The Sundre bantam Huskies recently sailed through to provincial semifinals after going undefeated in three round robin games in Nanton.
Although that was as far as they made it, the squad’s coach said he was proud of his team’s accomplishment.
“We took first in the A pool,” said Nathan McCullough, adding the Huskies made a good run at the semifinal round but just came out a bit flat.
“We were the only team to go undefeated in the round robin.”
The top teams from each zone throughout the province competed in Nanton March 14-17.
“It was a great tournament and experience,” said McCullough, adding the kids conducted themselves respectfully on and off the ice and did a great job representing Sundre.
“I’m proud to say they’ve brought great attention to Sundre and our community,” he said, adding their demeanour “speaks volumes to their characters.”
When a group of teenagers comes together, they can sometimes get easily distracted, “but they sure didn’t,” he said.
The Huskies played against four teams. The first was Nanton, who lost 6-3. Facing off against Maskwacis next, the Sundre team won 5-3. The third game was a resounding 11-1 victory against Kitscoty, which brought the Huskies to their semifinal round against Tofield.
“We were down 4-1 going into the third period,” the coach said, later adding, “Tofield capitalized on our mistakes.”
Although the Huskies managed to reduce the spread significantly, putting away two goals during the final period and preventing any more against them, they were unable to tie the game and force an overtime, with Tofield going on to win 4-3, he said.
Even in the final seconds of the game, the Huskies were scrambling in the crease to score, just narrowly missing an opportunity when the puck barely went wide, he said.
“It was that close. They didn’t go down without a fight,” he said, adding the Huskies made Tofield earn their victory. Tofield went on to win the tournament.
Being defeated by the provincial champions took “the sting out a little bit,” he added.
“The way they came together, I’d have to say it was probably their best performance of the year,” he said about his team.
“They went in with fire. All of the kids were going hard — it was really good to see.”
He said that not only were the more experienced players performing well, but so too were those among the secondary lineups.
The tournament style of the playdowns is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for some of the players, he said.
“It’s not an easy feat to get to provincials. It’s a pretty big challenge.”
The bantams had previously earned the Zone 6 banner after winning three, two-game series based on total goals scored, he said.
Prior to provincials, the Huskies had also competed in the Central Alberta Hockey League playoffs.They were eliminated in the first round against Cochrane after forcing the best-of-three series to a third game.
“They beat us two games to one,” he said.
The 2018-19 season was, overall, a great developmental year, he said, with the skill gap between the newer and more experienced players closing substantially by the end. He added that the secondary scorers “really shined” during provincials.
Additionally, the coach said his team admirably faced a challenge this year, having played in tier 3 even though they could have competed in tier 4.
“We bit off a pretty big piece of the pie this year,” he said.
“It was a hard year for the kids. But they took it in stride — it forced them to grow.”
Finishing the regular season in the middle of the pack, the bantams met adversity head-on throughout the year. Playing against challenging teams provided the Huskies more of an opportunity to develop their skills and grow, he said.
“All in all in that regard, the season was a complete success.”
Candidly confessing that spending so much time with the kids occasionally resulted in getting on one another’s nerves, he quickly added, “In the end, the (mutual) respect goes through the roof.”
As a coach, McCullough said he strives to build a bond with his team and that he hopes to be a positive influence not only on their ability to play hockey but also “how they carry themselves as people.”
Unwavering community support also helped to foster an atmosphere that enables the team to grow, he said, noting numerous donations from various sponsors in town, including the Sundre Minor Hockey Association, made competing in provincials possible.
“It’s not a cheap venture for the families involved,” he said, referring to spending several days on the road in hotels and eating out.
“Everybody really supported us — it took the whole community. When you get that kind of support, it sure feels kind of good.”
While acknowledging the team’s accomplishments is nice, none of that would be possible in the first place without the community’s support, which he called second to none.
With the season now over, McCullough said he would likely, if asked, return to coach again next year.
“I love hockey. It’s a passion of mine, and if I get to share that with the kids, it’s fun.”
