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Hosts win two titles
The Six Nations Minor Hockey Association is once again receiving rave reviews for a long-running youth event it hosted. For the second straight year the Six Nations organization hosted the Little Native Hockey League Tournament.
As was the case last year, in order to accommodate the size of the tournament, the event, more commonly referred to as the Little NHL, was staged in various Mississauga arenas.
This year’s tournament, which was held March 13 to March 17, attracted a record 160 teams. They were competing in 10 divisions, five female and five male.
This marked the 43rd year the tournament has been held. The number of entrants surpassed the previous high of 153 clubs, which has participated at the 2013 event.
The host Six Nations Blackhawks ended up winning two of the divisions; Peewee Boys and Bantam Boys.
The Nipissing First Nation also had two of its squads win championships. These teams participated in the Bantam Girls and Midget Boys categories.
Meanwhile, though it did not win its division, the Six Nations Tyke Boys’ side had a noteworthy event. That’s because all tournament entrants were entered into a draw.
The winners received a team dinner with Ted Nolan, an Ojibwe from the Garden River First Nation, who is a former NHL player and the current coach of the Buffalo Sabres.
A handful of other Aboriginal and former NHL players also attended this year’s tournament. They were Reggie Leach, Stan Jonathan and Nolan’s eldest son Brandon.
Another former pro, Wendel Clark, who is a community ambassador for the Toronto Maple Leafs, also took in the action.
And the colourful Don (Grapes) Cherry was among those who spoke to tournament participants at the opening ceremonies.
Fiddler Nearing 700 Games
He might not be a household name but Vern Fiddler has managed to enjoy a rather lengthy pro hockey career thus far.
Fiddler, a 33-year-old Edmonton native who is Metis, is currently a member of the NHL’s Dallas Stars.
He is approaching the 700-game plateau in the NHL.
Fiddler, however, is perhaps not known to Canadian hockey fans as he has spent his entire pro career in some non-hockey hotbeds, all in the United States.
This is his third season toiling with the Stars. Prior to that he played two years with the Phoenix Coyotes. And before that he was a member of the Nashville Predators.
And Fiddler has not created headlines as he is not a flashy offensive player who racks up points. Instead, he’s managed to survive in the league because of his solid two-way play.
In terms of points, Fiddler’s best NHL campaign was during 2007-08, when he earned 32 points (11 goals, 21 assists) in 79 games with the Predators.
As for this season, Fiddler had picked up 14 points in his first 62 matches with the Stars.
Jamieson Piling Up Points
Thanks in part to a pair of games where he reached the double-digit mark in points, Cody Jamieson is on pace to have his best National Lacrosse League season.
Jamieson, a Mohawk from Six Nations, is a member of the two-time defending NLL champion Rochester Knighthawks.
He had accumulated 71 points (28 goals, 43 assists) in his first 12 games this season. And Jamieson, who was averaging close to six points per game this year, was in second place in the league scoring race, behind only Toronto Rock star Garrett Billings, who had 82 points.
With six regular season contests remaining, Jamieson should easily surpass his career high of 89 points he had last season.
Jamieson has especially enjoyed some success this season against Toronto. He picked up 10 points, including five goals, in Rochester’s 17-9 triumph over the Rock on Feb. 15. And then he bettered this performance by earning 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in the Knighthawks’ 17-12 victory against Toronto on March 15.
Jamieson, 26, is in his fourth NLL season. Before turning pro he starred at Syracuse University where he was a member of the NCAA champs in 2009.
During the spring and summer months Jamieson also plays in the Ontario Lacrosse Association and the Major League Lacrosse.
Last year he led the Six Nations Chiefs not only to the OLA title but also the Mann Cup (national senior men’s crown). He was chosen the MVP in the Mann Cup tournament.
And he was also a member of the MLL’s Hamilton Nationals. That club has relocated to the U.S. and will play as the Florida Launch in 2014.
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