U11 Team 1 recently participated in the Essa Eagles John Prince Memorial Tournament...
From Friday, March 8 to Sunday, March 10, the Caledonia
Thunder U11 Team 1 participated in the Essa Eagles John Prince Memorial
Tournament.
The Thunder opened the tournament on Friday against the Elmvale
Coyotes. Caledonia got out of the gates early, with Layton H scoring a minute
into the game, with the assist to Corbin D to give the Thunder the early lead.
Fletcher F (assist Niko P) would add a goal a few minutes later, and Layton H
(assist Dawson F) would add another goal in the period to give Caledonia the
3-0 lead after one period of play. While Elmvale would score in the 2nd,
Caledonia responded in the 3rd period. Zac A (assists Dom P and
Callum W), Spencer K and Fletcher F would all add goals, and goalie Dawson F
would make several saves the rest of the way to give the Thunder the 6-1 win.
On Saturday, Caledonia’s first game was against one of the host
teams, Essa Eagles #2. Caledonia was on fire to open the game, scoring 6 goals
in the first period. Nolan G collected 2 (assist to Mason A), Zac A would score
a hat-trick, and Fletcher F would add another in the first period of play. From
there, it became a defensive battle, with goaltender Davin S shutting the door
when called upon to collect the shutout and give the Thunder the 6-0 victory.
The 2nd game of Saturday was against the Caledon
Hawks. In the battle between often confused hometowns, it was the Thunder who scored
early and often. Bennet H (assists Corbin D and Fletcher F), Nolan G (assists
Davin S and Fletcher F), Nolan G again (assists Niko P and Fletcher F), Zac A
(assist Davin S), Jo T (her first of the year! Assist by Callum W) would give
Caledonia the 5-0 lead after one period of play. From there on out, the Thunder
controlled the pace of the game. Additional scorers included Zac A, Bennet H
(assists Davin S and Corbin D), Layton H (assists Davin S (his 4th!)
and Mason A), Niko P (assist Spencer K), Fletcher F (assists Bennet H and
Callum W), Callum W, and Zac A, with strong saves by goalie Dawson F, giving
Caledonia the 12-2 victory and a spot in Sunday’s semi-finals.
On Sunday, the Thunder would face off against another
undefeated team, the Valley East Stars, in the semi-final. This game turned out
to be an exciting back-and-forth battle between two evenly matched teams.
In the first period, Layton H opened the scoring, assist to
Fletcher F, to give Caledonia the 1-0 lead. However, the Stars would respond,
tying the game towards the end of the period. In the 2nd frame, the
Stars would pull ahead 2-1, before Fletcher F and Bennet H (assist Fletcher F)
would score for the Thunder to give them the 3-2 lead. In the third, the Stars pressed
the attack on the Thunder, trying to tie the game, with goaltender Davin S
turning them aside with several key saves before the Stars eventually broke
through to tie the game 3-3. With 2
minutes left, the Stars took a boarding penalty, giving the Thunder the
powerplay. While the Stars goalie made some saves, the Thunder would not be
stopped, and with 8.9 seconds left in the game, Zac A (assist Fletcher F) would
score, giving Caledonia the 4-3 lead. On the ensuing face-off, forwards Bennet
H, Jo T, and Corbin D would press the attack, sealing the victory and booking Caledonia’s
spot in the final.
In the final, Caledonia would face off against the other
host team, Essa Eagles #1. This Eagles team was much different than the
previous Eagles squad the Thunder faced. Caledonia found itself in penalty
trouble at times, but Zac A and Dom P would play strong defence and clear the
puck to keep the Thunder in the game. Despite their best efforts, and strong
defence from Mason A, Bennet H, Niko P, and Bennet H, with key saves (including
on a breakaway) from Dawson F, the Eagles were simply too much for the tired
Thunder team to overcome, as Caledonia dropped the final by a score of 4-0.
Overall, the Thunder had an amazing tournament, with 28
goals for and only 10 against. Most importantly, the kids had fun and came
together as a team throughout the weekend, and are looking forward to the rest
of their playoff schedule!
