An amazing 2023-2024 playoff run for the Vankleek Hill Cougars came to an end last Friday (April 5) with a 5-3 road loss to the Gatineau-Hull Volant, but the team’s staff, players and fans have built a solid foundation for future seasons.

The win at Centre Slush Puppie in Gatineau ended the National Capital Junior Hockey League (NCJHL) finals in favour of the Volant four games to one. The Cougars and their fans however, can take solace in a solid playoff run that saw the stands at the Vankleek Hill Community Centre packed to the rafters for every home playoff game.

“The guys battled to the end and had fun – that’s the most important part,” said Cougars Head Coach Nicolas Pharand, who went out of his way to thank the team’s fans for their support. “The support from the fans – both home and away – was incredible.”

“Playing in front of 500 people at home is fun for the guys and it shows the community is behind them.”

Riding the momentum of their 5-4 overtime win the previous Sunday in Vankleek Hill, the Cougars came out strong in Game 5, with Malcolm Seguin giving the local squad a 1-0 lead with a powerplay goal midway through the first period. But Gatineau-Hull tied the game at 1-1 just two minutes later on a goal from Zachari Gravel, and the two teams headed into the first intermission still tied.

Then, as it had all series, the second period proved to be the Vankleek Hill Junior C team’s undoing, with the Volant scoring four unanswered goals for a 5-1 lead, to take a stranglehold on the game and the series. The Cougars tried for the third period comeback, with Jacob Crete drawing the team to within three goals by scoring at 9:19, but Gatineau-Hull netminder Mathias Saumier Altéma held them at bay the rest of the way until captain Joshua Desjardins scored with just 31 seconds left in the game to make the final score 5-3.

“It’s not that we weren’t playing well,” Pharand said of the Volant’s success in the second period during the series. “But we would have strong first periods and then maybe come out in the second too confident.”

“A big thanks again to all of the fans who came out,” Pharand concluded. “It’s going to be a big season next year.”

Cougars would have played Game 6 in Hawkesbury

Had they won Game 5 in Gatineau, the Cougars would have been forced to play Game 6 of the NCJHL Finals at the Robert Hartley Sports Complex in Hawkesbury, due to the Vankleek Hill Community Centre being booked for a minor hockey tournament on Saturday (April 6).

The lack of availability of the arena in Vankleek Hill for a potential Game 6 was the subject of much discussion on social media, with many people expressing dismay that the Cougars would be unable to play in their home arena, which was filled to capacity throughout the playoffs. However The Bob in Hawkesbury is almost a second home for the team, which played all of the 2022-2023 season in Hawkesbury while the Vankleek Hill Community Centre was undergoing renovations.

The Cougars, in fact, had excellent attendance figures while playing in Hawkesbury last season.

It was standing room only at the Vankleek Hill Arena for the NCJHL finals against the Gatineau-Hull Volant. Photo: Reid Masson