The Timmins Men’s Baseball League best-of-five championship series will come down to a single, winner-take-all contest at Parc Thériault on Sunday.

After the Whiskey Jacks pounded the Service Master Orioles 12-4 Thursday night, the series is deadlocked at 2-2.

The Orioles, who finished second in the regular-season standings, are the defending champions, while the Whiskey Jacks, who finished atop the five-team league, saw their string of 15-straight titles end in 2017.

After dropping the first game of the series, the Orioles won the next two and appeared poised to put the final nail in the Whiskey Jacks coffin Thursday night.

Any chance of that happening quickly dissipated, however, as the Whiskey Jacks scored four times in the top of the first inning and never really looked back.

They loaded the bases with Jamie Dallaire being hit by a pitch and Jonathan Minard and Mike Kazienko drawing walks.

A third-straight walk, to Chris Greer, forced in Dallaire with the game’s first run.

One out later, Josh Clarke singled to plate Minard and then Jamie Dagenais delivered a two-run single that scored both Kazienko and Greer.

The Orioles countered with a single run in their half of the frame to cut their deficit to 4-1, as Logan Ferrington smashed a solo home run.

Following a scoreless second inning, the Whiskey Jacks struck for five more runs in the top of the third to pull in front 9-1.

Kazienko was hit by a pitch moved around to third base on a Greer single and then came in to score when Eric Thornton reached base on a fielder’s choice that saw Greer retired trying to advance to second base.

Clarke walked and Jamie Dagenais singled to load the bases.

The next batter, Owen Rigg, reached base on a fielder’s choice that saw Clarke retired on a force out at third base, but allowed Thornton to cross the plate.

Dallaire then singled to drive in Dagenais.

After Cedric Bradette drew a walk, Minard followed with a two-run double that scored him and Dallaire with the inning’s final runs.

The Whiskey Jacks tacked on a single run in the top of the fourth inning to expand their lead to 10-1.

Greer led off the frame with a single and was able to advance to second base on an error by Orioles centre fielder Mike Barber, and then on to third base on a fielder’s choice.

He was eventually able to come in and score on Dagenais’ sacrifice fly to right field.

The Orioles were able to get that run back in the home half of the frame to cut their deficit to 10-2.

Marc-Andre Lavoie singled to lead off the inning and after he moved up to third base on a Darren Thib single, he came in to score on Adam Presseault’s RBI-single.

The Orioles added a single run in the bottom of the fifth inning to pull within seven runs of the Whiskey Jacks.

Ferrington’s two-out RBI-double plated Mario Filion, who had singled to lead off the frame.

The Whiskey Jacks countered with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth inning to make it a 12-3 contest.

Rigg had an RBI-single to plate Greer, who had singled earlier in the frame, and Dallaire’s sacrifice fly to centre field brought home Clarke, who had drawn a walk.

The Orioles closed out the scoring in the contest when they scored a single run in their half of the inning.

Thib’s RBI-double plated Barber, who had walked to lead off the frame.

Dagenais went the distance on the mound for the Whiskey Jacks to earn the victory. He gave up four earned runs on eight hits, while striking out a pair of batters and walking others in his seven innings of work.

Eric Paquette started for the Orioles and he was tagged with the loss. In three innings of work, he gave up nine earned runs on six hits. He fanned six batters, but also issued nine free passes.

Filion pitched the final four innings for the home side, giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits. He did not strike out any batters, but did walk three.

The three stars of the contest were Dagenais, Minard and Bradette.

Game 5 in the series at Parc Thériault on Sunday is scheduled to start at 4 p.m.

The Timmins Rock will open their 2018-19 Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League season with a pair of games on home ice this weekend.

On Saturday, the Rock will welcome the French River Rapids to the friendly confines of the McIntyre Arena, while the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners will provide the opposition on Sunday.

The puck is scheduled to drop at 7 p.m. for both contests against the NOJHL East Division rivals.

Following are excerpts from interviews conducted by the NOJHL network with new Rapids bench boss Shawn Frappier and Gold Miners coach and general manager Ryan Wood:

NOJHL: What are your expectations for the club heading into the 2018-19 season?

FRAPPIER: It is to help develop quality young men on and off the ice.

NOJHL: What did you see from your squad in the preseason?

FRAPPIER: The core group of players are driving change, both on, and off the ice.

NOJHL: Who are a couple of returning players you expect big things from?

FRAPPIER: We expect solid contributions from defenceman Connor Loft and Will Frustaglio along with forwards Levi Siau and Marc-Andre Quevillon. Siau led the team offensively last season and impressed playing at a point-per-game pace. He had a team-best 22 goals and 48 points and was tied for third in the league in goals among rookies. He was also Top 10 in rookie points. Frustaglio scored nine times and saw his 27 assists led the team. Loft had seven goals and 24 points from the back end while Quevillion was solid defensively in his first season in the league.

NOJHL: How did you new players look in training camp and in your exhibition games?

FRAPPIER: Every newcomer we have has made an impression and we are pleased with their skill set, compete level and work ethic.

NOJHL: What will you expect from your team as you begin your first season with the club in French River and what style of game will you look to instill into the Rapids?

FRAPPIER: We want to have a respectful, hard-working, unselfish, team-first attitude.

NOJHL: What other goals do you have heading into the start of the regular year?

FRAPPIER: I’m looking to instill a speedy, positional style while also being able to make in game adjustments. We also want to get each player to believe in the system and foster a winning culture here in French River.

• • •

NOJHL: What are your expectations for the club heading into the 2018-19 season?

WOOD: Our expectations are to develop young men, both on and off the ice, to better prepare them for life and help them advance to their individual hockey goals. Also, like every team we want to compete every night and give ourselves a chance to win.

NOJHL: What did you see from your team in the preseason and your exhibition games?

