Waterloo Atom MD: Silver Stick Regional Champs!
On Friday morning, 12 Atom MD and AE teams descended on Chatham for the International Silver Stick Regional Tournament. By Sunday afternoon, the Waterloo Wolves emerged as champs, and in doing so have earned a trip to Pelham for the International Silver Stick Final! ...
The first team that Waterloo faced was the Oakridge Aeros from London. Although I have fond memories playing minor hockey for Oakridge, my allegiances now lie solely with our boys here in Waterloo, and they came through with some excellent hockey! The Wolves generated many solid scoring opportunities and were able to secure a 3-0 win. Josh C picked up the shutout in this one, with some excellent saves and received a loud round of applause in the dressing room afterwards! Later that day, the boys met the Caledon Hawks. This game turned into a very aggressive grind on both sides – neither team would let the other gain ground without working hard for it. In the end, Daniel L-C would turn in a stellar performance in net, leading to a 4-2 Waterloo win and this time it was him who would receive a rousing round of applause in the dressing room! This then allowed for a nice long break before our final round robin game on Saturday afternoon. As a fun treat, the boys were able to spend the afternoon at a Chatham Escape room, where 3 teams were created to solve a series of puzzles in three separate rooms. Many of us parents found another type of escape room in the form of a nearby brewery. It should be mentioned that there was one holdout. Melissa not only arranged the event, but she stayed the entire time with the team – many thanks Melissa!
In the third and final game of the round robin, the Wolves would overwhelm the hometown Kent Cobras and secure the top seed for the semi-finals. The semis put Waterloo up against the Whitby Wildcats and the boys would turn in their finest performance yet, consistently racing for every puck, and always looking for the open man. The win would advance the Wolves to the championship final against the West London Hawks. The championship featured two teams willing to put their hearts on the line for the win. The Hawks would come out hot, largely controlling the pace of play for the first 10 minutes of the game. The Wolves would hold on tight and keep the game scoreless. The Wolves would then go on to score one near the end of the first, and then another early in the second. The Hawks showed their resilience, responding with 2 goals later in the second to tie things up. The two teams would go at each other at full speed, both determined to make something happen. It would be Waterloo who would put another on the board midway through the third period. The Hawks would put intense pressure in the closing minutes, where the puck would remain in the Wolves end with 6 West London skaters on the ice. Waterloo would survive the onslaught and end the game with a 3-2 win. It was an exciting game, and we certainly hope we’ll get to see West London again this season!
With the Championship, the Wolves will now compete against teams from throughout North America at the Pelham Finals, January 9-12. Let’s show them what Wolves hockey is all about! Congratulations Gentlemen on a fine performance – let’s keep up the hard work!
-Coach James
