Sep 29, 2016 | Scott Soulliere | 1516 views
KJR Minor Peewee AAA September in Review
"The key is not
the will to win ... everybody has that. It is the will to prepare to win
that is important". Bobby Knight
It was a very busy September for the Minor Peewee
AAA Rangers as they laid the foundation for the season ahead. This past
month featured plenty of training both on and off the ice, team-building, the
renewal of acquaintances with a local rival, and a good old-fashioned shootout.
The month kicked-off with the Marlies Friendship Tournament in Toronto. The Rangers drew into a division with the Toronto Titans, Buffalo Jr. Sabres, Markham Waxers, and Halton Hurricanes. An early morning loss on Friday to a very strong Titans team was quickly followed-up by a well-earned victory over some international competition from Buffalo. On Saturday, the young Rangers drew with Markham before falling to Halton in their finale. It was a 1-2-1 start in their first tournament and a return home for further preparations for the upcoming regular season.
Those preparations included plenty of practices in the month of September in a addition to dedicated power skating sessions. The Rangers also enjoyed a few ice times with the instructors from Progressive Hockey Development as well as the kick-off of their off-ice dryland training led by Coach Taylor. The Rangers also participated in a team-building day at ALTITUDE (McMaster University) in Hamilton full of challenges and fun. It was certainly a busy training month ahead of their early regular season games.
Over the last two weeks of the month, these Kitchener kids played their initial three games of the young season. A victory over their off-ice friends and on-ice rivals from Waterloo was sandwiched by draws against Brantford and Elgin-Middlesex. The latter of which was a good old-fashioned shoot-out which was exciting from the opening draw. The Rangers jumped out to a 1-0 lead on an early marker just 0:22 into the game. After 3 consecutive shifts with the ice tilted toward the Chief's net, the Elgin coach used his time-out just 2:03 into the game. The Chiefs righted the ship and pushed back. After plenty of end-to-end action, the Chiefs led 5-3 after just 12+ minutes of play. The teams continued to exchange quality scoring chances throughout the contest. But, late in the second period, Kitchener net-minder Devin Ingalls foiled a Chiefs penalty shot. This turned the momentum back in favour of the Rangers who continued to press. A Kitchener goal in the final moments of the game earned them a 6-6 draw in a very entertaining game.
With September in the books, it's back to work for this team with plenty of home games on the schedule for October. As a special promotion, all spectators wearing Kitchener team colours will earn free admission to all home games throughout the season. So why not catch this hard-working group in action at a Kitchener arena near you? You're welcome to an entire seat, but you'll only need the edge!