Apr 03, 2019 | GeoffRead | 936 views
Hawks Lose to Hawks in All-Hawk Final
The West London Minor Bantam Hawks #27 had a great year, finishing the regular season on top of the league and beating the top seeded team from Oakridge 4-3 in overtime to reach the finals. Unfortunately, however, the Cinderella season didn't finish with a Hollywood ending as the Hawks lost to their associational rivals, West London #17, 4-0.
The Hawks played well, but not well enough to win, basically. The effort was there but the Hawks had a lot of trouble generating second and third chances against #17, who did a really good job of boxing the Hawks out of the crease area so that when the Hawks did get good shots on net, they couldn't get to the rebounds. This was, really, the key to #17's victory.
Defensively, the Hawks played well but had some letdowns that ended up in the back of their net. On a couple of plays, for example, defencemen got beaten cleanly in the neutral zone by playing up too aggressively. On another, the two defencemen as well as the centremen who'd worked hard to get back on the backcheck, all inexplicably backed off the puck carrier in the high slot giving him all day to step into a shot, which he then ripped by goaltender Zach Read. There weren't a lot of these mistakes, but they were costly, and when the other team played a nearly mistake-free game, they proved lethal.
Unfortunately, your reporter could not go to the semifinal game as he was coaching an Atom team in their semifinal match, but apparently, that was the game to watch as the Hawks triumphed 4-3 in overtime with Read making big saves, Owen Worby potting two goals, Matt Hodgins playing D and picking up a goal and two assists, and Matt DiCicco also picking up a marker.
It was, despite the somewhat lacklustre ending, an excellent season for the Hawks. They made two finals in tournaments against older kids; they finished first in the regular season; and they made the final. They did this with good team play and structure. Everyone contributed. Noah Weber brought his speed and increasingly good hockey sense from the back end. Jack Churney showed his grit, determination, hockey smarts, and big slap shot from both the wing and defence positions. Brendan Walsh likewise did double duty and played with a physical edge that the team could use a little more of at times. Read had a good season between the pipes in his first year as a full-time goalie. Owen Worby and #9 found some incredible chemistry on offence and made some dazzling plays throughout the year. to be the team leaders in goals and points. Nathan Senese played with increasing determination towards the end of the year and was named player of the game in the final for one of his best games of the season - he hustled on the backcheck, he won battles in the corners, and he made a couple of nice passes to set up his linemates. Jacob Grover was a defensive rock on the back end, and learned to pinch at the blue line when the situation to do so was right. Pyper Baker had another good season from start to finish - she was the model of consistency always showing sublime hockey smarts and superior passing and skating skills. Cole Chick flashed some very good hands at times and developed an increasingly wicked shot, allowing him to break into double digits in goals. Matt DiCicco became the fearsome power forward everyone knew he could be, charging up the wing like a freight train and using his team-best shot and speed to good effect. Matt Hodgins got better and better as the season went on, and was at his most dominant, in this reporter's opinion, when he played defence. He's the kind of defender who can control a game from the back end and set the tempo. Admittedly, he also showed he could be very effective as a two-way centre and was notable for his hard work on the back check when playing forward. Liam Stewart isn't the prettiest skater on the team, but was one of its most effective battlers in the corners - Stewart plays with grit and determination and wins more fights for the puck than he loses. And finally, Callum Knapp may have the best hockey sense on the team, and showed a knack for being in the right place at the right time both on offence and defence. He also brought a consistent work ethic to each and every game. His competitive fire was apparent.
In the course of their fine season, hopefully the Hawks learned some valuable lessons. As teenagers, they showed a penchant to be pretty moody at times, particularly when things weren't going their way on the ice. There were some times when negativity set in and players were showing their frustrations on the ice and with their teammates on the bench. But, I'm glad to say, this tendency declined markedly in the finals weeks of the season; in the final, notably, when they started to get down and some of those habits cropped up, the Hawks showed the ability to reflect on their behaviour and correct it. That takes true leadership and sportsmanship.
Well done Hawks. Great season.
Go Hawks go!