THUNDER BAY – It’s about as even a championship final as the Superior International Junior Hockey League has yet to see.
The Kam River Fighting Walleye, the top team and the regular season, and the Red Lake Miners, the No. 2 squad in the six-team circuit, really don’t have much separating them on the ice.
How close are the two teams?
They played nine times in the regular season and the Miners won five, three of the games going to overtime. The Fighting Walleye scored 34 goals, the Miners scored 33 goals.
Red Lake has the most explosive scorer in Ryan Hunter, who averaged more than two points a game in 27 appearances.
Kam River counters with goaltender Austin Madge, the top netminder in the league.
Expect a long series.
That’s what Fighting Walleye captain Zach Fortin, saying if he and his teammates are going to come out on top, they’ll have to buy into coach Matt Valley’s system each and every night, much like they did in a four-game sweep of the Thunder Bay North Stars, clinching the first-ever playoff series win in the franchise’s short two-year history.
“I think it’s just the dedication from everyone to buy in to what’s been working in the past,” said Fortin, the goaltender of the year.
Forward Alex Enegren, who tied for the team lead with 50 points, said the team feels rested, having finished off the North Stars a week-and-a-half ago.
They’re plenty motivated, he added.
“We feel like we’ve got something to prove. We’re a young franchise and we want to win it all,” Enegren said.
“We believe we can, too. We believe we have a championship group here. We’re excited. We’re ready to go.”
The Miners have been to a pair of SIJHL Bill Salonen Cup finals in the past, falling to Dryden in 2017 and losing to Thunder Bay in 2019, the last year the league crowned a champion.
Enegren said the Fighting Walleye, who will open the best-of-seven final on Thursday night at the Norwest Arena, learned plenty against the Miners during the regular season – most importantly not to take their foot off the gas against a team that, in addition to Hunter, had three other players in the top 10 in scoring, including Jordan Baranesky, Ryan Howe and Brady Harroun.
“We’ve got to learn how to put teams away when we’re up big like that. We think we’ve learned that and we think we’re going to be better this series,” Enegren said.
Valley, who was recently extended as the Fighting Walleye coach, said the big thing about the Kam River club is they believe in themselves.
They may not have much postseason experience at this level, but they’re convinced after a 35-7-2 regular season that they are the best team in the league – though Red Lake, who finished 28-6-3, would likely dispute that claim.
“I think the feeling is very positive. We’re very confident going into the series, but we understand the task at hand is pretty big,” Valley said. “It’s going to come down to probably a bounce or two every game. It’s two good teams, with probably one of the best offences and one of the best defences in the league.
“Both teams have good goalies and I’d like to say that we’re both well coached. I think it’s going to be a pretty big mountain to climb. Red Lake plays well here and it’s a tough place to travel to. We have our work cut out for us, but we’re very confident we have the right guys in the room.”
Game 2 goes Friday night before the series switches to Red Lake on Monday and Tuesday.
