The Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League exhibition season kicked off for four teams at Sault Ste. Marie’s John Rhodes Community Centre.
The four-team event featured the host Soo Thunderbirds, the Soo Eagles, the Elliot Lake Vikings, and the Espanola Paper Kings.
The weekend opened with a pair of early games on Saturday in which the Thunderbirds beat the Eagles by a 2-1 margin in overtime and the Paper Kings blanked the Vikings by a 2-0 score.
In the opener, Lucas DiBerardino scored the overtime winner, beating Eagles goaltender Jace Knoerle with 2:34 to go in the extra frame.
Cooper Labelle had the other goal for the Thunderbirds.
Theodore Schubert had the lone goal for the Eagles.
Game two saw Paper Kings goaltender Jack Helkie pick up the shutout over the Vikings.
Luke Hill and Carter Drigo scored for Espanola.
The third game of the day saw the Thunderbirds and Vikings skate to a 4-4 tie.
Labelle, Jacob Smith, Espen Escasa, and Caleb Walker scored for the Thunderbirds in the game.
Felix Dugwell scored three times for the Vikings in the tie while Ivan Kedrov also scored.
The final game of the day saw the Eagles skate to a 6-4 win over the Paper Kings.
Cooper Fredericks scored twice for the Eagles while Evan Hoglund, Jack Ohlund, Alex Povorozniouk, and Tyler Fortson also scored.
Cain Savage, Jack Anderson, and Kaden Wicklander had goals for Espanola.
The weekend tournament wraps up Sunday with the Thunderbirds facing the Paper Kings in the early game and the Vikings and Eagles clashing in game two.