WOOD: We have a very young team with lots of upside. We hope with the team that has been selected after the Polar Bear Classic in Cochrane that we will build a strong core of players ready and willing to compete each night.

NOJHL: Among your returning players, who is someone you expect to have a big year?

WOOD: We have Gregory Trudeau-Paquet, who we expect good things from and as everyone already knows the kid is an offensive threat when he steps on the ice. In his first three seasons in the NOJHL he has averaged over a point-per-game as he has racked up 86 points in just 79 games. 42 of those points have been goals, including a career-best 19 he scored last season. Trudeau-Paquet is also impressive on the power play picking up 19 points during man advantage chances.

NOJHL: Who are some newcomers you’ve signed that you’ve been impressed with early on?

WOOD: We have been very impressed with an abundance of players and we’re excited to see who rises to the top after finalizing our roster and heading into the regular season.

NOJHL: What are you looking to build upon from last season, which was your first year with the club?

WOOD: We are looking to continue the culture change in Kirkland Lake and ensure that we have hungry players willing to work everyday.

NOJHL: What goals do you have heading into the start of the regular season?

WOOD: Our goals are to develop these young men into quality players and help them achieve their hockey goals.

NOJHL: Any closing comments to wrap things up?

WOOD: We are very excited to get the season going and just hope to compete with everyone. As well we want to provide an entertaining brand of hockey for our fans.

SAULT STE. MARIE — The Timmins Majors got a pair of goals from Brennen Martel en route to a 5-2 win over the Soo Rivercity Motorsports Major Midget Thunderbirds Saturday afternoon.

With the victory, the Majors improve to 1-1-0-0 on the season after the dropped a 4-1 decision to the Thunderbirds Friday night.

“Honest to God, I thought we played the same way both days,” said Majors coach Brandon Perry.

“We just went out and worked hard. Today (Saturday) the pucks went in, but they didn’t Friday night.

“We were all over them Friday night. In the first period.”

The Majors struck early Saturday afternoon, with Eric Daigle beating Thunderbirds goalie Andrew Uschenko for his second goal of the season just 39 seconds into the contest.

That goal stood up through the opening 20 minutes of the play and the Majors took their 1-0 advantage into the first intermission.

The home side got back on even terms at the 3:45 mark of the middle frame, however, when Jacob Sewell beat Majors goalie Connor Johnson for the equalizer, his first goal of the 2018-19 GNML campaign.

The Majors regained their one-goal advantage with just 36 seconds remaining in the second period when Jesse Dupuis scored his first goal of the season.

Martel netted what would prove to be the game-winning goal at the 12:32 mark of the third period and then added his second of the contest and season just 25 seconds later.

Up 4-1, the Majors surrendered a power-play goal to the Thunderbirds Nick Niro with 1:16 remaining in regulation.

That would be as close as the Thunderbirds would come to getting back on even terms, however, as Cameron Dutkiewicz added an empty net goal with 21 seconds remaining on the clock to ice the victory for the visitors.

According to Perry, there was no big secret to why the Majors were so effective on the weekend.

“As a group, we got on pucks and we got after it,” he said.

“As I mentioned before, I don’t think we have the skill level we had last year, but we definitely have, collectively as a group, a harder work ethic.

“There were some points in the games that were messy, but the guys were going out there and trying to do what we have been teaching them in practice.”

A number of Majors players impressed their coach with their effort in Saturday’s contest.

“Brennen Martel had a great game for us today,” Perry said.

“Garrett Gelinas played a great game. Our kid line, with (Landon) Deforge, Dupuis and

(Landon) McGrath, played a solid game.

“Joel Martin, Carson Cavaleri and Sabastian Sutherland were solid, as well.

“Connor Johnson was strong in net and all six of our D had good games. Everybody played well today.”

Johnson went the distance in net for the Majors to earn the win, while Uschenko was tagged with the loss for the Thunderbirds.

Thunderbirds 4 Majors 1

Friday night’s contest was a lot closer than the final score might indicate, thanks to a pair of late empty-net goals.

Play was even through the opening 20 minutes, with the Thunderbirds Nick Jameus and the Majors Daigle each netting their first goals of the season.

Michael Barone’s first goal of the campaign put the Thunderbirds in front 2-1 with 5:08 remaining in the second period to put the home side in front.

Jameus added his second goal of the game and season into an empty Majors net with 1:38 remaining in the contest and Michael Chaffey followed suit with his first goal of the season just over a minute later to make the final score 4-1.

“We played a reall good game Friday night,” Perry said.

“I was frustrated after the game, but when I woke up this morning, I realized there wasn’t much more we could have done.

“We dominated the game for 45 or 50 minutes, but we just couldn’t find the back of the net. The have a very good goalie in Noah Zeppa and we just couldn’t beat him.”

Perry realizes just how important his team’s play in Sault Ste. Marie was this weekend.

“A split on the road is always huge,” he said.

“We easily could have had four points and we know we can compete with those guys. We believe we are the better club and I think we proved that fact.”

Zeppa went the distance in net for the Thunderbirds to pick up the victory, while Majors netminder Dylan Dallaire was tagged with the loss.

The Majors will return to action on Tuesday, Sept. 18, when the travel to Kapuskasing for a game with the Flyers.

They will then return to the McIntyre Arena for their home opener against the New Liskeard Cubs on Friday, Sept. 21, at 7:30 p.m.

