There is no place like home and the Waterloo Wolves U16 AA team
might be the only ones who like playing in Waterloo this season!
Facing a rival in their home opener, the Wolves earned a big 3 to 1 win over the Brantford 99ers Sunday afternoon. Nate Sexton made his AA debut and shut the door with several key glove saves as he displayed the calm of a veteran.
The Wolves started slow, but you could see their energy start to come to life. Tim Hodson had a shift that rallied his bench. Then it was Ethan Wasylyshyn who took the body to the 99ers until finally Matthew Ball opened the scoring for the Wolves from Jaxon Broda.
One of the prettiest goals of the young season that might be tough to match was the from the knees goal Cole Hunsberger roofed to make it 2 to 0. Cole Ledgister, who dominated in faceoffs, set up the goal. Hunter McMurdo added the 3rd goal with his 3rd goal in two games.
The coaches have asked the Wolves players to put extra effort into their forecheck and back checking. Every player has responded well and guys like Declan Uniac, Jackson Andrews, Griffin Beddis and Michael Wei displayed a second gear in the game for their coaches.
Facing a rival always brings out the best in players and it certainly did that for the defender on the team. Ben Yong and Riley Webster were solid and dependable, Jackson Deitz and Cooper Gaul mixed up some power and finesse, while Jackson McNichol and Broda were once again solid together.
The Wolves will be back at it in practice to tighten up a few areas the coaches know the team can perform better but the effort and dedication of this team has really impressed their coaches.
Go Wolves!