The AAA Battlefords Sharks season has come to an end after a series sweep against the top team in the Saskatoon Stars.
This year was a tough campaign for the ladies in white and teal. Head Coach Ashley Rafuse reflects on her expectations coming into this season.
“We knew it was going to be tough,” Rafuse says, “We had lost our top player [Jetta Derenoski] going back to the Notre Dame Junior team, and had been notified by a Grade 12 veteran that she would not be returning as we had expected. We then had approximately seven to 10 girls that we had offered spots to, turn them down to either play with Saskatoon, Prince Albert or for various other reasons.”
The scoring depth was not where it should've been when measured up to other teams in the league, and a young Sharks team had to work hard to compete. Ten rookies took to the ice each and every game for the Battlefords.
“It wasn’t so much that our team was young in age, but more so that we lacked experience, which is where we saw the biggest struggles,” Rafuse said. “When you don’t have anyone on your team that has played more than one year in the league it is very tough to create a winning atmosphere. Everyone is trying to come together and find their role.”
Rafuse is still optimistic about the future with a talented group of girls coming back.
“Although we did struggle in the win column, there are some very exciting girls to look forward to next year coming back. Some of our rookies ended up being our top players at times and it was very encouraging to see that happen.”
Jordan Kulbida is one of those athletes. The first year player for the Sharks had an outstanding campaign in her first AAA season, amassing five goals and seven assists, leading the team in points.
“Although Jordan will only be around for one more year, she was certainly someone that the team could depend on and is a girl that brings a lot of strength, skill and speed to the program. Jordan has an incredible shot and can skate like the wind. It would be nice to see her alongside girls of similar style to her in the upcoming season to see what she can really do,” Rafuse said.
Morgan Lamontagne was another first year player that had a good year, scoring three goals, one of them on the powerplay, while garnering six assists.
Regardless of the difficult season, one that saw the girls trying to overcome many obstacles, Rafuse was amazed with how her team pushed forward, and talks about some of the highlights from this past season.
“When they beat Melville after an extended losing streak, they were able to look past the losses and come in with a winning mentality, which essentially led to a victory,” She said, “The girls were also very proud of themselves when they took the second place team at the time, the Prince Albert Bears, into overtime at home. Unfortunately, they were unable to sneak out the win, but we still left the rink feeling proud. Finally, I would say the season opening in Portage and Notre Dame, winning five out of the six games we played, we were definitely on a high at that point.”
Other standout memories from this year are from certain players being recognized for their talents, committing to play at the next level. Goaltenders Shelby Tornato, Chloe Marshall and defenceman Landry Derdall will all move forward to play college hockey. Tornato will be headed to Minot State University, Marshall to Northland College, and most recently, Derdall to Red Deer.
The focus now shifts to the offseason, and Rafuse comments on some of the hardships she faces when looking to recruit players to skate for the Battlefords.
“It is very difficult at this point to dig ourselves out of the hole we have found ourselves in the past eight or so years. How do you convince girls to give the last place team a chance?” Rafuse asks. “I am confident in our coaching staff and what we are doing as a program, we just need some of the top recruits to give us a fighting chance. It is tough when competing with three of the top teams in the league for players (Saskatoon, Prince Albert and Swift Current).”
For a coach who has done nothing but try and better the Sharks ever since she took over, Rafuse has some compelling ideas she would like to see come to fruition in the Battlefords.
“I am hoping that some day we can set up a AA Midget or Bantam female program here in the Battlefords. I feel that we need dedicated individuals developing these young female athletes at a higher AA calibre, so that we are able to transfer more girls from the Battlefords and surrounding small towns into the AAA Midget league.”
The North Stars and the AAA Stars have had a ton of success while using their feeder systems, be it the AA Barons for the Stars or the triple-A team for the North Stars.
The Sharks look to develop their team for next season while building on a 3-23-0-2 record.
