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Tigers reload for another shot at Halton boys' hockey title By Herb Garbutt Oakville Beaver staff 19 | Friday, January 29, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com The T.A. Blakelock Tigers didn't make it to last year's provincial high school hockey championship tournament, still they can't help but think of how close they got to winning a medal. The Tigers suffered a pair of one-goal defeats against the Abbey Park Eagles, a 4-3 overtime loss in the Halton final, then a 3-2 decision in the Golden Horseshoe final that earned Abbey Park a spot in the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) tournament. The Eagles went on to take the silver medal, after being edged in overtime in the championship game. "For sure, it makes you think that if we play like we can, we could do the same thing," said the Tigers' Mike MacDonald. The Tigers did face a challenge in replicating Abbey Park's success after 14 players graduated from last year's team. MacDonald is one of just seven returning players, leaving the Tigers with plenty of positions to fill. "With rep players not allowed (in Halton), a lot of it comes down to who can attract players," said Blakelock assistant coach Cam Evans. (Last year's success) makes recruitment a lot easier." Rather than taking a step back as it rebuilt, Blakelock quickly established itself as a contender. The Tigers started the year by winning five of their first six. And in a stroke of good fortune, Blakelock's lone loss came against Notre Dame, which just missed the cut for tier 1 when the league was divided over the Christmas break. With only games against tier 1 teams counting moving forward, the Tigers started the second half 3-0. Blakelock has since added four more wins and will return from the exam break tied atop the standings with Corpus Christi at 7-1-0. The Tigers have proven to be a stingy team defensively, led by a trio of returning blueliners in Kyle Hallman, Cam Clasper and Jack Base. Combined with goalies Kyle Salmon and Colin Haugen, Blakelock has allowed just 13 goals. But even with just four returning forwards, Blakelock has been able to assemble a balanced offensive attack, sitting second in the league in goals scored with 30. Evans coached the Tigers' junior squad last season and was encouraged by the talent he saw on that team. "Last year's (junior) team was very skilled, so I had high hopes," he said. "The young guys coming up were keen (on playing high school hockey) after seeing what we did last year." MacDonald, Geoff Marchioli and Craig McCormick have formed a particularly effective line for the Tigers. The Tigers will face a crucial stretch run when they return from exams in February. Two of Blakelock's final three games will be against top-four teams, Corpus Christi and Loyola (5-2-1). T.A. Blakelock goalie Kyle Salmon makes a glove save in a Halton high school hockey game against Christ the King. Blakelock suffered its first loss of the season, falling 4-2 to the Jaguars, but remains tied atop the standings with a 7-1-0 record. | photo by Herb Garbutt -- Oakville Beaver Taekwondo grand master in Oakville for seminar The world's highest ranking taekwondo grand master is visiting Oakville this week. Ninth-degree black belt Rhee Ki Ha will be in town to conduct an international instructor training course for black belt instructors from the U.S. and Canada Jan. 28-31. "It's the highest honour to host such a taekwondo legend at my school," said Mike Morningstar, head instructor of Oakville's Morningstar Taekwon-Do. After the Oakville seminar, Rhee Ki Ha and Morningstar will head to Managua, Nicaragua to conduct the same event for instructors and students in Central America. Rhee Ki Ha celebrated his 78th birthday last March, but is still teaching with the same approach and rigour he learned from taekwondo founder General Choi Hong Hi. For more information on the seminar, visit www.mstartkd.com or call 905-847-8955. With just 10 games remaining in the Ontario Junior Hockey League regular season, the Oakville Blades have an opportunity to get an edge on their South Division rivals. The Blades open a home-and-home series with the Milton IceHawks tonight (Friday) in Milton. They return home for a rematch Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Sixteen Mile SportsPlex. Milton comes into the weekend on a 24game losing streak and is 1-20-0 at home. The Blades are looking to snap out of a slump of their own, having lost three straight since beating Milton 9-0 Jan. 16. That slide has allowed their division riReduce Reuse Recycle Blades look to snap slide against Milton vals, the North York Rangers and Toronto Jr. Canadiens to erase the Blades lead atop the division. All three teams are now just separated by two points, with Oakville, 26-15-3, and North York tied with 55 points. Notes: Blades goalie Michael Botiz was named co-MVP of the CJHL Prospects game. Although Team East was outshot 4419, he blanked Team West over the second half of the game in a 3-1 Team East win. Oakville native Jack Jeffers of the Orangeville Flyers scored for Team East and Matthew Thomas of the Georgetown Raiders had an assist. AIRE ONE MADNEss sAlE! HIGH EFFICIENCY FURNACE & CENTRAL AIR only REDUCE $ Or * 3990 * $ 95.5% EFF. 59 /mth OAC* Call for details recycle REUSE FURNACE diAgNostiC spECiAl AR REGUL $ $99.00 Must Present esent Coupon. Cannot be Combined with other offers. offer Over 120,000 satisfied custOmers 49 PACKAGE INCLUDES: · 95.5 % High Efficiency Gas Furnace · High Efficiency Central Air R410A Refrigerant ·10 Year Factory Warranty · Limited Time Offer receive up to iN o.p.A. & GAS coMpANY reBAteS* $1500 liMitEd tiME oNlY! HEATING & COOLING www.aireone.com 9 Locations to serve you better oaKviLLe (905) 849-4998