The Timmins Rock opened their 2018-19 NOJHL campaign with a 3-0 win over the French River Rapids at the McIntyre Arena Saturday night.
Rock goalie Tyler Masternak turned aside all 24 shots he faced — including 20 in the first two periods — to pick up the shutout.
The contest remained scoreless until late in the second period when 16-year-old forward Keegan McMullen scored his first Junior ‘A’ goal from in close with just 18.04 seconds remaining on the clock to put the Rock in front 1-0.
“It is a really good feeling to get the monkey off your back in the first game,” he said.
“I feel that goal took a bit of the wind out of their sails and then we were able to add a couple of goals in the third period, which was really good.”
McMullen picked up an assist on one of those third-period goals, giving him a two-point night.
Not bad for a player who did not see action in any of the Rock’s three exhibition contests because he was away at training camp with the OHL’s Peterborough Petes.
“It was really nice to get into my first game tonight in front of such a large crowd,” McMullen said.
The 6-0, 165-pound Cambridge native noted the Rapids did not give the Rock much space — especially during the first two periods.
“They were really hard on the forecheck and they were really fast,” McMullen said.
“We had to change our game around a bit, but after that we did pretty well.”
McMullen’s second-period goal stood up to be the game-winner as the Rock came out flying in the third period, outshooting the Rapids 11-4.
Maxime Charbonneau provided the home side with a little insurance at the 4:11 mark of the period when he notched his first goal in a Rock uniform.
Defenceman Alexis Quane-Arsenault then iced things when he scored his first goal of the season just 35 seconds later.
Rock coach Corey Beer was pleased with the outcome of Saturday night’s contest, but felt there was room for improvement in his team’s game.
“We got off to a bit of a slow start, maybe because of jitters playing in front of such a large crowd,” he said.
“As things got going, we kind of settled in and Tyler Masternak made a bunch of calm saves and took care of business that way.
“It was great to see our guys execute in the third period and really get things going. We were waiting for the offence to kick into gear and it finally did.”
Beer agreed McMullen’s goal late in the second period was a turning point in the contest.
“It was huge,” he said.
“Any time a team scores a goal in the last three minutes of a period or the first three minutes of a period it is such a momentum builder.
“I thought McMullen was terrific all game. He forechecks so hard and he hunts the puck so well. He has got good skill and his speed is terrific. I thought he was probably one of our best players overall all night.
“For him to score his first Junior ‘A’ goal was special for him.”
McMullen was one of three 16 year olds making their debut in a Rock uniform Saturday night. The others were blue-liners Owen Shier and Carson Burlington.
“There are going to be nights when they look their age and nights when they don’t,” Beer said.
“I think tonight was a mix of both. Getting a win certainly helps. Everybody looks better in a win.”
Shier had the crowd buzzing late in the third period when he dove face first in front of a shot to the left of the Rock net. Luckily the puck deflected off another part of his body up and over the glass.
“He bit a little too hard the one way and the next thing you know, he slid over and made that play,” Beer said.
“He got a little bit of a pat on the back from the boys and I am sure he felt good about that, but I think the guy who was the happiest was probably Tyler Masternak.”
New Rock captain Derek Seguin, who picked up an assist on Quane-Arsenault’s goal, also played a strong game.
“I thought he was great on the power play, the penalty kill and at regular strength,” Beer said.
“He played a good two-way hockey game. We are fortunate to have guys who can play down the middle of the ice.
“When you look at Seguin and (Stewart) Parnell, too, they are 200-foot monsters. You don’t win in the long run without those kind of guys in your lineup and both of them were terrific tonight.”
Going forward, Beer knows his team needs to clean up a few of the miscues that didn’t cost them any goals against Saturday night.
“I think we need to tidy some stuff up in our own zone,” he said.
“We also need to make sure we manage the puck a bit better. I don’t think we did a great job of that early on in this game. We had a lot of turnovers and a lot of toe drags.”
For the Rapids, Saturday night’s setback was the second loss on a three-game road trip through the North that started with a 4-1 decision against the Crunch in Cochrane Friday night.
New coach Shawn Frappier feels his squad has lots of room for improvement.
“Our boys were tired tonight,” he said.
“We can use any excuse we want, but that’s part of Junior ‘A’ hockey. If our guys want to move on to the next level, they can’t blame the referees and they can’t blame being tired. They have just got to play.”
Frappier knows the importance of every point his team gets or doesn’t get — even early in the season.
“The league is going to be competitive this year,” he said.
“We have got a young team, but our guys have got to learn they have to show up every day. A lot of them have never played in a system before, which is kind of mind boggling to me.
“Growing up, playing in the OHL and playing professionally, it is your Bible. They have learned a lot of new things already and they have played portions of the system. A lot of it is just good habits, whether it is stopping on the puck, or making that good first pass.
“Our guys did a lot of good things tonight, but when the wheels came off, they came off.”
Despite the loss, goalie Donaghey impressed his coach with his strong play Saturday night.
“He played well,” Frappier said.
“He was always square to the puck. You really couldn’t fault him for the loss. He made a lot of really nice saves.
“The first goal, the two-on-one, that was just tough. It was a real nice play. On another one of the goals, our guys just backed in on him.
“He played a really good game and he impressed me, for sure.”
The Rapids made great strides towards respectability last season and Frappier wants to take that a step further in 2018-19.
“The team has had a culture of losing and I want to change that,” he said.
“We can’t feel sorry for ourselves. We can’t make excuses. We can’t blame anybody but ourselves.”
Consistency is one of the things Frappier is looking for out of his players.
“It’s practice, practice, practice,” he said.
“You play the way you practice. If you practise like crap, you are going to play like crap.
“All I ask is every practice they show up for two hours. It’s a learning process.”
In addition to picking up the shutout, Masternak earned his first win of the season in his first start of the campaign.
Donaghey, who stopped 27 of the 30 shots he faced, was tagged with the loss.
NOJHL NOTES — The Daily Press three stars of the game were Masternak, Charbonneau and McMullin … Official attendance at the McIntyre Arena was 1,211 … Both the Rock and the Rapids were 0-6 with the man advantage … The Rock did not dress forwards Mahingan Decontie and Maxime Piquette, as well as defencemen Connor Mullins, Ian Elkins and Eric Moreau … Saturday night’s other action saw the Powassan Voodoos get past the Gold Miners 6-4 in Kirkland Lake, the Beavers blast the Espanola Express 8-1 in Blind River and the Soo Eagles dump the Wildcats 4-1 in Elliot Lake.

