It may have been cold outside but the MCR Collision Center Atom LL's were heating things up on the ice in the Hawks Cup final! They beat the tough team from East Lambton to win the tournament! Congratulations team!
The MCR Mitchell Meteors had played to a draw with the East Lambton Eagles earlier in the tournament so they knew it would be a close match in the final. A power play early in the game was just what the Meteors needed to get on the board early. A nice pass from Brandon Dietrich and a nice finish by Grayson Yost and Mitchell was up by one just 33 seconds into the game! Sam Huettlin would score another before the period ended and the boys would take a two-goal lead to the second.
The Meteors would go up 3-0 when Wade Campbell buried a rebound in front of the net. Bentley Phillips was credited with an assist on the goal. But the Eagles would not go down without a fight and finally netted one of their own shortly after. But Brandon Dietrich would take it to the net late in the second and score to restore the three goal lead. Jeromy Vandewalle and Liam Brodhagen drew assists.
The Eagles came out strong in the third period and had many good scoring chances. They scored midway through the frame and kept coming on strong. But Mitchell's strong defensive play held them off and when Sam Huettlin scored on a nice rush with 55 seconds remaining it was a done deal. The Mitchell Atom LL's were tournament champs!
Much credit goes to Mitchell goalie Keagan Meinen who had a great tournament between the pipes! Also, the boys on defense for their hard work! It was a whole team effort and the hard work payed off. Way to go!
Post game the players were asked what the keys to the victory were. Jack Van Loon said that staying out of the penalty box was a key factor. Liam Brodhagen was quoted as saying "we had our heads more in the game" and Wade Campbell thought they moved their feet better than earlier games. Looks like the boys have got their game back after the long Christmas break!
As if that wasn't enough hockey for one weekend, the MCR Atom LL's traveled to Monkton Sunday night for a game against Central Perth. This was a physical battle but the Meteors were able to come away with a 4-1 victory. Wade Campbell had two goals and Bentley Phillips and Grayson Yost had one each. Great weekend of hockey boys!