NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat U16AA Hound goaltender Parker McLaughlin and defenceman Ty Hanson block the net in the first period of a 5-0 win over the Red Deer TBS on Saturday. The Hounds beat Red Deer 9-0 in a rematch Sunday morning to earn their spot in the U16AA league final series against the Airdrie-Bow Valley Havoc.
The Medicine Hat Hounds U16AA hockey team dominated on home ice this weekend to clinch the South Central Alberta Hockey League South Division title – going 4-0-1 and capping the weekend with a 9-0 win over Red Deer TBS in Sunday’s final.
After opening the playoff tournament with a 4-4 tie to the Okotoks Oilers on Thursday, the Hounds topped the West Central Panthers 3-2 and the Lethbridge Hurricanes 10-0 on Friday, before defeating Red Deer 5-0 Saturday and 9-0 Sunday.
Grady Ford and Ty Wasyluk both had two goals and an assist in the final, while Auston Murphy had a goal and two helpers, Easton Kurpjuweit and Nolen Sutherland added one of each, and Logan Weiss and Theron Bensler rounded out the scoring. Parker McLaughlin stopped 25 shots in the victory.
Owen Gustafson led Saturday’s offence with two goals, while Colby Motz and Ford both added a goal and an assist, and Ty Hanson scored once. McLaughlin made another 50 saves for the shutout.
Sutherland had two goals and an assist in Friday’s win over Lethbridge, while Bensler and Motz had a goal and two assists, Hudson Jarvis and Ford had one of each, Wasyluk scored twice. Jaxon Scrivener and Grady Huden capped off the scoring, while Adam Ranger collected the win with a 24-save outing.
Bensler scored twice to help seal the win against West Central, while Kingston Chisholm added another and McLaughlin stopped 38 shots.
U18AA boys
The Medicine Hat Hounds U18AA team rallied to a SCAHL South Division championship over the weekend, stringing together a 5-0 run through this weekend’s playoff tournament, including a 3-1 victory over the Wheatland Chiefs in Sunday’s final.
Hayden King led the scoring for Medicine Hat in the final with two goals and an assist, while Jacob Hazzard rounded out the scoring and Silas Currie stopped 31 shots in the crease.
The Hounds opened the weekend with a 4-2 win over the Taber Golden Suns on Thursday, then beat the Foothills Bisons 2-1 and the Okotoks Oilers 3-2 on Friday before securing a spot in the final with a 4-3 win over the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Saturday.
King had four assists in the win over Lethbridge, while Hazzard had a hat trick and Connor Palmer added a goal and an assist. Currie stopped 54 shots in the narrow win.
Hazzard had a goal and an assist against the Oilers, while Palmer and Kaden Pahl added individual tallies. Currie stopped 40 in net.
Palmer and Braxton Spencer scored in Saturday’s win over the Bisons, while Currie stopped 30 between the pipes.
Gavin Smith led Thursday’s scoring with a goal and two assists, while King had two goals, Hazzard had one of each and Currie logged 40 saves.
U18AA girls
The Southern Express had their playoff hopes dashed over the weekend after being swept in back-to-back game by the Red Deer Chiefs – 5-1 Friday and 7-0 Saturday.
Brook Many Horses scored the lone Express goal Friday, while Madilyn Juneau stopped 43 shots in goal.
Nelson Raine stopped 34 shots in Saturday’s shutout loss.
Red Deer advances to face the Calgary Fire White in the next round
U17AAA boys
South East Athletic Club’s U17AAA Tigers dropped a pair to close out the Alberta Elite Hockey League’s regular season this weekend, 7-2 and 4-1 to the Red Deer Chiefs.
Treyson Girletz scored both of SEAC’s goals in the 7-2 loss, while Kayne Wright stopped 21 shots before giving way to Kolter Gans, who turned away seven in the third period.
Gans added 21 saves in the 4-1 loss, while Will Bell potted the only goal for SEAC.
The Tigers have clinched the final playoff berth in the AEHL South Conference with an 11-18-2-3 record.
U15AAA boys
SEAC’s U15AAA Tigers opened their playoff weekend with a 4-2 win over the Foothills Bisons on Thursay before dropping three straight – 4-2 to the Lethbridge Hurricanes, 5-1 to the Wheatland Warriors on Friday and then another 3-1 to the Warriors on Saturday.
Rhyder Arnold scored twice in Thursday’s win, while Lucas Dulle and Ethan Grad capped off the scoring and Kayden Van Ham stopped 38 shots in goal.
Logan Neuls and Liam Green scored for SEAC against the Hurricanes, while Van Ham took the loss on a 37-save outing.
Karter Kurpjuweit scored the lone goal against Wheatland Friday, while Mac Harvey-Zenk stepped between the pipes and stopped 45.
Dulle scored Saturday’s lone goal and Van Ham stopped 54 shots in the loss.
U13AA boys
The Medicine Hat Hounds U13AA squad fell just short of the SCAHL’s South title with a 2-1 loss to the Lethbridge Hurricanes in Sunday’s final game.
After falling 2-1 to the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Thursday, the Hounds rebounded with three straight wins on Friday and Saturday – 8-1 over the Okotoks Oilers, 12-2 over the Foothills Bisons, and 5-3 over the Wheatland Braves – before falling to the Hurricanes by the same score in the final.
Carter Gilchrist scored Medicine Hat’s lone goal Sunday, while Paxton Smigelski stopped 18 shots in the loss.
Everett Ward and Lucas Fisher both had two goals in Saturday’s win over Wheatland, while Beckham Girletz had a goal and an assist. Smigelski stopped 27 shots.
Gilchrist and Girlets both had a goal and three assists in Friday’s win over the Bisons, while Ward had two goals and an assist, Chase Droeske potted a pair, and Mason Pollard, Lucas Fisher and George Maser all had a goal and two assists. Gage Bowal, Trevin Ibach and Carter Jarvis rounded out the lopsided scoring, and Marshall Turner stopped 16 shots in goal.
Ward had a hat trick in Friday’s win over Okotoks, while Evander Leupold and Droeske each had a goal and two assists. Bowal, Jarvis and Gibson Studer rounded out the scoring.
Smigelski stopped 26 shots in Thursday’s opening loss to Lethbridge, while Pollard potted the lone goal.
