Several Sunshine Coast minor hockey teams are battling for banners and post-season glory.
Fresh off capturing a regular season championship banner, the Bantam Rep Blues, sponsored by RJS Electric, are currently in the President's Cup series with a good shot at claiming the title.
The Blues won both their games last weekend against Port Coquitlam in Pitt Meadows on Saturday and at home on Sunday against Mission. The Blues hit the road last night (Thursday) for a game against Hollyburn and host Coquitlam this Sunday, March 4, at the Gibsons and Area Community Centre. Face-off is set for 3:45 p.m.
Atom
The Atom Rep Blues, sponsored by Trail Bay Source for Sports and The Coast Group Chartered Accountants, were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs after a tough three-game series with the North Shore Winter Club Hawks.
After a first round bye, the Blues took on the Hawks in the four-point series with the first team to four points advancing to the final four-playoff round.
Game one was Monday night, Feb. 20, and ended in a 2-2 tie. Game two on Sunday, Feb. 26, was a 4-2 win for North Shore.
The Hawks came out strong, going up 3-0, but the Blues countered with a late goal in the first and the momentum switched in their favour.
Kolton Cousins, Jaden Fodchuk and Liam DeRoon applied some serious offensive pressure in the second period, but could not sneak one by the Hawks net minder.
The Blues scored with 7:06 to go in the third period to get to within one goal, but a series of penalties hampered their ability to mount a full comeback. With three in the box, the Blues were lucky to kill off the circling Hawks. With time running out, the Hawks pocketed a late goal to take the win.
The third and final game was a 2-2 tie Tuesday night, which gave the Hawks enough points to advance. Jaden Fodchuk and Kolton Cousins scored the Blues' goals, while Geo Wilson made some spectacular saves throughout the night.
With 10 minutes remaining and the score tied, the Blues went to work and had some good chances to score; however, Logan Terness was solid in the Hawks' net.
With one minute remaining, there was a frenzy in front of the net with bodies everywhere. The Blues kept firing the puck, but were not able to find a hole before the final buzzer sounded.
The Blues now move into the President's Cup series where they will challenge for the green banner. The first game in that single round-robin playoff series is this Sunday in Gibsons.
Peewee
The Peewee Rep Blues, sponsored by RJS Electric, lost their first playoff game to Semiahmoo to drop the Blues into the President's Cup series. The Blues are in an eight-team pool, so will play seven games to determine who will win the banner.
The Blues played their best two games of the year last weekend, beating West Vancouver 6-3 and Port Coquitlam 8-1.
Next game was Thursday night in Squamish, then Vancouver on Saturday and Arbutus on Sunday.
Besides chasing the banner, the Blues travelled to the President's Day Invitational Tournament in Phoenix last week where they went 2-2 in the AA division alongside teams from Arizona, California, Colorado and Texas as well as many other teams from Canada. A total of 124 teams took part in every division from Squirt to Midget AA.
The kids had a great time playing teams from the U.S. on Olympic-sized ice surfaces.
Highlights of the trip included the Phoenix Coyotes game, meeting the cheerleaders at the Phoenix Suns game and an impromptu visit to their dressing room by Vancouver Canucks alumni Cliff Ronning. He was there setting up an outlet for his BASE stick company and heard there were some Canadians around, so went for a pep talk with the team. The trip took a year of planning and included lots of parents and siblings who went to cheer on the team.
Midget
The Midget Rep Blues lost their third round series to West Vancouver by scores of 3-1 and 4-1, eliminating the team from provincials, but the Blues are still alive for a Lower Mainland banner. The Blues play an away game this Saturday against a yet-to-be-determined opponent and host a game on Sunday at 5:15 p.m. in Gibsons.
Bantam House
The Bantam C team, sponsored by Gibsons Sears, is currently in the Capilano playoff series and has two games remaining tonight (Friday) in North Vancouver and Sunday at home.
