The Mount Forest Pee Wee Local League team competed in the annual Minto tournament on Saturday, Jan. 16, and made it all the way to the championship game before being stopped in an overtime heartbreaker.
For game one, the Rams met Twin Centers and dominated the first period with many scoring opportunities. It wasn't until the second period that Davis Schenk lit one up for the Rams after Jake Zeinstra's initial shot.
Jake Kroes fired one in from the blueline, and Jake Mulder was there to gobble up the rebound. The Rams suffered a penalty in the second, but fought it off well with great defence by Kyle Dallaire, Jarod Bowden, Kurtis Synders and Kroes.
In the third period, Schenk took the puck all the way down the ice and lifted a wrist shot to the top shelf to give the Rams a 3-0 lead. Daniel Conrad scored the final goal of the game, after digging hard to bring the puck out from behind the net. Colton Thompson and Bretton Peter shared goaltending and came out with a shutout to start the day.
The boys had a couple hours off until game two, where they met the host Minto Ice Dogs and surprised them with a wild 7-0 shutout. Less than two minutes in, Zach Droog scored the goal that started the Rams rolling, as his shot from the corner hit a defenceman's skate and went in.
Jesse Robinson sent a beautiful wrist shot in for a near miss, followed by Synders with a shot from the blueline. The goalie sent out the rebound, and Aiden Felsbourg hammered it in.
Kroes banged a shot from the blueline and Dillan Dart shot at the rebound, but Joel Webers with a full body dive slid it into the net. A well timed line change saw Daniel Conrad fly out of the box, into the Ice Dogs end, and score through the five-hole.
With 45 seconds left in the second, Conrad showed some fancy stickwork and potted his second goal of the game after a great deke on the goalie. Thompson took over between the pipes for Peter in the third period, and was equally as flawless with shutout hockey.
Keeping the puck in, Zeinstra was able to score with a wrist shot to the top corner. With only seconds left to play, Justin Caughill made a great pass out front to Mulder, who found Schenk for the 7-0 clincher.
The win sent Mount Forest to the championship game, and a tangle with the Thorton Tigers. Fatigue had certainly set in, as the boys weren't as organized in their play and it took some work to get things going. Zeinstra took an odd angle shot, and gladly took the point as the puck went in the net for the 1-0 goal.
Thompson fell under a firing squad of shots and, after many saves and stoning a breakaway, was beaten for the opening tally. In period two the Tigers struck again, but in the final minute of the period Kroes fired one home from the blueline to tie it 2-2.
With 18 seconds left to play, Webers scored a go-ahead goal on an assist from Robinson, but it was waved off. After a flood between the second and third the Rams came out refreshed and ready to play. Peter made a great save on a breakout right at the start of the period and another as he nabbed the puck out the air.
Unable to break the tie in the third, the teams headed to overtime and 4-on-4 play. A costly Rams penalty made it 4-on-3, when a Tiger forward entered the crease and hit Peter's skates from under him. It sent the goalie falling backward just as another Tiger lifted the puck in.
The coaches and fans were in disbelief, but the goal stood and the Tigers carried home the gold. It was a devastating loss for the boys and a tough way to lose, but even with the loss the Rams had a great day, played hard and made everyone very proud.