The Flesherton Hawks were able to put together another win to defeat the Oro Thunder Peewees 4-1 and take the A Division Championship last night in Flesherton Ontario. The Oro Thunder gave the Flesherton team all they had over the past week and a half and every game had points where the score could have gone either way. Goal tending was superb for both teams and every player was working hard on the ice for a victory. The hockey was so fantastic in fact, that Oro fans were following the action from areas as far as 2000 km away!
Note: This is a long report…suck it up…Oro Peewee One is a GREAT team!!!
Hockey is one exciting sport here in Canada and things can go over the top sometimes but when it is all said and done our goal as parents is to celebrate our kids and encourage them to live active lives in a sporting and respectful manner. This year’s Oro Thunder Peewee 1 team is one fantastic group of kids that have their heads screwed on right and are focused on living life for the sheer fun of it. The game last night, which eventually ended as the final game of the season, was one fine display of sportsmanship rarely seen in 11 and 12 year olds! WOW!!
The Game:
Parents arrived at the Flesherton Arena with about a half hour to spare before the game. At first there was some confusion as to whether they were at the right place or if there was a Bob Marley reunion about to begin: The parking lot was full, Red, Yellow and Green streamers flew from every attachment point and balloons were everywhere! (Logan was some excited!!) Once the excitement of actually not being able to see the Wailers in concert had worn off and the realization a Hockey game was going to happen; the Thunder began to wonder if the Hawks were putting all their eggs in one basket…counting their chicks before they’ve hatched so to speak (sigh…). Perhaps a little bit of pressure added to the Flesherton kid’s plate for sure…Two little girls sang Oh Canada and they were not some rotund Operatic Diva so this game was not over yet!
The puck dropped a little after 7 pm to the sound of all the noise makers and cheers from the copious fans who had piled into the building. The Flesherton fans played their babookas, their swizzles and tooters, they played their panchookas, their goozers and pandinkas…digressing…Josh quickly grabbed the puck and raced for the Hawks net…The Hawks were keeping the Thunder at bay, but the chances were there. All the team was working hard and it took a power play for the Hawks to score. Ben was racking up the saves and keeping Oro in the game. Logan was playing hard and making plays. Justin and Zack were digging for pucks and Josh was on fire… At 4:16 the Hawks scored again. With a power play now on for Oro, Shaunce took a great shot on net, Quinn was driving hard and Trent was working the passing. The first period was insane action at both ends and Flesherton was having the Home ice bounces … The period ended with Oro down 2-0
Oro came back in the second period all fired up for action. Ben and the defence of Nick, Elora and Shaunce with Greg swinging back a shift or two. They were shutting down the Hawk’s “One Man In” and keeping the puck moving towards the offensive zone. Greg was in on net for a chance and was shut down…at 4:15 Flesherton was able to put another one past The Wall and the score was 3-0. Despite the roar of the Flesherton noisemakers and cheering the Oro team put it into the other gear and once again would not go gently into the night. David and Zack and the team buckled down and continued the battle. Justin channeled his inner Crosby and flew down the ice with the puck with a fantastic display of skill. Daniel was sent to the box to feel shame and Josh could not stand to see his buddy doing time. Josh screamed in on the Hawks goalie and potted a shorty! Ya Baby!! Nick had to see the Trainer as he was feeling a bit lonely and so with the assistance of a Flesherton player he was crumpled into the boards and Mr. Greenhalgh came out for a visit and an eventual escort for Nick back to the bench for refreshments and conversation. Oro won the face off and the second period ended 3-1 with the fight still going strong!
