HIGH ACHIEVERS WEEKEND WRAP: Highlight-reel OT goal gives Canadian U19 ringette title to hometown Eastern Ontario Force

By Martin Cleary

For a young organization, the Eastern Ontario Force has grown up quick, real quick.

Two years ago, the Eastern Ontario AA Ringette Association recruited the best women’s U19 division players in the region, put them through a series of on-ice tests under the watchful eyes of trained evaluators and selected two teams – the Force and the Impact.

Last year, despite failing to win a single game at their debut tournament earlier in the season, the Force placed a credible third in their first Ontario U19 ringette championships and qualified for the 2025 Canadian championships, which were held in Ottawa for the first year of a two-year run. The Force placed 15th out of 18 teams at nationals.

“We’re a new association,” Force head coach Celine Leduc explained. “Last year, my team was third at the Ontario championship and at nationals we did OK. We were able to complete, but we didn’t have all the elements to make it to the championship side (of the playoffs).

“We basically had only three players with U19 experience and all the others were new to the U19 experience. We were missing depth and experience.”

It’s quite amazing what can happen a full year later at the same national championship setting. Using a 16-player roster with more depth and experience, the Force soared to the top and emerged as the U19 champions Saturday at the Canadian ringette championships at the Nepean Sportsplex.

The Force not only rallied from a two-goal deficit in the final, but also stayed calm and rallied to score an unmatched three straight goals in the second half of the game to edge Calgary Havoc 3-2 in overtime of the gold-medal championship game.

Playing in her first U19 season, Olivia Binder, 16, took a lengthy, pinpoint pass from co-captain Poppy Leptick, fought off two Havoc defenders and drilled a shot into the top corner as she was falling to the ice. She was already on the ice as the shot quickly sailed over the unchallenged trapper hand of goalkeeper Maiya Aubin-Vilorio for the game-winning, power-play marker.

It was a highlight goal that will never lose its brilliance in Canadian ringette history.

“It was definitely an amazing goal. It has been replayed all over Instagram,” Leduc enthused. “She was shocked.”

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It was the first time since the mid-2010s that an Ottawa team had won a Canadian ringette championship title. The previous three winners were Nepean Ravens (U19 division) in 2013, the Ottawa Ice (National Ringette League division) in 2014 and the Nepean Ravens (U19 division) in 2015.

“Obviously, we were super excited,” said Leduc, who has coached Ottawa teams for more than 40 years and also played in the inaugural world women’s ringette championship in Gloucester in 1990.

“When we scored the final goal, we were all in shock. A couple of days later, we’re still texting each other and having group chats. It was an experience like no other.”

After the Force tied their opening game 2-2 with Alberta’s Sherwood Park Power, it closed the preliminary round with three consecutive wins – 6-2 over Laurentides, 7-3 over Team British Columbia and 4-2 over Team Nova Scotia.

The Force’s bid for a fourth straight win was halted by the Havoc, which used three third-period goals to spark a 4-2 victory.

But the Force regained their winning edge in the playoff round, scoring all their goals in the first two periods for a 5-4 quarter-final win over Laurentides and riding a three-goal first period to a 4-2 semifinal victory over Rive-Sud.

Playing the championship game on home ice against a familiar opponent, the Havoc, was special, but equally nerve wracking.

After a scoreless first period, the Havoc took control of the final in the second period with a pair of goals from Danielle Falconer and outshooting the Force 10-3.

But Leduc said there was no panic on the Force bench as the Ottawa-based team approached the third and fourth periods.

“We were still very focused,” Leduc said. “There was a sense of calmness. We skated hard all year and we skated a lot to be conditioned to win periods three and four.”

The Force were a true force on the ice in the second half of the final as Emily Barteaux split her two goals between the third and fourth periods, which sent the game into overtime.

With seven seconds left in the fourth period, the Havoc’s Kali Morissette took a two-minute penalty for delay of game. That infraction carried over into the extra period, which gave the Force a powerplay en route to the championship-winning goal.

