Warriors impressive run to finals

Times Editor 

 

The Wheatland Warriors were just one step away from capping off the perfect season in the SCAHL.

The local double-A midget team used their second seed in the division and battled their way to the league final, before being ousted in the best-of-five championship series.

Despite pushing the Okotoks Oilers to the limit in every game, the Warriors were defeated in three games.

“It was close – every game was pretty much (separated) by a goal, except the first game when they got an empty netter,” said head coach Paden Grant. “Both teams play similar, but the breaks didn’t go our way. The boys played really well, but so did they. It really could have went either way.”

The Warriors opened the series with a 2-0 road loss in Game 1 on March 21, before losing a close one on the road in Game 2, falling 3-2 on March 23. The team then suffered a 2-1 loss in Game 3 at the Strathmore Family Centre, ending their season.

According to Grant, falling by one goal in each game almost hurt more than being blown out.

“It’s almost harder – it’s good to know we were right there with the top team in the league, but it’s tough,” said Grant. “The team was pretty distraught after the game, it’s tough to lose that way. But they have to hold their head high – they played well all year and we were right there until the bitter end.

“I’m happy with the way our year went and how far we made it.”

According to Grant, the team formed a real bond during the course of the year and they improved from start to finish.

“We kept improving throughout the year … we had our stumbles and falls throughout the year like any team, but at the end of the year, we were playing our best hockey,” said Grant. “We played a lot of hockey in a short amount of time (near the end of the season) and sometimes things don’t go your way.

“The Hockey Gods weren’t really smiling down on us in this last series, but that’s the way it goes.”