The 2015/16 season is only half over, however the Yorkton Xerox Terriers have already claimed their second title of the campaign besting 15 other Western Canadian bantam ‘AAA’ and ‘AA’ teams at the 2015 Prince Albert Bantam ‘AAA’ Showcase this past weekend.
The Xerox Terriers had no trouble in the round-robin, dismantling the Camrose Red Wings 4-0, West Central Wheat Kings 5-0 and Winnipeg Hawks 8-1 to finish atop Pool ‘A’ with a perfect 3-0 record.
Yorkton got a bit of a scare in the quarterfinals however, as they met up with their fellow SBAAHL powerhouse Humboldt Broncos.
A sluggish start allowed the Broncos to grab an early lead; a lead they maintained throughout the first two periods to take a 4-3 advantage into the second intermission.
But a strong third period saw the Terriers score three unanswered goals to win 6-4. “It was just one of those games where the boys kind of just got on track and the puck started going in the net,” offered Xerox Terrier head coach Dan Cross. “We put a big push on in the third period and really dominated that period which was nice and came away with the win.”
The 6-4 victory over Humboldt propelled the Xerox Terriers to the semi-finals where they took on the upstart Calgary Royals. The Royals, looking to prove they weren’t a pushover for the tournament favourites, battled Yorkton all game long but an Ethan Evanovich goal in the third period broke a 3-3 tie and proved to be the game winner as the Xerox Terriers advanced to the tournament final despite a game in which coach Cross said his team didn’t play to their potential in. “I think that we were a little bit physically and emotionally drained after playing Humboldt,” said Cross. “We had a big layoff that day, eight hours, and then we got back in the rink and just couldn’t find our legs.
“We really struggled and honestly if it wasn’t for Maier (Nolan Maier, goaltender) we wouldn’t have gotten to the final.”
In the final the Xerox Terriers took on another pre-tournament favourite, the also undefeated Calgary Northstar Sabres who had ran roughshod over their opponents, outscoring their opposition 39-6 over five games.
The Northstar Sabres came out firing in the first half of the opening period, peppering Maier with shots; however the Yorkton net minder stood tall, repelling each and every Calgary attack before the Terriers finals got their legs going. “Maier kept us in the game for the first 10 minutes in the first period,” suggested Cross, continuing, “Then the guys kind of got their bearings, made some adjustments and then it was pretty even all the way through.”
A pair of second period Zach McIntyre goals gave the Terriers a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes and an empty net goal late in the third frame, also by McIntyre to cap off the hat-trick, wrapped up a perfect 6-0 tournament for the Yorkton club.
Following the tournament Yorkton goaltender Nolan Maier and forward Zach McIntyre were named first team tournament all-stars; an honour that their coach felt was very well-deserved. “Sometimes the guys don’t get acknowledged for what they do and they should,” mentioned the Xerox Terrier head coach. “In Regina Maier got a second team all-star and that was it and it was nice to see that McIntyre got some recognition here because he gets a lot of big goals for us.
“It was good to see Maier named as an all-star as well because he’s been one of the best players in the province all season.”
Coach Cross then went on to say that it was nice to see his team play to their potential against several teams that play regularly in ‘AAA’ leagues. “It was a big tournament and a good test for us. It’s nice to play those Calgary teams and we played a few Manitoba teams and it’s nice to see that we can compete with those guys,” said Cross. “It was a good test for us this weekend and the kids responded well to the challenge with a solid team effort.”
Up next
The Yorkton Xerox Terriers will now return to league play, taking on the Regina Aces on Friday at the Kinsmen Arena (7:30p.m.) before hosting the West Central Wheat Kings the following day at the Farrell Agencies Arena for a 4:30p.m. start.
