, Vaughan beat the Toronto Jr. Canadiens 6-3 in Game 1, only to see Toronto hand them their only loss in league play all season, a 4-3 setback, in Game 2.
Regrouping, the Kings took the next two tilts by scores of 8-4 and 3-1 to capture the championship.
Ontario Minor Hockey Association: York-Simcoe Express (OMHA)
Head coach: Warren Cooper
A solid 2025-26 campaign saw York-Simcoe finish first in the OMHA’s 10-team East Division with a record of 27-4-1-1.
There they notched a division-best 168 goals and only allowed 42 against, which was the fewest among all clubs.
In round robin playoff play, the Express rolled to a perfect 8-0 mark to punch their ticket to the OMHA U15 championship tournament in Kingston.
There, York-Simcoe advanced to the semifinals, where they blanked the host Greater Kingston Jr. Gaels 4-0.
Moving on to the title game, against another solid squad, they took on the Halton Hurricanes, who finished first overall in the OMHA West.
Trailing 1-0 late regulation in the final, the Express tied it with just 15 seconds remaining in the third period to force overtime, then prevailed in OT to capture the crown in dramatic fashion and send them to Thunder Bay.
SCHEDULE
All-Ontario U15 AAA Championship
All games @ Fort William Gardens
Compering teams
Thunder Bay Kings (HNO)
Elgin-Middlesex Canucks (Alliance)
Ottawa Jr. 67s (HEO)
Soo Jr. Greyhounds (NOHA)
Vaughan Kings (GTHL)
York-Simcoe Express (OMHA)
Thursday, April 9
Vaughan vs. Soo 10 a.m.
Thunder Bay vs. Elgin-Middlesex 12 p.m.
Ottawa vs. York-Simcoe 2 p.m.
Soo vs. Elgin-Middlesex 5 p.m.
Vaughan vs. Thunder Bay 7 p.m.
Friday, April 10
Elgin-Middlesex vs. York-Simcoe 10 a.m.
Ottawa vs. Vaughan 12 p.m.
Soo vs. Thunder Bay 2 p.m.
York-Simcoe vs. Vaughan 5 p.m.
Elgin-Middlesex vs. Ottawa 7 p.m.
Saturday, April 11
York-Simcoe vs. Soo 10 a.m.
Thunder Bay vs. Ottawa 12 p.m.
Elgin-Middlesex vs. Vaughan 2 p.m.
Ottawa vs. Soo 5 p.m.
York-Simcoe vs. Thunder Bay 7 p.m.
Sunday, April 12
Semifinal No. 1: 4th round robin vs. 1st round robin 9 a.m.
Semifinal No. 2: 3rd round robin vs. 2nd round robin 11 a.m.
Bronze medal game: 4 p.m.
Gold/Silver medal game: 6:30 p.m.
Photo credit: James Mirabelli
