The Lakers held their Annual General Meeting on the evening of June 8 in Seaforth as those in attendance reflected on the highlights of the past season and elected the Executive for this coming season.
Lakers President, Kevin Nicholson, provided an excellent review of the past season in his President’s report, the contents of which are reprinted below:
“Let me start by stating that as an organization we have had one of our most successful seasons ever. This was no mistake, and you can trace this back to the strength in the people who are seated at this table. I would like to thank each and every one of you for the work you have done this year. It has made my job as President a lot easier.
The strength in our teams is rooted in our coaches and their committed staff. In sending our coaches to the Roger Neilson Coaching clinic we helped in preparing them for the season. I would like to thank our coaches and their staff for all the hard work and time they put into the teams. Next year’s coaches are preparing to head off this weekend to the Roger Nielson Coaching clinic - let me wish you luck as you start to prepare for the 2010-2011 season.
I want to extend a big thank-you to the ‘97 Lakers for running the best OHF of the year!!!! We hosted the PeeWee OHF Champions in St. Marys and I am still hearing praise from the associations who attended the tournament. All the members of this team and the association should be proud of the way this tournament was run. A special thanks to Penny Brookshaw, the head of the tournament committee.
The Lakers had an overall record of 285 wins, 195 losses and 57 ties. We had three of our teams finish as East Division Champions in regular season play. We claimed our second Alliance championship and won some major tournaments this year. Let me highlight some of the accomplishments of our teams:
· The Minor Atoms finished off strong, and were a force in playoffs as they showed a great deal of development from start to finish.
· The Major Atoms won their first round of playoffs and gave Hamilton all they could handle in the second round.
· The Minor Peewees claimed the East Division regular season championship and won three tournaments - Chicago, Hamilton and Kitchener.
· The Major Peewees went to the semi-finals in two tournaments and hosted the OHF tournament in St. Marys.
· The Minor Bantams claimed the East Division regular season championship and went on to win the Lakers' second Alliance Championship.
· The Major Bantams had one of their most successful seasons overall, winning in the first round of playoffs before losing a close series against Cambridge.
· The Minor Midgets claimed the East Division championship, won their first round of playoffs and lost a hard fought battle with Elgin-Middlesex in the second round. They were invited to OHL Cup and went a very respectable 2-1-1, just missing qualifying for the playoffs. They also had an association record 7 players selected in the OHL Priority Draft.
· As for the Major Midgets, let me start by thanking Nick Aroutzidis for running an amazing program and assembling one of the strongest Midget teams in Ontario. They finished second overall in the league and had the top three scorers in the Alliance. Mitch McIntosh during the season was sent for a short time to the OHL Erie Otters. They won two rounds of playoffs and lost in the league finals to the London Junior Knights.
For all the success we had, there are areas for improvement next year. Once again we need to improve on our yearbooks as this has been an ongoing issue. I firmly believe that we have set in motion improvements in the yearbook for next year’s Executive. Communication and documentation between Parents, Parent Reps, coaches and the Hockey Operations Committee needs some improvements. We also need new members to step up into leadership roles and continue in the growth of the association. Despite these issues that occurred I have thoroughly enjoyed my year as President.
Let me also say thanks to Tyler McGregor from the Minor Midget team. I have only met Tyler a handful of times but he has left a lasting impression on my life. He has shown an inner strength that everyone can learn from. Tyler has been battling cancer and the loss of his leg, but continues to look at life in a positive manner. Tyler, the entire association wishes you nothing but the best as you continue to battle this disease.”
The election for the Executive for 2010-11 was held later in the meeting and the following were elected:
| |
President |
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Kevin Nicholson |
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Vice-President & Ice Scheduler |
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Mich Landry |
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Secretary |
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Helen Dowd |
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Treasurer |
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Mike Donnelly |
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Hockey Operations Chair |
|
Jack Chaffe |
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ALLIANCE Rep |
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Greg Barclay |
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Registrar |
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Bobbijo Stewart |
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Fundraising/Sponsorship Director |
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Mark Thibeault |
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Brand Development Committee Chair |
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Marc Paquette |
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Major Midget Director |
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Nick Aroutzidis |
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Website/Email System Administrator |
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Craig Metzger |
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Director without Portfolio |
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Pete Nichol |
Thanks were extended to retiring Executive member Hugo Maaskant for all the work he had done for the organization over his last five years on the Executive.
The Executive and its various committees are now working on plans for the upcoming season, including Orientation Day on August 23rd in St. Marys and Lakers Day on October 16th in Goderich.
Have a safe and enjoyable summer everyone and see ya in August!!!