Rapids 0 Rock 3

First Period

No Scoring

Second Period

1. Rock — Keegan McMullen 1 (Stewart Parnell, Maxime Charbonneau) 19:42

Third Period

2. Rock — Maxime Charbonneau 1 (Riley Brousseau) 4:11

3. Rock — Alexis Quane-Arsenault 1 (Keegan McMullen, Derek Seguin) 4:46

Goalies — Rapids: Kevin Donaghey (60:00, 27 of 30, loss); Rock: Tyler Masternak (60:00, 24 of 24, win, shutout).

A number of participants came out in droves for the 12^th annual Kidney Walk on Saturday, Sept. 8.

The non-competitive walk at Gillies Lake was held to raise funds and awareness of kidney health and organ donation.

“Equipment is under the hospital. This is more for patient services for travel, for things they need at home, especially blood pressure machines and scales,” said Marlene Smith, president of the Timmins-Porcupine Chapter for the Kidney Foundation of Canada.

“A lot of them are diabetic so they need the blood testing equipment. It goes to help that and goes to help research.”

The goal was to raise $5,000 for the Timmins-Porcupine Chapter and $3,000 from the Iroquois Falls event that was held at the same time and day at the Jus Jordan Arena. Over 35 communities across Ontario held a walk, according to a news release.

The Timmins-Porcupine Chapter covers the city, Kapuskasing and Temiskaming Shores units.

“Research is a continuing thing to make it better to the patients and easier to the patients,” said Smith. “There have been a lot of changes over the 52 years that the Kidney Foundation has been around. If you look at the first dialysis machines, they were bulky and not very efficient. Now they’re very efficient and it’s a three hour process and away their go.”

On average, one in 10 Canadians has kidney disease and millions more are at risk. Kidney disease is treated with dialysis or a kidney transplant. There is no cure. Over 11,500 Ontarians depend on life-sustaining dialysis treatment several times a week and many of those waiting for a transplant are in need of a kidney, the release states.

“I watched my mother and my late husband go through dialysis. My mother was one of the lucky ones that got a transplant and her last year’s eight of life were back to normal, not having to be hooked up to a machine and live from that,” said Smith.

“If you’re on dialysis, it’s life or death. Your choice is life or death. It’s a very important cause and it’s very close to me.”

To donate to the Timmins-Porcupine chapter for the Kidney Walk, you can visit https://kidney.akaraisin.com/ui/16740. From there, you can select the donate option in the middle box, type in Timmins in the search bar and choose the amount of money you would like to donate.

You have the option to show your name and amount, name only, show anonymous with the amount showing or have a custom option.

You can also donate to the Kidney Foundation itself by visiting www.kidney.ca/ways-to-donate. There you have the option donate online through a secure online form, by mail and by phone among many other options.

The Kidney Foundation of Canada has contributed $119 million to medical research projects for treatment options since 1964.

It was a spicy affair at the third annual Taste of the North on Friday, Sept. 7.

Holy Cow Indian Cuisine, Aline’s Tea Shop, Pick of the Crop, Lukas Zajicek, La Cucina Della Famiglia and Chris Mask all offered six different meals during the culinary competition at the McIntyre Community Building’s ballroom in Schumacher. It was held by the Artemis Youth Centre.

“Every year was wonderful but I feel like this year we had the best food. It was a close call between all of them and they brought their A game. It was difficult decision for the judges and for the people to vote,” said Andrea DiTullio, CEO and co-founder of the Artemis Youth Centre (AYC).

“We open this up to all chefs in northern Ontario. These are the chefs that reached out to us and showed interest and wanted to participate.”

Lukas Zajicek won the judge’s award and Chris Mask received the people’s choice prize. The judges were Louisa Marion-Bellemare, physician for Timmins Family Health Team, Chris Loreto, emergency physician for Timmins and District Hospital, Ryan Taylor, owner and operator of Timmins Honda and Ramin Heidari, chiropractor for Ultimate Health Chiropractic.

“It’s always nice when you make a dish that connects with people. It’s about knowing your audience and knowing that you’re making them happy with your food. Whether I’m cooking for somebody in my home or a big group like this, for me it’s just fun,” said Chris Mask.

“I love when people find satisfaction in the dish that I prepared.”

Mask grew up in Timmins. He said he always had a passion for cooking. That led him to make an appearance on season two of competitive cooking reality show, MasterChef Canada.

He cooked a smoked pork shoulder for his third appearance at Taste of the North.

“To have a spin on summer, I made it into a pulled pork sundae with the waffle cone, the scoop of the corn cheesecake which gave it the salty and savoury from the meat with the smoking then there’s a sour cherry sauce and a drizzle of lime, maple, chili and bourbon that was on top of it. It was something that moved across your palette as you’re eating it,” said Mask.

“Every year, when I did this event for the last two years, I start planning for the next year ahead, and I start thinking what I can do that’s outside the box, something that’s no readily accessible for people who go to a big box restaurant. It’s one of things that sounds a little nutty and out there. I thought it would make a good flavour profile.”

He obtains his ingredients from local producers such as Mattagami Heights Farm, farmer’s markets and used Ontario pork.

He reflected on his fellow competitors saying Timmins and northern Ontario offers a mosaic of different people, cultures and culinary palettes.

“People need to realize we’re more than Pepsi, poutine and Jos Louis up here. Events like this showcase the talent we have in northern Ontario and in towns like Timmins,” said Mask.

