Monday, January 21, 2008

Winning isn't everything, but!!!

What a weekend we just went through. I realize as first time travel hockey parents that this weekend was NOTHING compared to many more we will experience. Just the same it was intense. The weekend actually started on Thursday evening as our Mite 3 Mustangs took the ice at the Raymond A Robinson Memorial Tournament in Cleveland Heights. The Tournament was really put on well. Tickets for pop after each game for the kids, dog tags with the tournament logo on the front, flowers for the hockey moms to wear. Prior to the tournament we had a schedule complete with locker rooms in our hands. It was great.

As the boys stepped on the ice Thursday night they were geared up for an exciting time of hockey. They were set to play Euclid a team that we had come back to beat in our first tournament experience back in October when we placed second overall in the Halloween Hockey Tournament in Euclid. This same Euclid team we had also beaten fairly easily on our home ice, but then lost too in a "not so much fun to watch" game a few weeks ago. Needless to say this was the game we were not looking forward to. We knew the boys could focus, get their heads set in the game and with the great coaches we have make it through the game. The only catch...OLYMPIC SIZE ICE!

Let me just say, the ice surface was huge. The last thing I said to Z as I left the locker room was "pace yourself, this won't be the same as the rinks you are used to." Now I realize hockey players have to play in different types of rinks all the time, but when you're 7 and 8 years old, Olympic Size Rinks are just huge! Regardless, the boys took the ice and held their ground during the first period. The second period opened up with Euclid scoring 2 goals. But then we answered with a goal of our own. Our parents are an amazing group and one of our parents made a spirit gear shopping trip before the game and came prepared with pom poms and plastic horns and cow bells for the occasion. We chanted, we cheered, we hung in there with our boys. Encouraging them to dig in, play hard, and just letting them know that we were with them. Finally, in the third we did just that tieing the game with a goal by Zach. It was one of those don't let this rebound get away from you bang away at it goals that ended up on his back hand and he was able to bang in. The game ended in a 2-2 tie, and as we left the rink that night we were certain that they would be the team we would meet should we make it to the finals.

It's not about winning, it's about doing your best and having fun. It's also not about thinking that just because you have beaten a team every time you've faced them this year that you are going to win the game. Our second game was against Parma, and the boys knew it was in their grasp. They dug in and scored 7 goals, and held Parma to only 2. Zach scored 2 of the 7 with a hat trick for Wyatt and a goal for Joey and Gavin. WOW! Somehow it seemed like just maybe this could be our tournament.

Then you get to the rink on an icy cold day. Check the standings and think....what is going on! We tied Euclid 2-2 in a tough game, beat Parma 7-2 in a fairly tough game that we were able to dominate in, BUT Parma Beat Euclid 3-1?!? I literally had to ask several of the other parents of our team to go read the score board. Is that right?! It was and it sent us back to the locker room to remind the boys not to get it in their heads that they could win against the team we now faced. That's not to say that we couldn't but. The team we now faced Cleveland Skating Club, had tied Parma, and tied Euclid, and we had beaten in regular season play. From looking at the standings though you soon realize anything is possible.

And anything was possible. We played an intense, edge of your seat game with CSC. Blake our goalie was incredible. He had some stops that were unbelievable. Our parents cheered, their parents cheered. We encouraged our boys (and possibly girls, not sure) and lived each moment of the game as though it was never going to finish. We hit the post again and again. Z had amazing breakaway only to have the puck slide off his stick right before he went to shoot. In the end we scored 1 goal to take us past them and into the championship game against....PARMA!

The team headed off to dinner at the Mongolian BBQ, and had a good chance to try to unwind from the game. The problem with 7 and 8 year olds, as they get tired they get hyper. They were so wound up many of us wondered if they would wind down to much before game time. We headed back through the frigid air to the rink. The boys put their sweaty, stinky gear back on. They wore one sock of each color at the suggestion of their coach and got ready to play. I'm not sure what Coach Matt said to them before the game, but whatever it was he was able to get them to focus on the task at hand. (wish he could of given us a pep talk as we were all nervous wrecks before the game ever started). Once again we learned that you can't judge one game by another one. The game was close, and hard. We spent the majority of the time, in their end. Their defense was strong and kept shutting us down. We hit posts, we had an awesome shot that the goalie really should have been applauded by us for as he snatched it out of the air.

In the end, our hat trick boy who had missed the CSC game as he was at his brothers game out of state, came back in the nick of time to lead us to a 2-0 victory. We jumped to our feet cheering on the boys that had worked so hard together. A team that has learned so much this year from 3 great coaches. A team that knows now that winning isn't everything but it sure feels GREAT!

Way to go Mustangs! The Queen song "We are the Champions" is yours to enjoy! 2 Tourny's so far, and we've walked away with a First and Second place finish. Not sure what is in store for us as we head to our next tournament next month in Niagara Falls, New York. The only thing we do know is that we face.....PARMA in our first game there, and I'm sure it will be an edge of your seat kind of game.

1 comment:

Ray Bilyk said...

Congratulations to Zach and the entire family!