The Athabasca midget Winter Hawks will not be moving on to provincials after two consecutive losses to the Jasper Bearcats, including at 4-0 loss last Friday at the Athabasca Regional Multiplex.
After losing 9-6 in game one of the two-game series, the Winter Hawks needed a strong offensive game to take the series against the tough Bearcats, who had only lost one game all regular season.
Jasper got on the board early with a goal less than three minutes into the opening period. The Winter Hawks fought back with several chances, including a ringer off the post, but were unable to put anything past the Jasper goaltender.
The Jasper offence pushed hard going into the final minutes of the first period and was able to score two goals within 30 seconds, taking a 3-0 lead into the second period.
The remainder of the game was a fight for the puck as Jasper defended their lead and the Winter Hawks attempted to find a way to beat the Jasper goalie. In the end, the post was the closest they would come. Jasper would score another before the end of the game to eliminate the Winter Hawks from playoff action with a final score of 13-6 over the two-game series.
“We weren’t quite clicking; things just weren’t going our way,” said head coach Tom Hutchison.
The team was also dealing with multiple injuries and suspensions, which Hutchison mentioned could have been a factor in the loss.
Hutchison, who has been coaching for 15 years, thought the team played a successful season overall.
“It’s a good group of guys … I thought it went really well,” he said. “They get along really well, and it was good team chemistry.”
The Jasper Bearcats move on to the final league round, where they will face off against Mayerthorpe to see who wins a spot in provincials.
