NEWS RELEASE
NORTH CENTRAL PREDATORS AAA HOCKEY
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The McLean & Dickey Insurance major bantam Predators travelled to Guelph last weekend in their hunt for an Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) championship.
The Preds were healthy and hungry to be champions and did everything in their power to accomplish a goal that had been set out at the beginning of the regular season. Although they didn't ultimately reach this goal, they still came home with an OMHA bronze medal!
In the tournament-opening game, the Preds facing their fellow ETA entry and rival, the Whitby Wildcats. The teams were evenly matched going into the game, so it was no surprise they played to a 2-2 draw.
Game 2 saw them face the Guelph Gryphons, the host team and defending OMHA champions. Guelph came out quick and jumped out to a 2-0 lead and held that for most of the game. The Preds never gave up and came storming back in the third period rallying to an impressive 4-2 win.
In Game 3, the Preds faced the Hamilton Bulldogs. The Bulldogs played an in-your-face game and were very physical; the Preds held on for a 3-3 tie. With a 1-0-2 record to this point, the Preds still had a chance to make an appearance in the gold medal game with a victory over the Halton Hurricanes in their final game of the round robin. This game was another physical game with great chances for both teams. The Preds pushed and pushed and had the goalie pulled but could not break the tie. The game ended 2-2 and that meant the Preds did not qualify for the gold-medal game.
In order to leave the tournament with some hardware, the Preds had to face the Hamilton Bulldogs in the bronze medal game on Sunday. The game was again physical between two very evenly matched squads. The teams were so evenly matched, in fact, the game was tied 2-2 and went to triple overtime before it was settled. The Preds won the game 3-2 to bring home the OMHA bronze medal.
The OMHA championship weekend can be considered a success and the Preds continued their impressive unbeaten streak in the playoffs. The Rama-based squad finished the ETA playoffs with a 6-0-1 record followed by a 2-0-2 record at the OMHA championship.
The Preds will now host the OHF All-Ontario AAA Bantam Championships at the Rama MASK Arena from April 2 to 6, 2018. The Preds hope they can keep the momentum going into the final week of the season.
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