On Tuesday, March 24th, the eighth-ranked Korah Colts opened their 2026 OFSAA ‘AA’ Boy’s Hockey Championship campaign in Belleville, Ontario, taking on the eleventh-ranked Fort Frances High School Muskies. Despite a strong push in the third period, the Colts fell 3–2 in a tightly contested matchup.

Fort Frances struck first midway through the opening period, as Troy Veldhuisen opened the scoring at 13:30, finishing off a play set up by Gavin Hill to give the Muskies a 1–0 lead. Korah responded late in the frame when Preston Miller evened the score at 4:31 with an unassisted effort, bringing the Colts back to level. However, just seconds later at 4:03, Aiden Loerzel restored the Muskies’ lead with an unassisted goal, sending Fort Frances into the intermission ahead 2–1.

The second period saw both teams tighten defensively, with neither side able to find the back of the net as goaltenders Will Franic for the Colts and Keaton Cooper for the Muskies held strong.

In the third period, Fort Frances extended their lead at 11:36 when Troy Veldhuisen netted his second goal of the game, this time assisted by Tarran Enge, making it 3–1. The Colts refused to go quietly, as Koen Manchulenko pulled Korah within one at 3:34, finishing a play set up by Tyler Lang. Despite late pressure, the Colts were unable to find the equalizer.

Korah coach Dustin Grondin told Saultsports that “we were really flat. Legs were not where they needed to be. Puck was bouncing and we could never settle in to our game. Fort Francis worked really hard and we could never find our groove. We shot ourselves in the foot continuously throughout the game, losing our focus and not controlling our actions. It’s a tough pill and a tough lesson at this stage of the year.”

“We need to look ourselves in the mirror here between games and decide if it was good enough to just get here, or if we want to show what we are capable of against some really good teams down here. Quick turn around and a must win from here on out. Chips are in the middle now,” added Grondin.

With the loss, the eighth-ranked Colts fall to 0–1 and will look to rebound in their next round robin game as they face the thirteenth-ranked (0-1) É.S. L’Essor Eagles of Windsor at 3:00 p.m.