NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat U13AA Hounds forward Hudson Gilchrist leans into a shot in the first period of a 13-2 win Sunday at the Kinplex over the Wheatland Braves.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
The Medicine Hat U13AA Hounds enter playoffs off a near-perfect regular season.
The Hounds finished first in their Alberta Elite Hockey League with a 32-2 record, finishing one point ahead of the Strathcona Warriors after a 13-2 win Sunday at the Kinplex over the Wheatland Braves.
They finished the season with a 26-game win streak, with their lone losses coming in October and November, both at the hands of the Bow Valley Timberwolves.
It’s a season that saw them finish first in goals for (322), finishing each game with an average score of 9-3. Head coach Tanner Barton says they showed strong competitiveness early in the season and continued to stay committed throughout the year.
“The boys have stayed committed to playing hockey the right way and the way that helps their development and helps us win hockey games,” Barton said. “No matter what the score is, because when you get to a tough game, if you haven’t built up those good habits when you get to those games, then it shows.”
They were led offensively in the season by Beckam Sprunger who amassed 44 goals and 109 points in 34 games. Barton says he was surprised how mature the group was early in the season but is no longer, with pride taking over as he sees how they act on and off the ice.
“Something small like keeping the back of the bus clean,” Barton said. “They respect the facilities, our dressing rooms are always clean, they respect their teammates and it’s the maturity of the group. It’s led, obviously by a few guys, but everybody has to do it.”
The Hounds’ 32-2 season is the best season at that age level since the 2017-18 season when those Hounds went 31-0-2 in the regular season, winning the then SCAHL league before capturing a provincial championship.
It’s a storyline Barton and his team know about and want to follow, in due time. The work for that path begins Thursday as they get set to host the South regional playoffs at the Hockey Hounds arena.
Medicine Hat will face the East Kootenay Avalanche on Thursday (4:30 p.m.) the Foothills Bisons (11:30 a.m.) and Okotoks Oilers (7 p.m.) on Friday before facing Wheatland on Saturday (3 p.m.).
Wins through those games and semifinals and the finals await Sunday with a spot in the conference finals the next weekend on the line. Barton says it’s all part of a four-part process they’ve been navigating.
“The first part was finishing the regular season at the top of the province and then the second part is winning this self division regional,” Barton said. “The third part is winning our conference final and then, should we be fortunate enough to advance to provincials winning there.
“It’s just been really special and I hope we can pull it off, because it’ll be especially being at home, it’ll be a core memory for these boys that they’ll remember for the rest of their lives. Then 20 years from now, when they’re sharing the love of the game with their kids, they’ll be able to point to that banner in the Kinplex and and talk about the special year that they had.”