Davis, who stopped 28 of 30 shots in the Force net, and Barteaux, a dynamic forward, were selected to the Canadian championship women’s U19 division first all-star line.

“Emily (Barteaux) is a phenomenal athlete. She’s determined to get the loose ring and she’s 100% sure she’ll get it. That motivates the whole team and makes everyone work harder.”

Earlier this season, Barteaux and Force teammate Abigail Rooney represented Canada in several games against Finland at the world junior ringette championships.

Barteaux was the leading point scorer for the Force at the Canadian championships with 16 goals and eight assists for 24 points in nine games. Aurélie Lacourcière counted nine goals and six assists for 15 points, while Stynes recorded five goals and nine assists for 14 points to the hometown crowd’s delight at the March 29-April 4 event.

Read More: 6 local teams soaking up supportive spirit at hometown Canadian Ringette Championships

Meanwhile, the Eastern Ontario Impact U19 team lost all six games. Riley Dallaire was the top point scorer for the Impact with four goals and three assists in six games.

Gatineau posted a 4-3 overall record in the NRL division and reached the consolation semifinals before losing 11-8 to Atlantic Attack. The Fusion won its consolation quarterfinal 9-5 over the Eastern Ontario Capitals, which finished with a 4-3 record.

Former Ottawa players Kelsey Youldon and Allison Biewald were part of the Waterloo NRL division championship team. Waterloo defeated British Columbia Thunder 6-1 in the final. Youldon had two goals and 12 assists for 14 points in seven games, while Biewald’s stats line showed two goals, six assists and eight points.

Kaitlyn Youldon, formerly of Nepean, connected for six goals, nine assists and 15 points playing for the Rocky Mountain Rage in the NRL division.

Emily Chénier was Gatineau’s top offensive player with five goals and seven assists for 12 points in four games, while Alyssa Perreault scored five goals and added six assists for 11 points in five games for the Capitals.

In the women’s U16 division, the Nepean Ravens, who were wearing the red Team Ontario jerseys as provincial champions, won six of their nine games and captured the consolation title with a 7-6 decision over Richmond Hill. Avery Shulha posted three goals and McKenzie Miller had one goal and four assists. Mikaela Carbonette led all Ravens scorers with 14 goals and seven assists for 21 points.

West Ottawa Wild lost to Edmonton Edge 4-2 in the consolation round to finish with an overall 4-3 record. The Wild’s Rachel Macdonald led all U16 goal scorers with 15 and added four assists.

At the national championship awards banquet, the Gatineau Fusion were nominated for four honours and Morgan Forrest was selected the National Ringette League’s rookie of the year. The finalists were Emily Chenier, top centre; Gabrielle Ednie, top goalkeeper; and the Gatineau Fusion, team personnel of the year.

TEAM VIVIER, TEAM WILSON MISS PLAYOFFS AT U20 WOMEN’S CURLING NATIONALS

Ontario representatives Dominique Vivier of the RCMP Curling Club and Charlotte Wilson of the Rideau Curling Club finished at opposite ends of the standings and missed the playoffs at the Canadian women’s U20 curling championships in Sudbury.

Vivier and her rink of third Ava Acres, second Riley Puhl, lead Mya Sharpe and coach John Gabel finished fourth at 5-3 in pool B. Wilson, third Amelia Benning, second Abigail Rushton, lead Sydney Anderson, alternate Lauren Norman and coach Iain Norman placed eighth in pool A at 2-6.

ZACHARY CONNELLY WINS CANADIAN SENIOR MEN’S BIATHLON TITLE

Chelsea Nordiq biathlon product Zachary Connelly of Ottawa was crowned the senior men’s aggregate winner at the 2026 Canadian Biathlon Championships and Spring Biathlon Festival, which was the largest biathlon event ever staged in Canada with 413 athletes in total.

The 24-year-old who made his Olympic debut earlier this year won the nationals competition at the Canadian team’s home base at the Canmore Nordic Centre in Alberta.

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