The North Central Bulls Midget ‘AA’ team was in action at a tournament in Wainwright last weekend.
Though they lost all of their three games, the Bulls displayed tenacity and character that will serve them well in their inaugural season, according to head coach Calvin Klaczek.
In their first game of the weekend, the local boys lost 5-1 to Fort McMurray, but Klaczek says the score doesn’t indicate the competitiveness of the game.
“They got two very lucky goals on bounces, and we hit two crossbars. A couple more inches here or there and it’s 3-3,” he said.
In addition, the score was 2-0 going into the third period, so the Bulls were able to stay close until the final 20 minutes of the game.
In the second game of the tournament, the Bulls scored a bushel of goals but still fell short 7-6 to the Northeast Panthers.
“It was back and forth the whole way through,” noted the coach.
“They scored three power play goals on us. That’s an issue we need to address.”
Shorthanded goals were an issue throughout the weekend for the Bulls, with Klaczek noting they took some undisciplined penalties, as well as some that were more related to fatigue.
In the final game of the weekend for the team, they dropped a 9-1 decision to Wainwright.
Like the first game, the Bulls were down just 2-0 heading into the final frame when the game finally got away from them. Wainwright poured in six power play goals in the game.
The story of the weekend for the Bulls, according to the coach, was that they played three competitive games with just 10 skaters dressed.
With some players injured or unable to make it to the tournament, the Bulls who made the trip played lots of minutes and gave it their all, making their coach proud and earning them respect from the other teams at the tournament.
“After every game, the coaches, referees, the fans, even the other teams were complimenting our players,” said Klaczek. “They all stepped up and showed amazing character and grit and heart in every shift.”
The team wasn’t concerned with the results going into the tournament, as it was their first time playing together as well as their first time playing at a higher level of competition. Given that, the coach was quite pleased with what his assembled players were able to accomplish.
“To play three games in 22 hours, it’s unreal what they did at this calibre of hockey, with 10 skaters and for us to be in every game until the end. If we field a whole team, there should be no issues at all.”
With the first games of the season in the books, the coach will try to decide who the leaders of the team are going to be.
“From my perspective, they all have what it takes to wear a letter,” he said of choosing a captain and assistants.
“It’s going to be a tough decision.”
Having come off a demanding stretch of tryouts followed by this tournament, the boys will practice just twice this week before taking this weekend off. They will open their first season in the Northern Alberta Midget AA Hockey League on Oct. 6 in Morinville before playing at home for the first time on Oct. 7.