“I thought Lukas’ duck was very good. Losing the judges’ pick to that, I’m sure they had a lot of deliberation with it, as they were saying on the stage. He’s a fantastic chef.”

DiTullio said she had the idea for Taste of the North four years ago when she was supposed to attend Taste of Toronto. Her trip was cancelled at the last minute.

“I thought, if we can’t have a Taste of Toronto, we might as well have a Taste of the North. I decided to replicate somewhat of that and bring it to the north,” said DiTullio.

“I think the event has always been a classy and upscale but on the smaller side of food festival. I think that class continues to grow. It’s one of the things our guests love about the event. They can come and dress up and try a variety of different foods from a variety of different cultures. It’s a lot of fun, interactive and they get to vote.”

Mask has been a supporter of the event and AYC since the beginning, according to DiTullio.

“The first year I won best restaurant dish and then last year I was the runner up in people’s choice and the judges’ pick,” said Mask. “It’s an event that draws me back because in small towns, it’s difficult for the youth to find things that can occupy their time and doesn’t involve criminal activity. Giving them an option with an organization like the Artemis Youth Centre I think something like that is a fantastic movement in the community and more people should come out.”

DiTullio discussed the AYC saying their goal has been to create a space that is built for the youth, as they are at risk. She said no child is free from possible trouble with narcotics, alcohol, criminal activity, high risk sexual behaviour and mental health issues.

“We know that our youth today are going through a lot more than perhaps what we went through because of different times and different culture,” said DiTullio. “We didn’t have the social media that the kids have today. We weren’t exposed to the things the kids are exposed to today at an early age. I think it’s important that we have something in our city that we currently don’t right now. Not on a full-time, year round level.”

She said a project like theirs will take about six to 10 years. They need a minimum of 8,000 to 10,000 square feet. They’re receiving support from local physicians, Tatry Drilling, Timmins Honda and Gold Corp Inc.

“This isn’t a small project where we’re just a group of people running a program in a basement somewhere. We’re trying to bring something special to these kids and we refuse to offer them anything less,” said DiTullio

Timmins Police Service received a call of a disturbance around Seventh Avenue and Toke Street Saturday morning.

The individual was acting irrationally and later walked into Gillies Lake, fully clothed just off of Lakeshore Drive.

TPS officers, EMS paramedics and firefighters attended the scene where the man was about 30 feet from the shore line.

Officers were able to dissuade the man from harming himself any further by effectively interacting with him. They convinced him to return closer to the shore line.

Some officers had to remove their equipment and enter the water to help him. They managed to control the man and pull him out of the water.

The man was apprehended under the provisions of the Mental Health Act and was transported to the Timmins and District Hospital by ambulance for a thorough assessment by a physician. He remains under the care of the Mental Health Unit, according to the news release.

Austin Caza scored a pair of goals to lead the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners to a 6-3 win over the Timmins Rock at the McIntyre Arena Sunday night.

It was the first win of the 2018-19 NOJHL campaign for the Gold Miners (1-1-0-0) and the first loss of the season for the Rock (1-1-0-0).

The Rock certainly didn’t look as sharp as they did 24 hours earlier when they opened with a 3-0 win over the French River Rapids.

Rock coach Corey Beer gave the Gold Miners plenty of credit for making things difficult for his squad Sunday night.

“They did a really good job of keeping us to the outside,” he said.

“There were not a lot of shots for us from inside the house tonight. Their goalie (Gregory Brassard) was really good, especially early on.

“Then, unfortunately, we had a couple of bad defensive miscues and missed-man assignments and they ended up biting us.

“We will get some good video off of this game and hopefully we can make some corrections.”

Things started out on a positive note for the Rock Sunday night as they outshot the Gold Miners 14-9 in the opening 20 minutes and emerged with a 1-0 lead thanks to a Josh Dickson power-play goal, his first of the season, late in the opening frame.

The Gold Miners got back on even terms at the 3:49 mark of the second period, when Max Newnam beat Rock goalie Tyler Masternak for his second goal of the season.

Then, with just over two minutes remaining in the frame, James Scott scored his first goal of the season to put the Gold Miners up 2-1 heading into the second intermission.

Hunter Foreshew’s power-play marker, his first goal of the season, 53 seconds into the third period extended the Gold Miners lead to 3-1.

Caza’s first goal of the season less than four minutes later made it a 4-1 hockey game.

Just over a minute-and-a-half later, Rock captain Derek Seguin scored a power-play marker, his first goal of the season, to pull the home side to within a pair of goals.

Caza’s second goal of the game three-and-a-half minutes later restored Kirkland Lake’s three-goal advantage, however.

That goal signaled the end of Masternak’s night, as Beer opted to pull him in favour of Nicholas Dicks.

Riley Brousseau’s first goal of the season, midway through the third period, once again cut the Rock deficit to a pair of goals.

The Gold Miners were able to ice the victory, however, when Noah Cauchi deposited his first goal of the season into an empty Rock net to make the final score 6-3 in favour of the visitors.

Given that a number of the goals the Rock surrendered Sunday night were scored from in close, the team obviously has some work to do in its own end of the ice.

“It is certainly a five-man effort to ensure stuff stays out of there, but I think boxing out is going to be a priority during this next week,” Beer said.

“It is just a matter of finding your guy and staying with him, not chasing the puck. We put a lot of priority on staying with your man and down low I don’t think we did a good enough job overall.”

The Rock lost Dickson to a facial injury in the second period and he did not return after leaving the ice with blood streaming from the injury.

“The loss of Josh Dickson really hurt us down the middle,” Beer said.

“Seguin and (Stewart) Parnell were terrific in the face-off circle and Linden Spencer offers a different kind of offence for us. He is more of a chip-and-chase type guy, very hungry on the forecheck.

“I think we lost a bit of Dickson’s patience and poise out there and it hurt us for the middle part of the game.

