Midgets heat up

A win and a tie against the first- and second-place teams in the 1660 Hockey League last weekend will bump the Westlock Tier 3 Midget Warriors up a couple spots in the standings.

After a 6-4 win against Calmer at the Westlock Rotary Spirit Centre on Friday night and a 2-2 tie in Riviere Qui Barre on Sunday, coach Barry Brost said they're firing on all cylinders.

'That will probably put us back up into fourth or fifth place out of 12 teams," he said.

The Warriors are playing in Tier 3, the highest the 1660 league offers, and while moving up posed a bit of a challenge for them earlier in the season it's becoming clear this is the right place for them.

'It's the first time we've played Calmar this year, but we've seen Riviere Qui Barre a couple times," Brost said. 'The team is playing really well, and really buying into the team effort and discipline."

Friday's game against the Calmar King Cobras saw the Warriors come out to a bit of a slow start, trading goals back and forth for a 3-3 tie going into the second. Calmar pulled ahead 4-3 early in the period before Westlock regained the advantage with goals in the middle and near the end of the period.

It was a gritty third period with both teams obviously hungry for the win, but Westlock held on and clinched the victory with an empty netter late in the period.

Brost said Sunday's game in Riviere Qui Barre was a bit tougher, but the systems the Warriors have been implementing let them lead on the scoreboards for much of the game.

'We had a 2-1 lead late in the third and they were able to come back and tie us, but I'm very happy with a three-point weekend for the boys," he said.

There are still a lot of challenges ahead in the season, but Brost said he's confident if they stick to their systems they'll have a good shot at coming out on top at the end of the season.

'The boys have locked in on the system this weekend, and we gave both these teams trouble that way," he said. 'They're really seeing the benefits of that team game."