The brooms were out in full force with a rowdy crowd fueling
the Waterloo Wolves to an incredible 3 to 1 win over the Hamilton Huskies to sweep
the series and be crowned Alliance Champions!
What an incredible season and what an amazing group of
players!
You never want to put the cart before the horse as they say,
but, with a two-game series lead the coaches were getting more and more
confident, considering the Wolves have never lost back-to-back games all
season. I am not sure I have seen a team respond to adversity with as much conviction
as this squad!
Tate Merritt continued to prove he is a true “gamer” opening
the scoring from Caleb Cumming before Cumming scored the game winning goal from
linemates Jacob Reid-Brant and Cole Ledgister. Merritt made it possible to
breath again sending the puck the full length of the ice into the empty net for
his second of the game.
As always the Wolves needed every player to step up and
everyone had a key contribution. Weather is was the play on the penalty kill
from guys like Ryan Beckner, Jake Patterson, Jackson McNichol and Griffin
Beddis or players like Matthew Anderson, Declan Uniac and Matthew Ball cycling
down low, everyone was dialed in and ready to go. Yianni Peppas was a beast in
front for the Wolves, Carson Bernhardt and Connor Palmer were generals on the
blueline and Cullen Derry played inspired hockey for the team. The Wolves had AP
players Tim Hodson, who logged important minutes, and Logan Van Cromvoirt, who
backed up for the injured Mitch Simmons, also become vital additions with the
team missing Cole Hunsberger (injured) and Tyler O’Hearn (suspended).
And of course, in a tight game, you need your goalie to be
solid, and Ben Pendleton is about as solid as they come in net! Pendleton has a
calm way of going about things and made critical stops every time he was called
upon. The only goal that went in was unstoppable and the Wolves felt more and
more confident as the game went on.
This championship is sweet and will last forever in the
players memories, but the team will very quickly turn the page and start to
prepare for the OHF Championships, hosted by Kitchener this season. The team
has reached 2 out of 3 season goals with a League Championship and Alliance Championship
but have one more goal to capture. It has been a season of training to get to
this moment and the players are more determined then ever to put their claim in
as Ontario’s Champions!
Let’s go Wolves!!!