Beer was impressed with what he saw from the Gold Miners Sunday night.

“(Gold Miners coach and general manager Ryan Wood) Woody did a phenomenal job in the offseason,” he said.

“I love their speed and their forecheck was tenacious right off the hop. It gave us fits. They have some high-end skill and they played the perfect road game.

“Even late, when we got a couple of goals, they kept things calm and they cashed in on their opportunities.

“Their offensive zone cycle was a lot better than ours at certain points and it paid off for them.”

Despite the loss, Beer remains optimistic the Rock will enjoy a solid season.

“We have a young, growing team,” he said.

“Our division is so competitive. There are no easy nights. French River had a tough weekend in terms of won-loss record, but they are as competitive as anybody.

“Hearst had a big win tonight. Kirkland Lake beat us and they went right down to the wire with Powassan Saturday night.”

The Gold Miners gave up a pair of goals in the final 30 seconds of Saturday night’s home opener at the Joe Mavrinac Community Centre en route to a 6-4 loss to the Voodoos.

Wood was happy to see his squad rebound from that heartbreaking setback to pick up a pair of points on the road Sunday night.

“Coming into tonight, I thought our guys showed some good character,” he said.

“We came back from a 4-1 deficit against a good team like Powassan and then you never want to lose a hockey game in the last minute, especially at home during your home opener in front of a good crowd.

“I know the boys were disappointed and they wanted to get some revenge, whether it was against Timmins tonight, or Hearst, or whomever.”

The coach didn’t feel the Gold Miners played that badly in the first period Sunday night, even though they trailed by a goal after 20 minutes of play.

“We were a little disappointed after the first period because I thought we had a couple of good scoring chances that we didn’t finish,” Wood said.

“We regrouped in the second period, came out and scored a couple of goals and the rest was history.”

The Gold Miners stuck to their game plan throughout the contest.

“The boys were collapsing well to our net and having good awareness as to where their guys were,” Wood said.

“I thought our D’s gaps were fairly decent for the most part and we didn’t allow Timmisn to have easy entries into our zone.”

A number of Gold Miners impressed Wood with strong games Sunday night.

“I thought our captain, Quinn Schneidmiller, played a good game and I thought our goalie, Gregory Brassard, played really well,” he said.

“I also thought Max Newnam, one of our new guys we just got last week, played a good game. He generated some good scoring chances and got us going with a really nice breakaway goal.

Brassard went the distance in net, stopping 34 of the 37 shots the Rock fired his way, to earn the victory.

Masternak, who turned aside 20 of the 25 shots directed his way, was tagged with the loss Dicks did not face any shots during his 10:59 in the Rock net.

NOJHL NOTES — The Daily Press three stars of the game were Caza, Scott and Seguin … The Rock went 2-4 on the power play, while the Gold Miners were 2-3 with the man advantage … Official attendance at the McIntyre Arena was 768 … The Rock did not dress forwards Austin Holmes and Joshua Kego, as well as defencemen Cameron Burlington, Luka Bolduc and Eric Moreau … Sunday’s other action saw the French River Rapids drop a 4-1 decision to the Lumberjacks in Hearst and the Soo Thunderbirds edge the Canadians 3-2 in Rayside-Balfour … The Rock will return to action on Thursday night when they take on the Gold Miners in Kirkland Lake. The next home game will be on Saturday, Sept. 22, when they host the Canadians at the McIntyre Arena.

The Whiskey Jacks captured their 16th Timmins Men’s Baseball League championship in the past 17 years at Parc Thériault on Sunday.

After a string of 15-straight titles, the Whiskey Jacks were dethroned by the Service Master Orioles in 2017, but they edged their rivals 4-3 on Sunday to take this year’s best-of-five championship series 3-2.

A pitcher’s dual between the Whiskey Jacks Mike Kazienko and the Orioles Marc-Andre Lavoie saw Game 5 remain scoreless through the first three innings.

The Orioles got on the scoreboard first when they plated a single run in the top of the fourth inning.

With one out, Lavoie singled and moved up to second base on an error by Whiskey Jacks right fielder Josh Vandal.

Mike Barber followed with an RBI-single that brought home Lavoie with the game’s first run.

The one-run lead held up until the bottom of the fifth inning when the Whiskey Jacks tied things up at 1-1.

With one out, the Whiskey Jacks loaded the bases and Josh Clarke — who had singled — came in to score when Jamie Dallaire grounded out to first base.

Then, in the sixth inning, the Whiskey Jacks plated another run to take a 2-1 lead.

Jonathan Minard singled with one out and was then able to come all the way around and score on a throwing error by Orioles catcher Eric Boulard.

The Orioles responded with a pair of runs in the top of the seventh inning to turn a one-run deficit into a 3-2 lead.

Singles by Boulard and Logan Ferrington, who stole second base, gave the Orioles runners at second and third with two out and their season on the line.

Lavoie came through with a two-run single that scored both Boulard and Ferrington with the tying and go-ahead runs.

The Orioles’ hopes of repeating as TMBL champions quickly faded in the bottom of the frame, however.

Vandal singled to lead off the frame and the next batter, Jamie Dallaire, delivered a two-run, game-winning home run.

Kazienko went the distance for the Whiskey Jacks to earn the victory. He gave up three earned runs on seven hits in his seven innings of work. He struck out eight batters and walked a pair.

Lavoie also went the distance on the mound for the Orioles and he was tagged with the loss.

In his six-plus innings of work, he gave up four runs (three earned) on seven hits, while fanning eight batters and issuing four free passes.

The three stars of the game were Dallaire, Kazienko and Vandal.

Marcus Richard and Kevin Legault teamed up to win the 2018 ATCO Fall Classic two-man tournament at Spruce Needles Golf Club on the weekend.

