Monday, November 30, 2009

Local Sports for Monday November 30

Fort France Midget AA Canadians fell 6-3 to Wayzata in the B-side final of the Gus Lindberg Memorial Midget Double-A hockey tournament held at the Memorial Sport Centre on the weekend.

Ryan Lundy, Jeff Gustafson and Tarran Romyn scored for the Canadians who went 1-1-1 during the round robin portion of the tournament.

Thunder Bay's Current River Comets beat Duluth 4-3 in the A-side final.



A pair of bronze medals for girls hockey teams playing at tournaments in Warroad on the weekend.

The Nor-Fab Flames brought home the bronze in the pee-wee side with a 4-3 win over Grand Forks.

The Dynamic Homes Hurricanes Atom girls rep team also earned bronze after losing to Roseau 4-2.



Fort Frances Muskie Girls Hockey team captured gold at the Northern Shield Classic in Dryden, beating Red Lake in Saturday's final 3-1.

Jillian Langtry had two goals and Danielle Jean had one.

Melissa Payne had the win in net.



Fort Frances Muskies Boys hockey team defeated Detroit Lakes, Minnesota 5-3 to win the Thanksgiving Shootout trophy.

Friday, the Muskies hammered a team from Bagley-Fosston, Minnesota 19-0.



Fort Frances rinks skipped by Tierzah Keffer and Ethan Jordbro fell short in their bids to advance to the provincial junior curling playdowns.

Keffer finished with 1 win and 3 losses at the Inter-Regional event in Atikokan on the weekend.

Jordbro was 2-4 on the men's side.


Fresh of its gold medal win in at a Dryden tournament, the Fort Frances Muskies girls hockey team is in action tonight in Baudette.

Muskies face the Lake of the Woods Bears beginning at 7:30 p.m.


International Falls boys hockey team has been ranked fourteenth in the state in a pre-season poll of Class A high schools.

Broncos open their season tomorrow against Hibbing.


In minor girls hockey from the weekend, the Fort Frances Atom Leftovers tied the Emo Penguins 2-2 on Saturday.

Jenna Clendenning and Kelsey Langtree scored for Fort Frances.

Warm Weather Comes to an End

A high of 28 degrees Friday ended a string of 242 consecutive days that International Falls had recorded a high temperature above 32 degrees.

It's the 3rd longest stretch at International Falls followed behind the 246 string of days in 1958 and the 244 days in 2001.

Parade Winners

Fort Frances' downtown area was brighten Saturday evening with the annual Parade of Lights.

More than 20 organizations participated.

Awards went to Mike Tullio, Boston Pizza, Rainy Lake Conservancy, St Mary’s Youth Group and the Novice Girls Hockey Team for their floats.

Cancer Drug Funded

Just months after Ontario's ombudsman criticized the government, the Health Ministry is extending funding of a potentially life-saving cancer drug.

Health Minister Deb Matthews says Ontario will now fund Avastin for up to 24 two-week treatments if medical evidence shows their disease hasn't progressed.

Government figures show the average length of survival for people who receive Avastin with other chemotherapy is close to two years -- compared with a little over a year without the drug.

More Residents Asked to Get H1N1 Shot

The push to get Ontario residents inoculated against H1N1 is turning next to workplaces and college and university students.

Ontario has launched a $650-thousand "Join the Resistance'' ad campaign to encourage college and university students to roll up their sleeves for the flu shot.

Ontario's chief medical officer of health says that almost half of those hospitalized in Ontario for H1N1 are people under 20.

Forensic Unit Opened in Northwest

A new OPP forensic identification services unit has opened in Thunder Bay.

The state-of-the-art building provides the OPP and area police services with advanced tools to analyse evidence.

The $6.6-million facility includes a bio-hazard lab, bloodstain room for blood spatter examination and modern fingerprinting technologies.

Community Safety and Correctional Services Minister Rick Bartolucci says it'll advance the science of criminal investigation in northwestern Ontario.

National Day of Remembrance Marked

Area agencies will mark a National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women with events across the district this week.

Both the United Native Friendship Centre and Rainy River District Victims Services are promoting activities to bring public awareness.

Peggy Loyie of Victims Services says violence against women is happening in our own back yard.

"This year marks the 20th year since the Montreal massacre where 14 women were killed at École Polytechnique," says Loyie, "but in those 20 years since we've been able to name at least nine women who have been murdered in our district alone."

Among events planned will be a solemn ceremony at Knox United Church this Sunday.

NEXUS Centre Opens Today

The NEXUS Enrolment Centre opens is doors in Fort Frances today.

The centre is to be located at 301 Scott Street.

Area Port Director for the U-S Customs and Border Protection Christine Lessard says the move from International Falls will help deliver the program more effectively.

"It was felt this would give us a bigger and better space with easier access for customers," says Lessard.

The centre serves as an interview site for those applying for the NEXUS card, considered an acceptable form of identification to cross the border.

Border Water Patrols Enhanced

Canada and the U.S. governments are giving more powers to authorities to police force border waters.

A framework agreement will allow specially designated Canadian and American law enforcement personnel to jointly work on marine law enforcement vessels in boundary waters, such as Rainy Lake and Lake of the Woods.

Justice Minister Rob Nicholson says the officers will have the powers to enforce laws from both sides of the border.

"This will enhance our security on both sides of the border," says Nicholson, "by reducing smuggling and trafficking illegal drugs, guns and people."

Nicholson says its hoped to have the new units in place next summer.

CN Locomotive Engineers Strike

Canadian National Railway locomotive engineers walked off the job at Midnight Friday after mediated contract talks collapsed.

Pickets were set up across northwestern Ontario including in the Rainy River district.

CN communications director, Mark Hallman, says supervisors and managers who are qualified engineers are taking over operation of the locomotives to minimize any possible disruption of freight service.

Teamsters union spokesman Stephane Lacroix says the dispute centres on CN's demands to limit a wage increase to 1.5 per cent and to revise mileage caps for the engineers.

With no further contract talks scheduled, the railway is pushing for binding arbitration to settle the dispute.

The union is offering to submit wage issues to binding arbitration on the conditional that all other outstanding issues are resolved at the bargaining table.

Meantime, a senior government official says Ottawa is prepared to table back-to-work legislation today to end the strike if the two sides haven't reached an agreement.

The official, who declined to be named, said the government would prefer the union and the company to negotiate but to protect the Canadian economy it could not let the strike continue.