Nicholas Campoli of the Avalanche Minor Atom A team is player of the week.
The 9-year-old centre had five goals and five assists in five games at the recent Humberview Huskies Tournament where he was named most valuable player after his team defeated Toronto Aeros 4-0 to win the championship.
"He is a completely unselfish player at an age when most players want to go the length of the ice and put the puck in the net," said assistant coach Frank Demichino who is in his 12th season with the Avalanche.
"He's a great little play-maker, sees the ice well, plays his position, and both forechecks and backchecks. He can pass back to the point."
Nicholas, a grade four student at St. John Vianney Elementary Catholic School, is only 4 foot, 5 inches tall and was one of 11 players who came from the Etobicoke house league select Bull Dog team to the Avalanche. It's early in the season but so far the whole team is playing exceptionally well with a 4-0-0 record. They have 36 goals for and only two against.
"Nicholas has made the transition into the GTHL very easily," Demichino said. "He's an all around great kid with a natural ability in sport."
Joan Demichino manages the club and reiterates her husband Frank's observations.
"It's nothing for (Nicholas) to be on a breakaway, see his teammate and pass it over," she said.
While the coach and manager note Nicholas is quiet on the bench and never complains, his dad, Angelo, says he is always playing outside with a ball or a hockey stick.
Nicholas wears number 87 because of Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby but declares his NHL favourite player is really Canadiens forward Saku Koivu, "because I like Montreal," he said.
"His half of his bedroom is plastered with pictures of the Canadiens and one of Koivu while the other half (he shares the room with brother Silvio, 12) is all Toronto Maple Leafs," said his mom, Michelle.
I wish you and your team a great year.
Lois Kalchman
The Avalanche Minor Atom A team is our last team of the week for this season. It was nominated by an appreciative parent. This team has had an extraordinary year. They won the Kraft Cup --(placing first in the GTHL west division with 32 wins and four ties, going undefeated during the regular season. They also won the playdowns. They played the first-place teams in Mississauga, Scarborough and the GTHL east division. Then they won the GTHL west championship. And then they won the GTHL championship when they beat the Toronto Aeros. Quite an accomplishment for their first year in the GTHL. Great goaltending, great players, great coaching, according to an appreciative parent. And great parents, says team manager Joan Demichino. Demichino says it was an incredible win in the Metro playdowns, where the east and west division champions, as well as the Mississauga and Scarborough Hockey League's winners, compete in a round-robin tournament for the Metro playdown championships. "We never thought that we would win," Demichino said. "We had lost to Mississauga's Meadowvale and thought they were going to beat the Toronto Aeros and would win the title. "However, Toronto Aeros beat them and all three teams -- Meadowvale, Aeros and Avalanche — were in a three-way tie," she said. "The winner was decided on a percentage basis of goals-for-average and believe it or not, we won by .06 points." The Avalanche had a bye in the first GTHL playoff round and returned to the mix in the second round. "Our most difficult series was against Humber Valley Sharks and we lost our first ever two games in GTHL play," Demichino said. "The kids were in shock." The team of 9- and 10-year-olds had been up 5-1 in a six-point series and the kids thought they just needed a tie. The Sharks took advantage and roared back and won two games in a row before they were finally shut out 3-0. "We went on to play the Vaughan Panthers to claim the west division title and advanced to the GTHL championship against Toronto Aeros where it took six games to beat them eight points to four." A terrific year.