The
Scotiabank Bantam LL boys had a fantastic season finishing 29-12-2. They brought home trophies from the Clinton
and Minto tournaments and they won their league playoffs allowing them to move
onto the WOAA Maroon Finals against Kincardine 1.
Kincardine won the flip and hosted the first, best two of three final series, game on Sunday, March 22nd at 6:00 pm. The puck was dropped and Kincardine started the game off in our end. We did not allow them to linger there for too long and moved the play down to their end. Des FINLAYSON had a great shot that, unfortunately, was captured by the Kincardine goalie’s glove. We took a few more shots on their net including a near goal by Jake MONDEN, but the scoreboard remained motionless. The teams were very evenly matched and, as such, Kincardine had a few shots on our net too. Reid DEGROOT gloved a beauty that flew at him, midair, from the point closing out the period in a 0 to 0 tie.
The Mitchell boys must have been suffering from car legs as things started to go a little sour 17 seconds into the second period. That is when Kincardine scored their first goal of the night. 41 seconds after that they scored goal number two. Mitchell finally got a hold of the puck and scrambled in front of Kincardine’s net, but nothing came of it. Zeke KOERT, Connor LOUWAGIE and Nic BAKER all had great shots on net, but this goalie of theirs was on his game. The second period ended 2 to 0 them.
The game continued into the third period in the same downward spiral. Jackson MACARTHUR almost got us on the scoreboard, but it just wasn’t meant to be tonight. Kincardine, however, continued to score and when the game ended we skated away with a 4 to 0 loss.
Game number two was played in Mitchell’s barn on Monday, March 23rd at 8:15 pm. The boys met at the arena where they found their jerseys hanging in the Hawk’s dressing room each with their own cubby marked by their name and number. They suited up and hit the ice, pumped and ready to play their hearts out. Kurtis FORREST immediately started shooting on Kincardine’s net which set the tone for this game. Mitchell was on fire and driven to win. Kincardine too was on fire and fired a few quick shots at DEGROOT who literally flip flopped from goal post to goal post to ward those biscuits off and keep his net safe. Ben HART made a great save in his defensive zone and the fast-paced first period ended 0 to 0.
Excitement was in the air as the second period got underway and before we knew it, Eric DEARING scored that oh so very important first goal of the night! LOUWAGIE got the assist. The lead was ours until Kincardine got the equalizer six minutes later. Nate BAKER flew up the ice with the puck several times throughout the game giving those speedy Kincardine skaters a run for their money. Anthony BEUERMAN was also working relentlessly all game and would not give up, even while sprawled out at center ice, he continued to reach for that puck to keep it away from the Kinucks. Both teams were battling hard when a hectic kerfuffle erupted in front of our net. Fans could not determine where the puck was and the worst was feared until the heavenly sound of the referee’s whistle tweeted and fans could relax. The period ended tied again, 1 to 1.
Tristan BEEHLER started the third period with a shot on net. We needed another goal and we needed it fast. Hayden ADAIR kept moving the puck out of our end, but Kincardine kept bringing it back. Kyle WETTLAUFER also worked his magic in his defensive zone as he out-skated Kincardine several times in a race to the puck. Then, our hearts sunk, Kincardine took the lead by two goals within a matter of two minutes. The Meteors did not give up and as the time on the clock quickly slipped away KOERT deked his way up the ice to the net where…HE SHOOTS, HE SCORES!!!! The fans went wild and we knew that we were not out of this competition yet. DEARING was there to clinch the assist for this goal. Suddenly, things got very tense. The clock was now moving at a rapid pace and we did not have any room for error. DEGROOT joined his teammates on the bench so that six of our men could attempt to seal the deal and tie things up before it was too late. Five seconds lit up the scoreboard and FINLAYSON skated the puck around the neutral zone…it felt like an eternity…SHOOT, SHOOT, SHOOT THE PUCK! FINLAYSON did just that but the puck was stopped and the final buzzer sounded. What an exciting, clean game right to the bitter end. Kincardine won the game 3 to 2 and the Maroon Division in a clean sweep. Medals were presented to both teams for winning their respective playoff series and the trophy was presented to Kincardine for being the ultimate champions.
What an exciting way to end the season! Thank you boys for providing all your fans with some amazing hockey! You guys rock!