A strong first and last game sandwiched a less-than-stellar game two for the Yorkton Midget Manos Terriers in their home tournament this past weekend at the Yorkton Kinsmen Arena, resulting in a 2-1 record and the 'C' side championship.
In game one the host Terriers took on a strong Cupar Canucks team and prevailed 4-1, before dropping a 5-1 decision to eventual tournament champion Foxwarren Falcons in their second game of the tournament. The 5-1 defeat sent the Terriers over to the 'C' side finals where they met the Ste. Rose Royals.
A solid 60 minute effort by the entire team saw the Manos Terriers, led by goaltender Brett Kitchen, hammer Ste. Rose 8-0 in a game that was much closer than the score would indicate. "Anytime they had pressure on us, Kitchen (goaltender Brett Kitchen) would come up with a big save and spark us," said Midget Manos Terriers head coach Grant Ottenbreit after the 'C' side final. "He made a couple big saves for us when Ste. Rose was putting on pressure to help kill their momentum while firing us up at the same time."
Ottenbreit also gave credit to his teams' ability to control their emotions, especially late in the game when Ste. Rose tried to stir up some trouble. "Some of their guys were getting a little dirty late in the game," mentioned the Manos Terriers bench boss. "I think it was just because of frustration though.
"I don't think they're a bad team or a bad bunch of kids, they just got a little frustrated and with an 8-0 score anyone would. No regrets and no hard feelings against them but it was good to see our guys keep their emotions in check and not respond."
Responding to the cheap shots would have done nothing but hurt the Manos Terriers anyhow, especially with playoffs and provincials getting ever closer. "We just told our kids that we have provincials and playoffs coming up so we don't want kids getting hurt or suspended for that," said Ottenbreit.
"Plus, they (Ste. Rose) have got a really big team so it wouldn't be smart to retaliate anyway," chuckled the 'C' side champion coach.
Next action
The Yorkton Midget Manos Terriers will be tonight as they travel to Weyburn for Provincials in the first game of a two game total point series. The second game of the two game series will be played at the Farrell Agencies Arena on Wednesday, February 12 at 8:00p.m.
