The Athabasca Pee Wee ëAí Hawks are now the Sturgeon Pembina Hockey League (SPHL) champions after dominating the Slave Lake Thunder 12-1 on Mar. 5.
ìThey were pumped and they were focused the whole time,î said head coach Jay Alix. ìItís been a good season for them and it finished they way it should have finished.î
ìThey were the dominant team throughout the year, and anything less then this would have been a big disappointment to them,î he added. ìThey proved to be the best team at that level.î
Hawks forward Jodacee Cardinal opened up the scoring halfway through the first. He was followed by teammate Nayte Ramey who put in two more goals to give the Hawks a 3-0 after 20 minutes.
ìAfter we got up to three to nothing in the first, we just never looked back,î he said. ìWe stressed team work all season long and they played that way. They moved the puck every period and never got selfish whether it was the score sheet or individual play.î
The Hawks opened the flood gates in the second, netting four goals from Cardinal, Ashton Funk, Jacob Hayward and Ethan Head, making it 7-1 by the end of the period.
The team would continue the offensive onslaught, scoring five more goals in the third to take the win.
However, due to a scheduling error, the SPHL were not able to have the championship banner and medals at the game.
ìUnfortunately we didnít get to celebrate with the banner on the ice, but the kids knew what they have done. At the end of the day they were just as happy,î he said. ìSo, itís all good. Weíll have some fun with it at the next practice.î
