Provincial opportunity comes knocking this week in Okotoks.
And for the Okotoks Oilers, the Hockey Alberta U17 AAA Provincial Championships from April 3-6 at the Viking Rentals Centre is set to be a five-team competition they won’t soon forget.
“It’s exciting, this is going to be a lifelong memory for these kids,” said Okotoks head coach Ken Plaquin. “If we work hard and we’re as prepared as I think we are, it could be a fantastic opportunity to win something that you only get once in your life.
“I was lucky enough to do a couple of things like this when I was a kid and I still remember it, that’s what I hope for them.”
Plaquin described his team’s game plan as one built around low goals against and a dangerous offence that’s fun to watch.
“If we’re on our game there, won’t be much room for the other team to do what they want to do,” the coach added. “And we should have a lot of opportunities, and our goaltending has been fantastic this year.”
The tandem of Jaxon Hoye and Nixin Brown are among the league leaders in a number of categories with .929 and .919 save percentages, respectively, and each with a shutout.
“This is special,” said Hoye. “Getting the option to host provincials is great.”
“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity,” added Oilers forward Kesler Morrow, who finished 10th in league scoring with 39 points. “Well, I also got the opportunity in U15 AAA to host provincials (in 2023) and that was surreal and to get to do that again will be the best time of my life.”
The field includes two of top three teams from the North in the CAC Gregg Distributors and St. Albert Flyers along with the top three South teams in the Calgary Flames, Red Deer Chiefs and Okotoks.
“Except for one team in Sherwood Park, it’s all of the teams that should be in it,” Plaquin said. “Every time we’ve played against all these teams, they’ve been one-goal games and it’s been fantastic hockey.
“I think every game is going to be good.”
Okotoks finished the season with a 21-11-2 record with a +23 goal differential, among the best goals against numbers in the 20-team league and boast the top point producer in the province in Gavin Wrathall, who tallied 51 points.
“It’s a fun group of guys, we joke around with each other all of the time,” Hoye said. “And we keep each other accountable.”
In the playoffs, a format which sees the top four teams and the host squad earn entry to provincials, Okotoks and Red Deer went to a three-game series with the Chiefs taking the nailbiter over three games.
“We’ve seen them a lot lately,” Morrow said. “We did beat them once and we want to prove that we can beat them at a high level.”
The opening ceremonies for the tournament will kick-off at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 3 ahead of the Oilers’ opening contest versus Red Deer.
“If you have a bad shift or a bad period, you’ve got to keep bouncing back,” Plaquin said. “They don’t have the luxury of playing one or two more games to get yourself back into it.
“It’s one shift at a time.”
Click here for the full tournament schedule.
