Mar 08, 2015 | rmartin | 1097 views
South Bruce Bantams are heading back to the OMHA finals
The South Bruce Bantams are heading back to the OMHA Bantam C finals for a second consecutive year after a 3 games to 1 series win over the Stayner Cyclones.
Broken, battered and bruised, the South Bruce gang have suffered a lot of injuries this year including four players with broken bones (fibula, collarbone and 2 wrists) and a player carried off the ice in Stayner on an ambulance stretcher, but they continue to find a way to get the job done.
Give credit to Stayner for a well played series. Their players, coaches, parents and fans are a class act and it was an enjoyable series to watch from both sides of the rink. Aside from game 3, all of the games were nail biters and the series could have went either way.
The South Bruce lads have had a tough time regaining their form that earned them an International Silver Stick Championship back in January, but they have persevered through the playoffs. Trailing 2-1 with 4 minutes left in the 3rd period of game 4, South Bruce would go on the power play. Up until that point, the PP was a dismal 1 for 8 in the series, so the coaching staff called a timeout to give the boys some positive reinforcement. With 2:44 left in regulation, a deflected point shot would find the back of the net and South Bruce would square things up at 2 apiece and gain some momentum. Late in the third, South Bruce would apply more pressure and with 11 sec remaining, a streaking SB winger would receive a good, clean hip check in to the boards and need ambulance attention to get off of the ice. Happy to say that nothing was broke this time around and hopefully well enough to return to action in the finals.
The extra frame was difficult for the local lads as they were obviously concerned about their fallen teammate and had a tough time focusing on playing hockey. Stayner would generate a couple of close offensive calls, while South Bruce would scramble to get their offense going. Overtime looked like it was going to be a stalemate, until South Bruce would jump on a loose puck inside the Cyclones blue line and throw the puck at the surprised Stayner goalie only to find the back of the net with 3 seconds remaining.
Call it luck, call it fate, call it whatever you want. The end result was a series victory and win number 40 on the season for the South Bruce Bantams. Some say you have to be lucky to be good while others say you have to be good to be lucky. Either way, the boys know that the harder you work, the luckier you get.
South Bruce now advances on to the OMHA finals against the high-powered offensive Lucan Irish which is a rematch of last year's semi's. The Irish have cruised through the playoffs with 9 straight victories over East Lambton, Lambton Shores and Port Dover while South Bruce has played 4 rounds to date defeating Wingham, Seaforth, Minto and Stayner.
The trip to the OMHA finals is a difficult task for any team or player, but this contingent of Teeswater and Mildmay players are as diverse as they come. Five players have never been, seven players have won one OMHA Championship while one player has won the elusive red hat twice. Add to that, three players have made the trek to the finals 5 out of the last 6 years winning 3 OMHA titles in Atom, Pee Wee and Bantam and aiming for a repeat to make it four.
All of that can be set aside as the boys know they will face their toughest opponent in the next couple of weeks when they dance with the Irish.
Go South Bruce Go!