The SD1 Warriors overcome a slow start to the season and some player absences to play their best hockey at the right time, culminating by winning the Midget division championship at the South Delta Minor Hockey Party In Da House Tournament.
The Warriors began to find their stride in early December, buying into a team concept and playing better defensive hockey. It was a sign of things to come.
They began the tournament with just 11 skaters and minus their top six leading scorers. Despite a 4-3 loss, a terrific effort galvanized the team for the balance of the weekend.
The Warriors began to roll by hanging on for a big 4-3 win over the SD4.
"Following that we knew we were in a situation if we were able to win our next two games we would advance to the final and control our own destiny," said Warriors coach Steve Robinson.
The team played superb two way hockey which resulted in back to back shutouts 1-0 and 3-0 respectively. That set the stage for a rematch with the favoured SD4 in the final. Instead of an anticipated low scoring battle, some puck luck and excellent all-round effort resulted in plenty of offence in a 9-4 victory.
"One of the most rewarding parts of this win was the fact that there were different contributors every game and it truly was a team win," added Robinson.
Standouts and game MVP's through the tournament were PJ Jagpal, Peter Reimann, Jon Phillips, Garrett Leslie and goaltender Curtis Robinson.
The team also includes Travis Addison, Stephen Ogilvie, Tyler Ogilvie, Nick Cleaver, Cody Tunstall, Justin Dhah, Jordan Letawsky, Doug Bailey, Connor Griffin, Jake Nolan, Parker Wideski and Keiran Marquis. Michael Schwabe was away on holidays and missed the tournament.
Keith Tunstall rounds out the coaching staff, while a special thanks to manager Heather Wideski and all the parents for a memorable weekend.
Lastly, a big thanks to SDMHA and Firstar for the event and in particular Theresa Watts for her tireless efforts and enthusiasm to make the tournament such a great event.
