The results weren’t want they wanted, but Bow Valley Midget AA Timberwolves head coach Tyson Soloski was still proud of how his group battled throughout the South Central Alberta Hockey League (SCAHL) Championship series against the Lethbridge Hurricane Hounds on March 15 and 17. Lethbridge swept the T-Wolves two games to none in the best-of-three series.
“I thought our effort and passion was great. I was very proud of every single player and how they performed throughout the season and playoffs. No one quit no matter the score or situation,” Soloski said.
“It was awesome to see and when you see that as a coach it reminds you why you love coaching and the game of hockey.”
In Game 1, there was no scoring through the first period but there were plenty of chances both ways. Lethbridge scored late in the second to give the Hurricane Hounds a 1-0 lead, which they held into the third period. Kyle Lappin would tie the game less than four minutes into the third off a pass from Connor Stephenson. Lethbridge would find the back of the net on a power play goal with 1:44 left to edge the T-wolves 2-1.
Game 2 came back to Cochrane with the Timberwolves looking to tie the series and send it back to a third and deciding game in Lethbridge, but it wasn’t meant to be.
Lethbridge scored with six seconds left in the first and four minutes into the second to give them a 2-0 lead. Bow Valley responded with a Justin Berube power play goal to cut the Hounds’ lead to 2-1 but Lethbridge would add a power play goal and an empty netter to advance their lead to 4-1, earning the Hounds a berth to the Alberta AA Provincial Championships.
Timberwolves goaltender Antonie Leclerc fell victim to a potent Lethbridge attack, which boasts six of the top 15 scorers in the Midget AA league, including Kennedy Spencer (69 points) and Fraser Griffen (54 points) who finished first and second respectively. The young goaltender stood tall throughout the series, stopping 42 of the 47 shots he faced in the two games.
“We just didn’t catch any breaks throughout the series, which along with hard work and determination is what you need in order to be successful,” Soloski said of the championship series.
“Whether it was penalty calls or us hitting posts or crossbars, we just never caught any breaks to put us up in the games … makes it tough to win when you seemingly don’t have those things going your way.”
Regardless of the outcome of the championship series, Soloski didn’t have enough good things to say about the group he had the pleasure of coaching this season.
“I had an absolute blast, we had a great group of kids and parents which made it very easy on us as coaches. The players made it so fun with their great personalities and their willingness to get better individually and as a team all season long. We really came together as a team and made it an unforgettable season,” Soloski said.
“As for the graduating players, the best thing I can is they’re all great people. I know they will succeed in whatever they chose to do next.”
“On the ice, we wouldn’t have had the season we did without them. Your third-year players are relied heavily on all year and they all met and exceeded expectations … it really was a special group.”
The Timberwolves bench boss will now weigh his options for might come next in his coaching career, but said a potential return to Bow Valley is in the cards.
“But considering the great organization that the Timberwolves had, I would love to be back again next year,” he said.