The duo combined for a 13-under-par round of 59 on Sunday — after opening with a 10-under-par round of 62 on Saturday — to secure a two-stroke victory over Dave Banks and Steve Banks and round-one leaders Bob Chasse and Joey Merenda, both of whom finished with 36-hole totals of 123.

Rounding out the Championship Flight were Gary Sullivan and David MacInnes, at 130; Luc Boissonneault and Jean Belliveau, at 130; Marc Barrette and Marcel Cardinal, at 130; Gabe Rousson and Eric Casabon, at 131; Ben Levesque and Alex Robichaud, at 132; Louis Ferrari and Ralph Ferrari, at 134; and Scott Braganolo and Andrew Braganolo, at 135.

Brennan Campbell and Keith Grenke teamed up for a two-day total of 127 to take top spot in the First Flight, one stroke ahead of Shawn Bertrand and Gerry Lamarche, at 128.

In the Second Flight, top spot went to the duo of Louis Tremblay and Owen Rigg, who finished at 134, as did second-place finishers Jamie Lamothe and Matt D’Alessandri.

Third Flight action saw the team of Kraymr Grenke and Mace Soroko finish atop the leaderboard with a 36-hole total of 137, two shots ahead of Dave Campbell and Steph Palmateer, at 139.

Merick Letourneau and Yves Lemieux team up to win the Fourth Flight, with a score of 141, two strokes ahead of Gary Brousseau and Jason Brousseau, at 143.

In the Fifth Flight, top spot went to the team of Todd Stewart and Paul Ducharme, who finished up at 142, one stroke up on the duo of Dale Guenette and Clint Morisette, at 143.

Pete Lacroix and Lance Turgeon topped the leader board in the Sixth Flight, with a two-day total of 144, the same score as second-place finishers Paul Gagne and Don Ducharme.

Seventh Flight action saw Mike Wilson and Ken Metsala team up to finish first with a 36-hole total of 150, four strokes better than second-place finishers Mike Ceccolini and Rob Laroque, who finished up at154.

In Kashechewan, students are still waiting for the start of their school year while most elementary and high school students in the province began classes last week.

The cause of this delay is the declining condition of the classroom portables that were installed in Kashechewan 11 years ago as a stop-gap measure until a new school could be built.

That has yet to happen.

Kashechewan Chief Leo Friday told The Daily Press on Monday that a combination of problems prompted the band council to declare a state of emergency, forcing a delay to the start of the school year.

In addition to a build-up of black mould in the crawl spaces, a key concern, he said, is the fact the buildings have shifted on their foundation, causing the door frames to become uneven, making it difficult to pull open or properly shut doors.

Chief Friday said the inability to freely open and close doors poses a major health and safety concern for students and staff, especially if there was ever a fire.

“The exterior doors are shifted and some of the emergency doors can’t open” without them being “kicked open,” said Chief Friday. “Every time it rains, the crawl space is filled with water. We believe that is why the buildings are shifting.”

In 2007, the federal government signed a memorandum of agreement giving the Kashechewan First Nation a grant of $200 million to improve and repair infrastructure, housing and flood-control services in the existing community.

The idea was the portables would be a temporary measure with a new school possibly being constructed within five years as part of the redevelopment of that community.

“That never happened,” said Friday, and now the community is looking to relocate to new site about 20 kilometres upstream.

However, it is uncertain when that will actually happen. In March 2017, the federal and provincial governments and Kashechewan First Nation signed a framework agreement for relocation of the First Nation.

Friday said they are hoping designs for infrastructure and a plan of subdivision could be developed within the next two years and relocation take place within five years. However, he conceded that might be optimistic considering how slow the process has been up to now.

In the meantime, Friday said the students can’t be kept waiting much longer.

The chief said they are hoping either repairs, new portables or a pre-fabricated structure can be brought in to allow the school year in Kashechewan to begin in short time.

MP Charlie Angus (NDP — Timmins-James Bay) was in Kashechewan on Saturday and was shown the state of the classroom portables.

“When we were in those classrooms, the smell of mould was really strong,” said Angus. “The little crawlspace underneath the portables is basically a sink hole for water. There was water and mould underneath the classroom. The floors are buckled and the real concern is fire. I heard that from parents, I heard that from education staff, and I heard that from teachers. They can’t get those doors open in the winter because the doors shift all the time.

“If one of those buildings caught fire, you’ve got them overcrowded with children. It would be a colossal tragedy and we can’t just sit back and wait.”

Angus said in any other community in Ontario, off-reserve, the condition of those portables would have resulted in an immediate response from the Ontario Ministry of Education.

“The public school system in Ontario is among the best in the world and yet children who are expected to follow Ontario curriculum in the federal schools (on First Nations) are dealing with substandard conditions. At the very least the federal government has to say it will meet the health and safety standards, the funding standards, the classroom standards that are in the provincial system because if you bring in anyone from the provincial system to look at those portables in Kash, they would be condemned right now. Those kids can’t go back to school until we have a proper school.”

As for the impending relocation of Kashechewan, Angus said it is impossible to say when that will actually occur, citing what he perceived as a lack of urgency on the federal government’s part.

“The problem is there has been talk about moving, from the government’s part, but there has never been an actual plan put on the table to say this is the deadline by which we’re going to do it. So the community could be there for years to come,” he said.

“And the problem with the portables is the community was promised 10 years ago that this was a short-term fix and they would put a proper school in. These buildings have continued to deteriorate. They have cobbled together some solutions for them but this is not a tenable situation and it really speaks to the root problem which is the federal government refuses to establish proper standards for education in terms of buildings and funding” on First Nations.

Plans for Centre Culturel La Ronde’s newest building are on hold as they wait to hear back about its government grants.

The group embarked on a $6-million fundraising campaign for a 12,000-square-foot building. It will be located at the site of the old building that was torn down last year from extensive fire damage.

