Stories by Tom Kerr /
Once again, the North Shore Avalanche Midget, Bantam, and Peewee A teams have made it into league playoff competition.
With a trip to the provincial championships on the line, the teams know they will have to battle hard to make it through to the finals.
The Peewee A team is off to great start, with a 3-0 record, and has outscored their opposition 16-2 in playoff action, to date.
The team is in a six-team playoff format, with each team playing five games.
Despite the strong start, head coach Kirk Wakefield made it clear that the Peewee A squad is not about to start slacking off.
“We have had a good run so far, having gone 3-0. However, our team knows that there are going to be some very tough games ahead, and so we will work hard to keep our focus as we head down the stretch.”
The Peewee As are now looking ahead to their final two key matches against Tri-Cities and Abbotsford.
The Bantam A team is in a short and highly competitive three-team playoff round, with each team playing four games. The Bantam A team quickly put itself in a strong position by winning its first two games, which included a 2-0 win over Richmond and a 2-1 win over Surrey. Head Coach Jim Miller summed up the team’s success to date.
“Our girls are playing a very strong team game right now. Our attention to the defensive side of the game has been great, and we have made it very hard for the other teams to score on us. It helps that we have also had some stellar goaltending from Kira Richardson.”
The Bantam As will play both Richmond and Surrey one more time to wrap up the playoffs, but the team is now focused on competing in the Surrey Tournament of Hearts, which will take place at Fleetwood Arena from Jan. 28 to 31.
The Midget A team is competing in a four-team playoff format. The team entered the playoff round-robin on a high after winning the league banner in the final seconds of the final league game. Dakota Conrad scored the goal from the high slot to tie Abbotsford 3-3, which kept the Avalanche one point ahead of Abbotsford in league standings. Unfortunately, after the first two games of the playoffs, the Midget As have only one point and a 0-1-1 record.
“The team effort has been exceptional as we outshot our opposition in the two games by a margin of 2-to-1. However, the opposition goaltending has been ‘game-stealing.’ There are four games remaining and our team is focused on reaching the final for the championship banner,” said head coach, Graeme Currie. The finals games for the Midgets are against Richmond and Maple Ridge.
Novice Avalanche Team Makes the Future Look Bright for NSFIHA
The North Shore Avalanche Novice team has continued to grow both in size and skill. With so many young, passionate players in the association, the future is looking very bright for the North Shore Female Ice Hockey Association.
The Novice coaches have brought on a couple of new players in the past couple of months, and the team is now playing a full roster that includes 18 players. With other expressions of interest coming after the roster was finalized, the association is expecting to have more young players out next season.
According to head coach, Lisa Parkes, the primary focus all year has been skill development, although with games now underway, the Novices are dedicating more time to team tactics and learning the rules of the game.
“We work mostly on basic skill-based drills, such as skating drills, because many of the girls are new to skill development. With games coming up, we are now dedicating about a quarter of our practice time to more team-oriented skills such as passing and 2-on-1s. It has been a great year, and all the girls have improved, including the ones who started off very strong. The girls who started the year barely being able to skate are now working themselves into the play more and more.”
The Novice team is now playing in a league that includes 12 teams and 10 different girls share the goaltending duties for the North Shore Novice squad. Although scores are not recorded during games, Coach Parkes thinks her team is doing very well in league play so far, and she has high praise for the team’s spirit.
“They are a great group, and are very supportive of each other. There are no big egos or expectations on the part of the stronger players, and I hear lots of positive comments on the bench.”
The Novice team will soon wrap up its regular league schedule, and is looking forward to participating in the 2010 Richmond Ice Classic Tournament taking place at the Richmond Ice Centre from March 26 to 28. |