Warriors win south division championship on home ice
By Brady Grove, Times Reporter
Brady Grove Photo
The Warriors won the South Central Alberta Hockey League (SCAHL) south division title in front of the hometown faithful at the Strathmore Family Centre on March 3.
“The boys worked hard all weekend and it’s good to see them get the result they deserved,” said Warriors head coach Cody Brown. “They (Hounds) are an excellent team and they gave us a really good game.”
The Hounds drew first blood with a goal eight minutes in, but the Warriors responded quickly on a power play goal by Cole Grant. Moments later, the Warriors aggressive forecheck would pay off when Joshua Alberda stripped the puck from the Hounds defender right in the slot and fired it top cheese to take the lead.
The Warriors didn’t let up going into the second and scored off the opening faceoff when the Hounds defensive zone coverage broke down and Grant was alone for the easy tap in and his second goal of the night. The physical play intensified with the Hounds throwing their weight around trying to create some space but it never kept the Warriors down for long.
Grant continued to impress when he outbattled two Hounds in the corner and sent the puck sliding across the ice to his teammate Nolan Mahussier for the back door one-timer.
The third period didn’t have any goals because the Warriors were clogging up the lanes and the Hounds struggled to get any momentum going.
Warriors goalie Parker Forrest only had to make 12 saves for the championship and his biggest stop came with one minute remaining in the game when a pass came out from behind the net to a Hounds forward alone in front. He one-timed it hard but the magic glove of Forrest kept it out.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the guys. It was a tall order; we played the second-best team (Lethbridge) this morning and then run into these guys at night, we just ran out of gas,” said Hounds head coach Brayden Desjardins. “We didn’t generate a whole lot tonight. I thought we just couldn’t find our legs.”
The tournament playoff format of the SCAHL had the Warriors play two round robin games during the tournament. They came out ahead decisively, with a 5-1 win against the Taber Golden Suns and a 6-1 drubbing of the Okotoks Oilers. They faced the Oilers again in the semifinal game and handed them another heavy defeat, 7-1.
“We started to get better with every skate and that’s what you want,” said Brown. “Up until the finals you’re playing two games a day so you really have to dig deep.”
The winners of the SCAHL’s south division and north division will now face off in a best-of-three series. The Warriors will play the West Central Tigers for the league championship starting on Friday, March 8 (7:30 p.m.) at the Strathmore Family Centre. Game 2 will be the following day in Sylvan Lake and Game 3, if necessary, will take place March 10 (2:45 p.m.) at the Strathmore Family Centre.
Braves feast on Wings
The Wheatland Braves ended their regular season with a double header against the Cranbrook BP Wings in Cranbrook on March 2 and 3. The Braves won the first game 6-3, but the Wings rebounded in Game 2 and skated to a 5-5 tie.
The Braves finish the year with a 16-10-7 record which is good enough for fourth place in the south division. They are headed into the marathon week that is SCAHL peewee playoffs with their first of four round robin games of the tournament against the third place Lethbridge Hurricanes White on March 7 in Vauxhall.
Chiefs winning streak snapped
The Wheatland Chiefs were riding hot going into the last weekend of their regular season. They crushed the Foothills Bisons 11-1 on March 2 in Nanton to extend their winning streak to six games. However, in their final game of the year, the scoring dried up as the Medicine Hat Hounds shut them out 1-0 on March 3 in Hussar.
The Chiefs completed their season with a 17-15-3 record and finished in fifth place in the south division. The midget tournament playoffs start on March 7 and are hosted by the Okotoks Oilers.