MANITOULIN—Two Manitoulin Island hockey players will be members of the team representing the Northern Ontario Hockey Association at the Ontario Winter Games taking place in Thunder Bay in February.
Both Jaxsin Chatwell of Naughton, a 13-year-old defenseman for the Sudbury Wolves U14AA (bantam) team, who was born in Sudbury, raised in Gore Bay and has strong family ties to Manitoulin Island, and Koda Peltier of Sudbury, originally of Wiikwemkoong, a 13-year-old centreman for the Sudbury Wolves A U15 team were selected to play for the Northern Ontario team.
Both players received plenty of praise from the coach of the NOHA team, Tim McWhirter. “There are a couple of big reasons why Koda was named to the team. He brings a lot of energy and passion for the game. He has a skillset that provides time and space for his teammates. He is not afraid to go in the corners and bump and grind and dig out the puck for his teammates. He always goes the extra mile.”
“When I went to the tryout camp, I didn’t know any of the players,” said Mr. McWhirter. “I went in with an open mind and no preconceived notions. This was the first time I saw them. Koda’s work ethic, desire, determination and passion really stood out. He is full of energy and life on the ice and off the ice.”
Mr. McWhirter explained, “Jaxsin stood out as well. He is a big, right-handed shooting defenseman that we didn’t have a lot of at the selection camp. His skillset allows him to be an offensive threat in carrying the puck. And he has great defensive awareness, his priority is to take care of his own end. He is a double threat.”
“Jaxsin is a smart, heads-up hockey player,” stated Mr. McWhirter. “He’s a steady presence on defense. One of the things I told all the players at tryouts is that sometimes less is more—you don’t have to dipsy doodle with the puck around the other team. A first crisp pass to a teammate to get out of our zone is more important. He (Jaxsin) took to this quickly. He is a real thinker on the ice.”
“And even more important than their hockey skills, Jaxsin and Koda are both great young men,” continued Mr. McWhirter. “I had the opportunity to chat with both of them as I did with all the kids at the tryout camp. All the kids’ parents and teams should be proud of all of them. I asked all of them to make a difference and they exceeded all expectations. They all should be very proud of the young men they are and how they performed.”
“There were over 60 players who took part in the team training camp (held in Powassan) after New Years,” said Troy Chatwell, Jaxsin’s father. “The coaching staff told all the players after their last game at the camp that the coaches would be sending out emails to those players that didn’t make the team and would call those who had made the team.”
The 2024 Ontario Winter Games “is a pretty big event,” stated Mr. Chatwell. “I took part in the Ontario Summer Games years ago so I can understand how big it is. Jaxsin is pretty excited about playing in the winter games.”
“Koda has been playing hockey ever since he learned to skate as a little kid,” stated his mother, Stacey Dell.
“There are players from all over Northern Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins, North Bay, Sudbury and Kapuskasing on the team,” said Ms. Dell. “They took part in a tryout camp in Powassan. It was a three-day tryout camp for the team. Koda did well. He loves hockey, is very determined and wants to go somewhere with this.”
Koda, “is very excited to be going to the winter games,” said his mother.
The Ontario Winter Games will take place in Thunder Bay from February 16-26 with the hockey tournament being held February 22-25.
Mr. McWhirter added, “we had a total of 52 skaters and 11 goalies on hand for the tryout camp to try and put the best team possible together. It is not always about the most skilled players but about how 19 players will work together the best. This team will be taking a 14-hour bus ride to Thunder Bay for the games and will be at the Winter Games for five days, sharing rooms with other members of the team. It is all about putting together the best team.”
Approximately 1,300 athletes, coaches and officials are expected to be at the Ontario Winter Games. Most of the athletes are between the ages of 12-18.
