Mar 24, 2013 | Jcolyn | 1940 views
Elmvale Bantam Rep Coyotes Finish Season on a Winning Note!
The whirlwind season for the Bantam Rep Coyotes came to a close Sunday night with a 3-0 victory over the Georgian Shores Lightning to capture the Georgian Bay Cons. Championship and cap off a 6-0-1 run to finish the season.
It was a fitting end to a season that had many good times, coupled with an incredible streak of bad luck that left all of us shaking our heads in disbelief. From serious injuries to questionable suspensions, and everything in between, it seemed as though a curse had been put on this squad right from the beginning.
It was plain to see early on that this was a special team as a strong start to the season saw the boys come away as Champions at an early bird tournament in Port Dover. After a bit of a mid season slump, the boys put together another strong showing in the next tournament, this time on home ice. The Brian English tournament ended in an exciting, hard fought Semi-Final shootout loss to the eventual Champions from Listowell. The same Listowell team Elmvale had beaten in overtime to win the Port Dover tournament.
Our next big win came in the middle of the season as our Elmvale Coyotes beat the Collingwood Blackhawks 2-1 in an intense match. The game was the first loss of the season for the Collingwood team (12-0-1 at the time). Beating the undefeated squad seemed to spark the boys as from there we went on an 8-1-1 run to finish the regular season. In the midst of that streak, the Coyotes put together an incredible Cinderella story that culminated in our boys coming away as 2012-2013 Regional Silver Stick Champions! Winning the tournament in dramatic fashion and earning the chance to represent Elmvale at the International level. Certainly something to be proud of.
The boys were at a high and riding a wave of incredible success. The streak continued on as we entered the OMHA playoffs and swept the first round vs. Oro in 3 straight games. It seemed these boys were unstoppable...but the Hockey Gods had other plans. An unbelievable streak of bad luck began to hit as every game something else seemed to go wrong. From broken bones to unfortunate suspensions to personal tragedies, everything that could go wrong...did go wrong, and all at once it seemed. Although the Coyotes tried their best to rally and never gave up, the loss of bodies proved too difficult to overcome. Going into OMHA quarterfinal matchups with as little as 8 players, the exhausted boys put up the best fight possible but ended up with an early exit in the quarter-finals of the OMHA playoffs. Definitely an upsetting and unfortunate situation.
Still as enthused as always to play the sport they love, the short bench and apparent curse didn't stop the boys from wanting to end the season on a high note. After being put out of the OMHA playoffs, the Coyotes posted a 4-2 record in the Georgian Bay playoffs, earning 3rd place in our league and the chance to face Georgian Shores in a 2 out of 3 series to win the Cons. Championship. After tying the first game of the series 2-2 at home, Elmvale went on to win game 2 in Meaford by a score of 3-2 in overtime. Then to finish off the season in style the boys put up a 3-0 victory in front of the home crowd to take the series and win some more hardware. Finishing the season on a 6-0-1 run.
A big congratulations goes out to the boys of the Elmvale Bantam Rep Coyote team for a hard fought season. It was a lot of fun to watch and be a part of. The success of a team goes much deeper than the kids on the ice and the coaches on the bench. A BIG Thank You to the parents of this team who made the season that much more enjoyable! I would also like to thank all of the people and executive involved in making this year a smooth and fun season behind the scenes. Such a great organization to be a part of and associated with! Congratulations to the other Elmvale teams in all their successes this season as well, particularly the Atom Rep team and their OMHA Silver Medal. Congrats boys, well done!
Keep your stick on the ice, and rest up boys and girls... only 6 more months until hockey season!!!!
Jayson Colyn