The Lakeland Panthers Bantam AA team are league champs after sweeping the Sherwood Park Kings in a best of three series.
After falling in provincials, the Panthers were determined to walk away with the gold.
“Provincials was a stinging block for us, and we just set a goal after that, that we weren’t going to sell ourselves short,” explained Shaun Hebert, head coach. “We wanted it a little bit more... At the end of the day, the players played hard and I’m just humbled and thankful that I could give the team some guidance along the way.”
The team came out strong on Friday, April 5 in front of a packed crowd at the R.J. Lalonde Arena with a 6-1 victory.
Forward Noah Dechaine noted they were ready for whatever was thrown their way.
“We played hard throughout the games, and it just felt good to come out with the wins,” he said.
Wanting to sweep the series, the Panthers kept their focus on beating the Kings on Saturday, April 6.
They wouldn’t disappoint their fans, coming out victorious 6-2.
“It was great,” expressed Dechaine. “The boys came out strong, and we just dominated them. We just had some good pressure, and we did good.”
The teams were evenly matched going into the first, but it would be Christian Foisy who put the Panthers in the lead less than five minutes in.
Ben Skarsen brought the home team’s lead to 2-0 shortly after.
Before the first period ended, Sherwood Park cut the Panthers’ lead in half with a point of their own.
The lone goal of the second went to Panther Jonah Smith.
The final frame would go to the Panthers, with Ashton Cumby getting two goals and Foisy adding another point to the score sheet.
While the Kings managed to find the back of the net themselves, it wasn’t enough for them to catch up before the buzzer.
Panther goalie Ethan Farrow said, “We’re just so dominant. We had a really good record, and I can’t ask for a better group of guys to do it with.”
During the medal presentations, Farrow also received the award for the top goalie of the league.
“It felt amazing. I can’t even put it into words,” he said about receiving the honour.
Dechaine and Farrow agreed it was a season to remember.
“It was a great group of guys, and I had a lot of fun this year. I’ll miss them,” expressed Dechaine.
Farrow added, “Overall, I can’t complain. We had a really good record, and I can’t ask for a better group of guys to have done it with.”
Along with finishing first in the league, the Panthers came in first when they competed in the Henry White Trophy Tournament of Champions in Edmonton earlier this year, and flew through playoffs with some difficulty.
“These kids understand what it takes to work hard, and that’s my job as a coach. I want these kids to learn that if they don’t work hard in hockey and life, they’re not going to get anything at the end of it. Their efforts spoke how they wanted it,” Hebert explained.
