If it wasn’t for a few bad bounces or some lucky breaks going their way, the Niagara-on-the-Lake Wolves U18 rep team would have been playing Sunday for a chance to bring home a provincial championship.

The Wolves, competing in Kingston with seven other teams, were in a very tough “Group of Death” division.

They battled Mitchell and Elmvale in the round-robin of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association’s Tier 1 tournament but lost both matches in tight games.

Those teams finished one-two in the round-robin, just ahead of NOTL.

The Wolves went 1-2, with two close losses that easily could have gone either way.

They beat Petrolia Oilers 3-1 in their final round-robin game and then needed Mitchell to beat Elmvale by at least two goals in order for NOTL to advance to the semis.

But Mitchell and Elmvale tied 3-3, ending the Wolves’ quest for an Ontario championship title.

They both won their respective semifinals on Sunday morning, setting up a “Group of Death” rematch later in the day.

Elmvale prevailed 4-3 in overtime to claim the Tier 1 championship crown.

More to come …