Two very talented teams, the Warman Wildcats and the Meadow Lake Broncos, squared off during Round One of the Senior ‘A’ Provincial Championships in front of a packed house at the Beardy’s Memorial Arena on Sunday, February 13.
But only one team, the Broncos, will be moving on to Round Two after sweeping the series in two straight games.
Meadow Lake had won game one 4-3, so the Wildcats needed a win to force a game three.
The Wildcats didn’t get off to the fast start they wanted as they had some early penalty troubles. Sterling Bear received a high-sticking penalty in the first minute.
Warman goalie Adam Evanoff, however, continued his solid play, shutting down all efforts to score.
As Bear was stepping out of the penalty box he knocked down a Meadow Lake skater, which promptly earned him another two minutes in the sin bin.
The Wildcats also killed that penalty and were able to begin their quest to get back in the series.
Both goalies showed they were there to play. Evanoff stoned a Meadow Lake two-on-one scoring opportunity. At the other end Broncos’ goalie Bryan Bridges made an acrobatic stop in what looked like a sure goal.
The Wildcats were able to open the scoring when some beautiful passing was rewarded as Sterling Bear was able to tap in the puck past Bridges.
Warman looked to increase their lead when Meadow Lake’s Zane Morin drew a tripping penalty.
Some aggressive penalty killing resulted in a neutral zone turnover and another two-on-one opportunity.
This time the Broncos cashed in when forward Dwight King feathered a beautiful pass to Shane Hounsel, who blasted puck into the net just as Evanoff attempted to move across to make the save.
Period one ended knotted at 1-1 with shots on goal being 16-16. The action was fast-paced with strong goaltending on both teams.
Meadow Lake came out flying to begin period two. They kept the pressure on, forcing Warman to ice the puck and regroup.
Warman also committed numerous neutral zone turnovers, serving up some good scoring opportunities on a silver platter to the Broncos. The visitors weren’t able to capitalize on those gifts, however, as Evanoff held strong in defending the net.
That is, until Meadow Lake finally broke through when Jared Iron took a long pass from Dwight King, moved in alone and bent the twine to give the visitors a 2-1 lead.
Warman tied it up in the final minute of period two as Sterling Bear fired a laser from the slot, beating Bridges cleanly.
For most of period three the teams battled back and forth, unable to break the tie.
Warman needed to score to keep the series alive. In a game of millimetres they came very, very close as Lucas Seesequasis fired from the top of the face off circle. The puck, however, grazed the top of the crossbar and bounced off the end boards. Meadow Lake gained control of the puck and moved into Warman’s end. Trevor Bailey scored the game winner when he blasted a one-timer into the net on a pass from (who else?) Dwight King.
The Broncos held off the Wildcats in the remaining minutes to win the game 3-2 and take the series. The Broncos now take on the winner of the series between Biggar and Lanigan.
With their provincial quest over Warman will be focusing their energy on the upcoming Twin Rivers Hockey League playoffs when they take on the Waldheim Warriors in quarter-final action. Games are scheduled to take place in Waldheim on February 15, 18 and 19.