The 2002 Quick Feet boys have had a great season thus far and
were at it for one final time as they hit the Collingwood tournament. Coming off two great wins in exhibition play
against the Collingwood Blue Thunder the boys were ready to wrap up the season
on a winning note.
In the first of four round robin games Quick Feet would take on the Kawartha Stars. The Stars were a strong skating and shooting team but the Quick Feet boys brought their “A” game to this one. This game came down to the one-on-one battles and the boys demonstrated they had the heart and determination to come out on top. Even Don Cherry would be proud of this effort. Quick Feet hit the scoreboard first with three minutes remaining in the first period when Nathan Naves picked up a Graham Gateman pass from behind the net and beat the Stars goalie with a hard wrist shot to the blocker side. The Stars evened it up two minutes later with a high wrist shot from the blue line that deflected off a Quick Feet player and found the back of the net. But 30 seconds later Nathan Naves put Quick Feet ahead again this time beating the Stars goalie to the glove side with another hard wrist shot. The second period was hard played by both teams and went scoreless. The third period was played just as hard as the second with both teams trading scoring chances. The Quick Feet defensive unit of Reed Stauffer, Tatum Behan, Thomas Gangl, Owen Moyer, Hale Schoneck and Coleson Fischer played tough in our end and Caden Prues stymied the Stars pursuit of the net. Even the Quick Feet forwards played tough in our end with the relentless back checking of Brody Leblanc and an Owen Rahn superman dive saving a for sure Stars goal. With three minutes left in the third Blake Wideman scored with what I thought (yes I’m going on the record here) was the prettiest goal of the Quick Feet season when he took the puck out of the corner just under the goal line, danced around the Stars defenseman and then put the puck in the very top of the net just inside the near post. “Wow!” If there had been a water bottle on top of the net, then yes, it would not have been there after this one! That was the insurance the boys needed but they didn’t stop there when Justin Rogers broke through the neutral zone and buried a wrist shot to the glove side with one second left on the clock. The crowd went wild! Quick Feet with the 4-1 win. Great team effort and great start to the tournament.
The next opponent for Quick Feet was Xcelerate. The boys had a long rest between this game and their first game, perhaps too long? The energy levels that were there in the first game were not there in this game. The one-on-one battle wins were also non-existent in this one. Xcelerate jumped off to a quick 2-0 lead within the first three minutes of play. They added another half way through the second leaving a big hole for the boys to crawl out. Quick Feet managed to get one back in the first minute of play of the third when a Nathan Naves shot took a funny bounce and found the back of the net. However, it wasn’t enough to motivate the team as Xcelerate added two more to make the final 5-1.
Saturday was a fresh start and first up for Quick Feet were the Bluewater Sharks. Quick Feet started with a strong pace and maintained it through to the end. Half way through the first Quick Feet started things off when Jason Taylor banged home an Owen Rahn pass. Quick Feet scored their second of the game when one minute into the second period Evan Dewar forced a turnover in the neutral zone and then took the puck down the side and wristed a shot past the Sharks goalie. The one area of play that I’ve been particularly impressed with this season is the face-offs. The Quick Feet boys win more than their share of face-offs and often generate good scoring chances as a result. Quick Feet’s third goal of the game was off one of those face-offs. Luke Eurig won the draw back to Tatum Behan who was perfectly placed just above the circle where he played the puck to the middle of the ice and then buried a shot to the far post of the net. The scoring pace continued early in the third when Owen Rahn scored from his belly off the rebound of a Reed Stauffer point shot. The Sharks managed to get one of their own about a minute after that on a bad bounce off the boards behind the net. Quick Feet responded with three more goals of their own and goaltender Tanner Bromfield shut the door to hold the Sharks at one. First it was Justin Rogers going top shelf on a break-away after a nice set up in the neutral zone by Evan Dewar and Luke Eurig. Justin Rogers didn’t stop there when just 30 seconds later he buried his second on a rebound off a Tatum Behan point shot. Finally Graham Gateman finished off the scoring going five-hole on the Sharks goalie. Final score was 7-1 for Quick Feet. Great game! I actually had the opportunity to stand behind the hockey moms for the game and a whole different perspective. There was of course the splash of coffee, keeping the referees in check and the varying discussions, some of which were about the game and hand passes.
The final round robin opponent would be the Collingwood Blue Thunder. To avoid a repeat of the Friday night game, the coaching staff kept the boys to minimal activity and a diet of fruit, granola bars and water before the game. It seemed to work as the boys came out strong. At the half way point of the first period Nathan Naves made a nice pass to Blake Wideman who made no mistake on the one-timer and a 1-0 lead. Three minutes later it was Nathan Naves again who broke loose on the far side and drilled a beauty into the top corner of the net. The boys kept up the relentless pursuit of the puck in the second and two minutes in were rewarded with their third goal of the game. This time it was goaltender Caden Prues who started the play in the Quick Feet end by clearing a Blue Thunder opportunity to Owen Rahn who quickly sent Graham Gateman in on a break away where he made no mistake going upstairs on the fallen Blue Thunder goalie. Then just 23 seconds later Nathan Naves one-timed a Blake Wideman pass through the five-hole. Another couple of minutes after that Justin Rogers put one past the Blue Thunder goalie to make it 5-0. Then the fruit and water began to take its toll with a steady stream of Quick Feet players making their way back to the dressing room between plays. I’d never seen anything like it. It was actually rather comical! Boys, remember when your mom was always after you to make sure you went to the bathroom before you got dressed? Now you know why. During the bathroom breaks, the Blue Thunder managed to get one back. But Nathan Naves would later get the hat trick when he jumped all over a Blake Wideman rebound. The final score was 6-1 for Quick Feet. The between game strategy worked.
With 3 wins and 1 loss in round robin play, Quick Feet finished in 2nd place in their pool and had to wait until Sunday morning to find out whether or not they earned the wildcard spot and a berth in Sunday’s semi-final. The call came early Sunday morning and it wasn’t to be, with six points the Quick Feet boys were just short of moving on.
Great finish to the season boys! I think I speak on behalf of all the parents when I say we are very proud of the way you played. It was a pleasure to watch such a talented young team that played with heart and the determination to succeed. These are the moments that define you as great hockey players. Enjoy the summer and good luck with your hockey season next year.
Special thanks to the coaching staff, Rob LeBlanc, Jeff Rahn and Jim MacGillivray on a job well done! And finally thanks to Shelley Leblanc and Teena Rahn for keeping us all organized!
Until next year,
Chris Prues