15 minutes is a lot of time for a team to get a couple goals and turn the tide of a game. Oro was going to try and use every second they could! The Oro Fans would not be out done by the entire Flesherton community and started whooping it up in an effort to get the team going! Momentum was teetering towards Oro. Elora was brilliant at keeping the Flesherton speedy players out of the action and stripped them of the puck time after time. Oro was dumping the puck into the Flesherton zone and working on the chase. Greg was clearing the zone and trying to get on the puck. Logan and Quinn were giving it their all but were quickly being shut down and the game was in a 3-1 flux. The crowd was cheering and the players were flying. At 5:22 the Hawks put one past Ben after a mad scramble and probably a few dozen shots. The Oro Thunder continued to battle and try for another goal… Time after time they advanced the puck but it was not to happen. The Boomers continued to battle and keep the Hawks from scoring. As the game was winding down the Cup was brought into the building but this did not distract the Oro Players and the kids fought on…
The Buzzer sounded and the Hawks crowd let go a victory cheer. The Hawks team jumped for joy and equipment went everywhere. Throughout it all, the Boomers casually observed the festivities and were ever gracious in their defeat. Parents of the Oro Players cannot be anything but exceptionally proud of the kids they have raised! AMAZING!!
Word on the street is that Flesherton is quite the place to go for a championship game! The Boomers ate fresh pizza and sucked back a few pops (after the game) on Flesherton’s tab and that was pretty sweet! Props to Flesherton!
The Wind Down
The Coach, Serge, is immensely proud of this team and is often without words to express his admiration of the kids he coaches. Following the game nothing was said in the dressing room or amongst the players that was anything short of complimentary towards each other and towards the Flesherton Hawks; a team that had tested them so hard over the past 4 games.
Now that the formal Georgian Bay Triangle Local League hockey season is complete for the Oro Thunder Peewee One team, I will share with you some of the amazing things this team has done over the past season. Simply put, the Boomers are an amazing team:
The Oro Thunder Hockey represents a huge geographical area and the kids who play on these teams represent many small towns and sub-communities within this area. A lot of players are recruited to larger centers for Rep or Triple A status teams and as a result numbers of participating kids have dropped off for Local League Play. This seasons Oro Thunder Peewee 1 Team under Coach Serge D’Amours was selected by Serge from available players that spanned quite a wide range of talent and skill. For 3 players it was their first ever experience playing hockey on ice. Quinn and Justin came from a ball hockey back ground and this was Justin's first time really having to skate! Zach was also just entering into organized ice hockey. Several players could not stop on the ice and several others had trouble changing direction or shooting and passing the puck, let alone making plays. Others on the team had only started playing hockey a year or two before and this is a checking league baby!
This was a pretty special team from the get go. All hands together and the dressing room was always buzzing with tunes and conversation. On the ice the players worked their butts off and tried so very hard to get better and better. Every practice (as few as there were (yes this is a little dig)) the kids bought into the system and supported each other. Guys with more skills helped the guys who were learning and the team work was incredible. As the season progressed the players all improved drastically, be it skating ability to their understanding of the game.
Some of the incredible stats:
· Regular season FIRST PLACE over all with a record of 19-1-0 for 38 of 40 points
· The only loss suffered was at the hands of a rival Oro Team: Peewee 3
· The Boomers scored at least a goal in every game they played this year regular and Playoffs
· They allowed the least goals in the league at 22 over 20 games!!
· Ben, “The Wall” posted 7 shut outs regular season and 2 in the play offs
· The Boomers amassed 95 goals in the regular season for 3rd place in this category
· The team finished tied for last in penalty minutes with a paltry 54
· Peewee 1 is the first Oro Peewee team to finish first overall in the regular season standings for at least the past 8 seasons (perhaps longer)
· First Oro Team to make it to the Peewee A Division Championship over those 8 seasons
· The Peewee Boomers finished the season plus 73 and the playoffs plus 6 for a combined plus 79 rating
For a team of Players and a Coaching staff that started the season as a group of new faces with wide varieties of skills and abilities the Oro Peewee One Team has come together like none other to truly represent the spirit and passion of Hockey! The Parents and Fans have been a tremendous support to our team and a round of applause for you all!!
Congratulations to the Best Team out there!!!
written by
Brent Hornick (Team Manager)
Chief Engineer, CCGS Samuel Risley