SAHA takes 3-0 record into Circle K Classic quarter-finals
By JAMES TUBB on December 30, 2022.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
It didn’t come in the prettiest fashion but the South Alberta Hockey Academy finished their Circle K Classic round robin with a 3-0 record. SAHA scored four unanswered goals in the third period and scored in overtime to beat the St. Louis Blues 8-7 in the extra frame. The Blues had a run of four straight goals in the second period to carry a 6-3 lead into the third before SAHA’s comeback. Head coach Brayden Desjardins says the mid-tournament adversity is a good test but also serves as a lesson. “We did this last year where we gave up a goal late against the Hawks, they tied it up with six seconds left and there’s no ties in this league anymore,” Desjardins said. “Our guys showed an amazing amount of resiliency, it’d be easy to get down on each other as we’re down 6-3 after the second and we’re playing with a pretty short bench. For them to recover like that and stay together it’s not surprising because they’ve been this way the whole year, we’ve come back a lot in games and it’s just a testament to the team. They’re a special group and it’s nice for the other people to be able to see what me and Torrin (White) and Gavin (Broadhead) have seen all year.” SAHA played a man short against the Blues and had forward Nick McLennan leave the game halfway through after receiving a high hit. Desjardins says seeing how players stepped up into new roles is a testament to their depth and resiliency. “We’ve got a lot of guys here that are really good hockey players and to be able to insert them into roles they’re maybe not super familiar with, all of our guys can execute,” Desjardins said. “It’s nice to see those guys getting a few more minutes they normally don’t get because of some of the guys that are out. It’s really nice that we can have a complete team like we do.” Desjardins was coy about what he said to his team after the second to inspire the third-period comeback but says it was all on the players. “I just told them, whatever happens here we’re going to leave this game a family, and they obviously did that,” Desjardins said. “There was definitely no Willie Desjardins-inspired speech or anything, it was a pretty calm message and we’ve been in those situations before. It’s good to see the guys turn around, and obviously it’s not going to happen if we fall behind like that all the time. But it’s a really, really big testament to who these kids are as people and how resilient they are as a group.” SAHA heads into the Division A quarter-finals as one of the top four teams in the 32-team invitational tournament. They’re first elimination game is tonight at 6:15 p.m against Yale Hockey Academy. Desjardins says the approach come elimination time is no different than their first three games. “Don’t look too far in front of us, we’ll just control what we can control and understand there’s going to be some ups and downs in games and we’re just going to stay even keeled and play our game and we should be fine,” Desjardins said. “It’s exciting to get to the medal round, this is where we wanted to be so it’s exciting to get here.” Coaching in a tournament like the Circle K Classic, which could potentially be six games in six days if SAHA advances to a second straight championship game, provides a different challenge than coaching on a spread out schedule. Desjardins says it’s good for the players to experience a “mini world juniors.” “There’s a lot of hype around here, these games are pretty full with people, it’s a really cool experience for these guys,” Desjardins said. “To watch these guys flourish, and in high pressure environments, is unbelievable. “It’s a super cool tournament and we’re happy to be where we are.” Editors note: An earlier version of the story stated SAHA plays at 6:45 p.m. Their game is at 6:15 p.m. An earlier version of the story also misspelled Gavin Broadhead’s name. 15-14
