SEPTEMBER 2016
After a long grueling tryout camp in Vermillion Bay, Ontario, the 2016/17 edition of the English River Miners made their way up Highway 105 to Red Lake. With renovations ongoing at the Cochenour Arena, and no ice on until October, gives the Miners a road schedule to start the 2016/17 SIJHL season. The Miners opened the season on September 23rd with a loss to the Dryden GM Ice Dogs but followed it up with a win over the Fort Frances Lakers to finish September with a 1-1 record.
OCTOBER 2016
After starting the season on the road, the English River Miners played their first home game on October 8th defeating the Thunder Bay North Stars in front of 351 fans. That particular win started a franchise record 8-game winning streak before a loss to the Thief River Falls Norskies ended the streak. With a win the next day over the Norskies, the Miners finished a hot October with a 9-2 record. The CJHL took notice of the great play and on October 24, 2016 announced, another first in franchise history, that the English River Miners made the CJHL Top 20 Weekly Rankings at #16 and finish the month ranked #12 in the country. Forward Sidney Gladue is named SIJHL Player of the Month.
NOVEMBER 2016
A win over the Dryden GM Ice Dogs on November 4th is followed by 4 straight losses. However, the Miners got back in the winning column and defeated the Thunder Bay North Stars but lost the next night to the North Stars in a lengthy 18-player shoot out. The Miners finish November with a 2-4-0-1 record.
DECEMBER 2016
The Miners started December with 3 losses before getting a point in a 16-player shoot out loss to the North Stars. The point failed to turn things around for the Miners and lost the next 4 games. With a December record of 0-6-0-1, the Christmas break is much needed for the team as they finish 2016 with a 12-13-0-2 record.
JANUARY 2017
After a much needed break, the English River Miners started 2017 with a trip to the state of Minnesota; earning 3 of 6 points. After 2 wins and 3 losses the Miners travelled to the SIJHL showcase in Thief River Falls and split the two games there. Three home wins over the Minnesota Iron Rangers gave the Miners a winning January record of 7-5-0-1.
FEBRUARY 2017
Dryden GM Ice Dogs defeated the Miners to begin the month but the Miners followed that loss with 4-straight wins. February 18, 2017 had the English River Miners showcased in the ‘Hockey Day In Canada’ game in Kenora, Ontario against the Fort Frances Lakers. Wearing their special edition Don Cherry jerseys, the Miners got national exposure on CBC and Sportsnet, along with a cherished photo opportunity with Don Cherry and Ron MacLean. The Miners finish February of with 3 straight wins and a 7-3 record.
MARCH 2017
Three home wins over the Norskies gave the Miners a 6-game winning streak before losing to the Ice Dogs. A 3-game winning streak to finish off the regular season gave the Miners a 5-1 record. The SIJHL Showcase was the turning point of the season for the Miners going 15-4 after January 25th. With a franchise record 31-21-1-3 66-point season, the English River Miners finish in 3rd place in the SIJHL standings.
APRIL 2017
The Miners started the playoffs on the road against the 2nd place North Stars. Trailing 2-1 after the first period, the Miners scored 4 goals in the 3rd period to take game 1 before a lopsided game 2 loss. 371 fans pack the Cochenour arena for game 3. Down 3-2 in the 3rd period, the Miners rattled off 3 goals to send the fans home happy with a 5-3 win. Game 4 was another close game and the fans were treated to another close game. Trailing 4-3 late in the 3rd period Miners tied up the game with 1:09 left on the clock, sending it to overtime. Michael DiLullo scored with 1:32 left on the clock to send the Miners back to Thunder Bay with a 3-1 series lead. Game 5 saw the Miners take a 3-1 lead in the second before giving up 3 straight power play goals. The Miners tied the game up at 4 early in the 3rd period, and sent the game to overtime. Scoring chances went back and forth in overtime, as well as a huge penalty kill by the Miners. With 3:37 on the clock, Matt O’Neill scored the winning goal, which sent the English River Miners to the SIJHL Finals for the first time in franchise history.
The Bill Salonen Cup started on the road in Dryden against the SIJHL regular season winners Dryden GM Ice Dogs. The Miners trailed 1-0 in the second period before a huge brawl erupted. After a long delay, the Miners trail 3-1 after 2 and fall 5-2. Game 2 was a different game. The Miners lead 1-0 after 1 period before the Ice Dogs dominated the second period and take a 3-1 lead. No goals in third sent the Miners home down 2-0. We had 462 fans pack the barn in Cochenour to welcome the Miners home for game 3. The Miners fought back to get the score to 3-2 before Dryden scored a pair of power-play goals to put it out of reach and take the win. Another full house got loud 44 seconds in when the Miners take a 1-0 lead. The teams traded goals before Dryden scores a late 1st period goal to take the lead into the intermission. Ice Dogs never looked back and finished the series off in 4 games.
Despite the loss in the finals, the 2016/17 Miners seasons goes down in the books as the best season in franchise history. We had 1102 more fans attend Miners games compared to 2015/16 with one less home game. Six times this past season, we had a Miner win Player of the Week and 1 Player of the Month. Trevor Pereverzoff won the SIJHL Defenceman of the Year Award, which was a first for the English River Miners. Michael DiLullo and Michael Lenko were runner-ups for SIJHL awards. Trevor Pereversoff was a first team all-star, with Sidney Gladue and Michael Lenko making second team all-stars. Derek Sweet-Coulter, who has taken the Miners from 25 points to 66 points in the 2 years he has taken over, was named second team all-star GM.
Many team and individual records were broken in 2016/17:
• Most wins – 31
• Most Points – 66
• Most Goals Scored – 220
• Least Goals Against -197
• Most Points Season – Sidney Gladue 69
• Most Points Defenceman – Trevor Pereverzoff 51
• Most Goals Defenceman – Trevor Pereverzoff 19
• Most Points Season Rookie – Michael DiLullo 42
• Most Goals Season Rookie – Michael DiLullo 16 [tie Alex Matic (2014/15)]
• Most Wins Season/Career Goalie –Michael Lenko 22
• Lowest Goals Against Average – Michael Lenko 2.87
• Best Save Percentage – Michael Lenko .920
2016/2017 Season Review
