WHITFIELD MIDGETS CLAIM SECOND TOURNAMENT WIN, News (Elmvale Minor Hockey)

The Midget Rep team opened their regular season at home (coming off the successful Lincoln tournament) with a disappointing loss to the Midland Centennials 3-1. Their next task was to participate in their own coveted Brian English Memorial home tournament.
With the schedule set to see them face off against Collingwood on Friday afternoon, the boys seemed ready to put the Midland loss behind them. After a hard fought battle the two teams scoring only once each settled with a 1-1 tie.

The second game of the tournament saw the boys come up against the Lightning from Mariposa. The Lightning saw that the boys felt their presence on the ice, but hats off to the boys who remained calm with no retaliations and stuck to the game plan of just playing fast, hard, disciplined hockey; even after one of the boys sustained a cut to the chin that required a trip to the local emergency for 10 stitches.  The score board showed Elmvale with its first win at the end of the game by a 2-1 margin.  

It was nice to see the boys supporting the Blue Jays after their game and not like the weekend before they didn't seem to dwell on it at their next game on Saturday night against the Burford Coyotes. The team was able to control the entire game and skated away with a 5-1 victory. This placed the Coyotes into the semi finals on Sunday at 12:15 against the team from Phelhem.  The boys seemed to be really getting used to each other on the ice even though they still hadn't had a practice since before the break. The boys held onto a 2-0 lead until the dying seconds of the third when the Phelhem boys netted their one and only goal.  

With one hour between the semi final and the final the boys tried to fill up with some nutrition and get their heads into going to the finals.  Now aren't the hockey Gods funny how they line things up.  Collingwood won their semi finals as well so it was a repeat of game one of the tournament with Elmvale facing Collingwood.  Elmvale wore their blue shirts and sat on the visitor bench but that or the size of the ice surface didn't interfere with the job at hand. Everyone was aware that this was going to be great hockey game with two teams that deserved to be in the finals.  Elmvale started early and was first to put the puck behind the goal line.  No one would have ever guessed that early marker would be the eventual game winner. With solid defense and opportunities often in the offence zone the Coyotes found themselves setting up for the a team championship photo for the second weekend in a row. 

The team would like to thank all those who came out to support their games and hope you will be regulars at their home games and away games if you would like too, who knows maybe we will get a fan bus. 
There are many great citizens in our surrounding areas who call this little piece of paradise home.  Brian English was an amazing young man who loved hockey and because of him, Elmvale is a better place to live and play hockey in.  

Another amazing family to Elmvale Minor hockey is the Colyn family.  Bob, Terry and Jason have all been involved in minor hockey for many years and this year they have graciously donated an Elmvale Minor Hockey ball cap to every member of the Coyote den. For those of you who do not know Bob and Terry's eldest son passed away also as a young man, but he grew up as an Elmvale Minor hockey player who epitomized what it is to be a hockey player here, his love for the game could be seen is his genuine smile.  He practiced hard, played harder, respected his teammates, his coaches, his opponents, the officials and all those who played a role in his beloved hockey game.  The members of the 2015-16 midget rep team hope they can do justice to both these amazing families.
    
Next home game is Nov. 6th at 9:30 against last year's OMHA champions Parry Sound. Come check out the action the Leaf's probably aren't playing anyways.      

BR   Graham Schepers, Greg Kenney, Jeff Moreau, Mike Klein Gebbnick, Paul Craddock
MR    Evan Marlowe, Jake Lalonde, Tye King, Owen King, Andrew Priest, Nevin King, Colby Jonkman, Patrick Brunet, Aiden McKinstry 
FR   Troy Bellisle, Charlie Flieger, Ryan Dauphine, Brandon Lupkoski, Zack McLean, Matt Clarke, Derek O'Neil