After going 12-0 in the regular season and 7-0 in the playoffs the Lakeland Atom Jaguars finally met their match in provincials and were eliminated after three games.
The local girls team, made up of players from Bonnyville, Cold Lake and Pierceland, went 1-2 at the provincial tournament in Innisfail losing to Strathcona and Olds and beating Red Deer.
“I am really proud of what the girls were able to achieve,” said coach James Stokes. “They were able to step up and go play hard against some of the best teams in the province.”
In their first game of the tournament the Lakeland squad fought hard in a close, back-and-forth contest against Strathcona but lost 4-2.
“Our goaltender played an exceptionally strong game and held us in there,” said Stokes. “We had some great chances in the third but just couldn't tie it up.”
The Jaguars built off of their performance in their tournament opener and took it to Red Deer in the second game walking away with a 6-0 victory. The win improved the team to 1-1 in the round robin and gave them a shot at advancing to the semi-finals with another victory.
“Unfortunately Olds was a little stronger to us and they took it to us in the second period.”
A game that was 2-1 after one period got out of hand fast and ended up 6-1 after two periods before finishing 8-1.
“Other than getting a little discouraged in the second period of the Olds game we played well and worked hard as a team. The girls represented us well,” said Stokes.
An undefeated regular season, a Zone 2 Championship and an appearance at provincials was a long surprising run for a young, somewhat inexperienced Jaguars team. For three girls on the squad it was their first season of organized hockey, while another player was novice aged and played up an age group.
“We didn't have a lot of experience on the team but they stepped up and played well,” said Stokes. “If you were to ask me at the very beginning of the season if I thought we could go to provincials this year I would have said it was unlikely.”
The young Jaguars team improved throughout the season and turned close, one-goal wins into embarrassing large margins. Their last game of the Zone 2 playoffs was a 14-0 victory.
“I feel like we really improved and it was quite evident during the regular season and the playoffs,” said Stokes. “The games were a lot closer at the beginning of the season and near the end we were winning with some big scores.”
