SUNDRE — The U18 Huskies’ hockey season may have ended in the defeat, but the squad remains undaunted following an otherwise well-rounded year, the head coach said.
The team faced off on home ice in the third game of their Central Alberta Hockey League’s tier 3 playoff final against the Olds Grizzlies, who on Sunday, March 13 won the championship banner 7-3.
Yet even though there were some sad faces following the loss, coach Tony Myram said the players were still holding their heads high and keeping their chins up despite the defeat.
“Probably the biggest thing that came out of this season, was watching the team grow,” said Myram.
Coming “out of the gates strong” at the start of the season before enduring a challenging losing streak in the middle of the season, the Huskies really picked up the pace in February for a strong finish, he said.
Out of seven teams in their tier, the Huskies finished in fourth place with a record of eight wins, eight losses and two ties.
“They really, really matured as young men, and that’s what I think drove our impressive playoff push,” the coach said, adding the players all brought their own strengths and played their part. “We began to mature and play more as a team instead of relying on individual talent.”
The first game in the best-of-three series was in Olds on Friday, March 11, when the hosting Grizzlies beat the visiting Huskies 6 to 3.
But the Huskies came back hungry on home ice the following day, proving themselves a force to be reckoned with.
“We had an amazing game. We actually beat them 9 to 5,” said Myram.
Unfortunately, by the time the third and final game came around, the Huskies were down a few players due to injuries and illness, all compounded by fatigue after playing games three weekends in a row.
“We were getting pretty short benched. We played with basically a line and a half through most of the game,” he said. “For the most part, the kids stepped up and played really hard and did all we could do. But we did come up short.”
The Grizzlies also put up some fierce competition.
“They’ve got some talented players,” said Myram, adding, “They have a huge bench. So, that’s definitely a benefit when you’re in playoff hockey.”
Throughout regular league play, the teams were largely neck and neck.
“Realistically, it was anybody’s banner,” said the coach, who expressed pride in the Huskies’ performance and also praised their team play as well as intensity.
After all, just reaching playoff finals is in and of itself an achievement.
“We did everything we could in our first round,” he said, adding the Huskies knocked the Innisfail Flyers out in two games with final scores of 4 to 0 and 4 to 1.
“Those games were closer than the scores sound,” he added.
In the next round, the Huskies went up against the Hanna Colts, who ended up being the top team in their tier.
“We hadn’t beat Hanna all year — they beat us the last time we played 10-2,” he said. “So, the kids really stepped up and played hard.”
The first game in that series was a classic, textbook comeback victory in Hanna. Down 3 to 0 early on in the game, the Huskies “put their work hats on and pulled up their boot laces” to turn the tide and take the lead 4 to 3. But the Colts were able to tie up the scoreboard and forced the game into overtime, which the Huskies won 6 to 5.
“They played exceptional,” said Myram. “The kids played as hard as they possibly could (and) did everything we and the fans asked for and more.”
The Huskies went on to win on home ice the second game against the Colts in another close nail-biter with a final score of 2-1.
The coach extended on behalf of the team an expression of gratitude to the community for the outpouring of fan support throughout playoffs.
“The arena was as full as it could be — it was great,” he said.
Now that their season is over, the Huskies plan to unwind a little and enjoy what remains of their ice time at the local arena.
“We’re gonna have a couple of fun practices, play some shinny and just have some fun with our last two ice times,” he said, adding there will be fond farewells to retiring players.
And Myram said he plans to retire from coaching following some 14 years.
“I’m just going to be a hockey dad next year,” he said.
That doesn’t come without mixed emotions, said Myram, adding he had a lot of fun over the years.
“I’m going to miss being able to brag about our kids.”