“At the point that we stand at right now, our grants have all been applied for. On the federal side, it’s with Heritage Canada, and on the provincial side, it’s with the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund,” said Ludger Cloutier, project leader of fundraising and construction for the Centre Culturel La Ronde Inc.

La Ronde officials applied for a grant with the Ontario Trillium Foundation among others.

“We’re looking for $3.5 million with grants, we’ll be looking at $500,000 from fundraising locally and then we already have $2.1 million set aside. Altogether it will be up to about $6 million altogether,” said Cloutier.

“We are more or less waiting for federal and provincial confirmation before we go ahead. Without the help of the provincial and federal governments, we will not be able to advance in this new construction.”

The project leader said they should start construction by spring of 2019. Most answers from provincial and federal governments are expected in the next three to four months.

He said construction should take about eight months. They plan to move in by the end of 2019.

When they hear back from the governments, they will begin to make presentations to different forestry, mining companies and businesses in and around the municipality in hopes of collecting more donations support.

The group is working with J.L. Richards and Associates Limited to design the building. At 12,000 square feet, the new facility is much less smaller than their old 37,000-square-foot venue.

A large portion of the old facility was used for commercial enterprises such as a restaurant, a hair salon and office space. The cost to operate it was about $143,000 a year, Cloutier told The Daily Press in a previous interview.

A small venue will save them at least $50,000 a year in operating costs and will not affect cultural programming at all.

“We already have a concept of what we’re going to be building, but nothing concrete. The land has been tested for soil. The survey has been done already but it didn’t go to all 20 tenders for construction,” said Cloutier.

A stage is planned to be installed at the new facility to offer opportunities for musical dance programs.

“It’s part of our culture. We’ll have this stage ready for the artists that come in. The stage will be available. It’ll be a main hall with access to the stage, sound system and lighting system,” said Cloutier.

“We’re going to have what we call two workshops. These are classroom-sized rooms, where we’ll also be able to offer program in dance, paint, music and so on.”

The venue will be able to accommodate about 300 people. There will also be an art gallery, offices and the Galeruche gift shop.

It will be located closer to the intersection of Mountjoy and Fifth Avenue allowing for more parking on the south side of the property, closer to Alqonquin Boulevard.

An alert citizen notified the Timmins Police Service of an alleged “break and enter” in progress in the area of Cloutier Street South in Timmins at approximately 2 a.m. Friday.

Responding Timmins Police Service officers located two suspects, who matched the descriptions given to police, a short distance from the scene.

As a result, Joseph Sear, 52, and Darryl Rumleski, 39, both of Timmins, have been charged with one count each of Trespass By Night and Possession of Break-in Instruments.

Both men were released from police custody on the strength of respective Appearance Notices requiring that they attend Provincial Court on Oct. 23rd to answer to the charges that have been laid against them.

Residents can beat the rush in the municipal election through advance online voting this year.

Internet voting is open from Monday, Oct. 1 until Monday, Oct. 22 at 8 p.m. at www.timmins.ca.

Voting Day is Monday, Oct. 22 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

“We have an online voting period that’s available from Oct. 1st to Oct. 22nd. Once it’s enabled, there will be a link on the website. People will be mailed a voter card that will explain to them how to go and vote online, said Steph Palmateer, clerk for the City of Timmins.

“There will be the regular voting on Election Day with the polls and ballots to fill out.”

There will be computers at city hall, Timmins Public Library and C.M. Shields Public Library. He said they’re working on an arrangement with the Timmins Chamber of Commerce to have a public terminal there as well.

The city is also trying to make sure people outside of the urban centre of Timmins have the opportunity to vote in advance, should they want to.

“Out in the Connaught area, there will be certain dates where they’ll have the Connaught Community Centre available. A group of volunteers will get together and they’ll have the Hoyle Community Centre available for people there as well,” said Palmateer.

The city is in the process of gathering all they need to distribute voter cards to all residents.

“We’re just finalizing the information for the voters’ list. Once we have that information finalized, the voter cards will be going out in the next few days,” said Palmateer.

About 100 patients, their loved ones and supporters dashed together for the eighth-annual Parkinson SuperWalk on Sunday.

Registration began at 2:30 p.m. with the walk beginning moments after with a warmup exercise. The event was held at Timmins Regional Athletic and Soccer Complex.

“Parkinson’s Canada only has one major fundraiser and that’s their September super walk. It’s super to do it because it’s for a good cause,” said Sharon Montreuil, co-ordinator for the Parkinson support group.

Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer’s disease. It results from the loss of cells in the brain that produce dopamine, a chemical that control’s the body’s movements.

An estimated 55,000 Canadians aged 18 or older living in private households reported that that had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, according to Statistics Canada.

“It’s growing in Canada like most other diseases,” said Montreuil.

Montreuil said the support group meets monthly for educational programs, advocacy initiatives and exercising activities.

Montreuil said the goal was to raise $10,000. The top three fundraisers were Janice Martell donating $1,473, Mariette Rains giving $585 and Anne Gagnon contributing $420, according to the Parkinson SuperWalk Timmins website.

The three top teams were 43 Old Men donating $1,616, Timmins Support group contributing $985 and Flo Lambert and Family giving $495. Many more participants donated various amounts of money towards the cause.

“It goes to the broader network but they supply education, they supply the support groups for them to get help from other people. We have professionals come in and speak on diet and exercise and other things that affect people with Parkinson,” said Montreuil.

At the athletic complex, participants had to complete as many laps as they could around the track. They had to ensure someone was walking at all times while others rest.

“We have several people with the disease that can’t walk around Gillies Lake. They have their walkers here and they can use their wheelchairs here and then can go around once, rest and go around again as long as there are people on the track for the whole hour,” said Montreuil.