Westlock’s Tier 2B Peewee Warriors are preparing this week for a trip to Provost where they’ll vie for the provincial ‘B’ title.
Coach Darcy Romanuik said given the amount of experience his team has with provincial tournaments, he’s optimistic. Nonetheless, it won’t be as simple as walking in and claiming the gold.
“You’re hoping you win it all, but that being said it’s going to take everyone coming together and giving 100 per cent,” he said.
The big advantage the Warriors will have is that virtually every player on the team has been to a provincial tournament before — and some of them more than once. In fact, they’ve played in provincial gold-medal games before.
“For this group of boys, this is the third trip to provincials for some of the boys on the team, and we’ve lost in the finals both those other years,” Romanuik said.
That experience will go a long way to taking the edge off when the boys step in the Provost arena on Thursday for their first game, and even well beyond that game and the tournament as whole.
“You always have a bit of that nervous energy, but with the kids having been there before and playing in the big games, in the long run it will help them in anything they do,” he said.
But while the experience will play in their favour, the Warriors will still need to keep in mind some of the things they’ve struggled with this season. Romanuik said the biggest problem — one he hopes to address in the few short days before the tournament — has been their breakout.
“If you can keep the puck 200 feet from your net, you’re going to be successful,” he said. “If we can break out of our own zone and not create turnovers at the blue line, I think we’re going to have a really good tournament.”
But regardless of the outcome, the experience of playing in a high-level tournament like this is one that the players can carry with them as they move forward in life.
“You never know if and when you’ll ever get back, so you really have to take in the happenings, but remember why you’re there,” he said. “Keep in perspective and have fun, but remember why you’re there.”
