Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos
Coming off a tough GNU18HL loss in Sudbury on January 14th to the Sudbury U18 Wolves, the Soo U16 Greyhounds quickly turned the page and hit the road to Peterborough. There, the Greyhounds joined 33 other U16 AAA programs from across Ontario for the January 15th to 18th weekend, competing in the prestigious 2026 Steve Richey Memorial Tournament of Champions.
The Greyhounds opened their round-robin schedule on Thursday evening, squaring off against the Grey Bruce Highlanders out of Markdale, Ontario in what turned into a tightly contested battle.
Grey Bruce struck first midway through the opening period when Cal McQuillin found the back of the net at 14:45, converting on a setup from Chace Snow and Ethan Bonotto. The Highlanders doubled their lead late in the period, as Snow finished a play from Nate Hazan and Ryan Fischer at 1:45 to give Grey Bruce a 2–0 advantage after one.
The Highlanders continued to apply pressure in the second period, extending their lead to 3–0 at 7:22 when Lucas Tout scored with helpers from Barron Schust and Luke McDonald. The Greyhounds responded late in the frame, finally breaking through at 3:36 as Nolan Lesperance buried a chance off feeds from Nicholas Patience and Gage Guzzo, cutting the deficit to 3–1 heading into the third.
Soo carried momentum into the final period and pulled within one just over nine minutes in. Ethan Cress finished a strong offensive sequence at 9:11, with Lesperance earning his second point of the game alongside Logan Watson, making it a 3–2 contest.
Grey Bruce answered back at a crucial moment, restoring their two-goal cushion at 2:59 when Ryan Fischer scored with Lucas Tout and Chace Snow picking up assists. The Greyhounds refused to go away, however, as Bryson Palahnuk scored with just 40 seconds remaining, assisted by Ethan Farquharson, bringing Soo within a single goal at 4–3.
Despite a late push, time ran out on the Greyhounds’ comeback bid. Phoenix Bell was solid between the pipes for Soo, while Knox McBride earned the win for the Highlanders.
The Greyhounds will look to bounce back quickly as they continue round-robin play on Friday, January 16th, when they face the North York Rangers at 1:15 p.m. in game two of the 2026 Steve Richey Memorial Tournament of Champions.
