A Wrap On Nationals

This past week has really been a sad one... The hockey season has finally ended. The Utah Jr. Grizzlies Tier II team had an incredible season. We ended up going 26-12-4, which is a pretty good record. This was a crazy season, and I couldn't have been happier making it to the quarter finals in the National Championships. The entire National tournament was nerve-racking, yet a ton of fun. My team went 3-1, winning our pool and going on farther than most of the other teams. For this post, I'm going to revisit each game and try to be suspenseful as I can (so I can show what it actually felt like). This post is really tough for me, and even though you can't see it through writing, I'm crying on the inside....

Game One: Mission Red (Arizona)

This game wasn't too hard from the start, but later in the game it got stressful. Going into the game, the whole team was so nervous I'm surprised nobody puked before the game started. Two minutes into the game, one of my line-mates roofs a backhand top cheddar. Damn, that goal was unreal;  it put us up against Mission Red 1-0. Guess what happened two minutes after that? I scored! I was in the high slot, and Jake Jensen passed me the puck, and all I had to do was one-time it and BOOM, I 'niped near side (glove side low). Dang it was 2-0 within four minutes of the game! We were all pumped, and we kept it up till the third period. It was 5-2 at that point, and we were confident that we would win. This was a mistake, and we played very weak in the third. With two minutes left, it was 5-4, and they had the energy to put another one in to tie us. Luckily we held them, and we won 5-4. First game done! We were hyped, yet we knew we needed to pick it up next game.

Game Two: Nashville Jr. Predators

This game was veryyyy challenging, and it was the second most challenging game of the tournament. This team was REALLY good. Our two teams were almost identical and the game went back and forth for the whole three periods. Each period more and more butterflies crowded into my stomach, and I loved it, but also abhorred it. It was 2-1 in the third, and things were beginning to get sketchy. Nashville was getting a ton of SOG (shots on goal), but our tendy, Ty Cramer kept us in the game. With a 2-1 game, another goal for us was imperative. It ended up being ME who got that goal to make it 3-1, and from there, Nashville accepted defeat and sort of quit playing at their highest level. We got another goal to make the final score 4-1. What a game; we became 2-0 going into our third game.

My goal versus the Jr. Predators

Creds to Mr. Anderson

P.S., Sorry about the bad quality, that's the only way I could post the video...

Game Three: Manchester Flames

There really isn't much to talk about in this game... This team was really chippy and it was scary going into the corners with these kids, because they hit, HARD. They weren't very skilled and were 0-2 in the tournament, so they just let out their anger against us. I scored the first goal in this game, and it was pretty nice, just a little patience in front of the net, and then a backhand top shelf. The game ended 5-0, so not too much excitement occurred; although this win sent us to the quarter finals of the national championships (which was HUGE).

Game Four: Seattle Sno-King Jr. Thunderbirds

This game was just as intense as the Jr. Predators game, if not even more intense. This team was really good, and it was even more even than the Preds. All game it was a fight for the net, a fight for the hockey season to continue. If you lost this game, it meant your hockey season was over. Absolutely NO ONE wanted that, so we all fought for our lives. The game was even, but then they scored. It was in the second period, and it was a sick goal. The one player came down hard on the left, and then sauced it over to the other guy crashing hard on the weak side, who shot it right over our tendy's shoulder. It was a sick goal, and we let down a little. Soon enough, there was two minutes left in the game. Our season was about to come to an end; and to hurt us even more, they scored another goal with 30 seconds left in the game. Wow. Our season was over... That thought was in my mind for a while, and I still haven't gotten over it. It was a great tournament, and in my next post I'll describe my feelings over the past year...

Me rippin' a shot against the Jr. Predators
Creds to the Nationals Photographers...

Pre-Nationals!

So guess what's coming up this week? Well if you read my title then you already know, but if you're lazy then I guess I'll tell you: Nationals are this week! This week will be an incredible experience, although it will also be very sad. Yes, it's nationals for hell's sake, but that also means it's the end of the season. So I'm really excited, but I'm also very sorrowful. For this post, I'm basically gonna just describe what's ahead of me this week. From my schedule, to teams, to pre-game stuff, to everything else; I'll describe it all in detail.

To start, we have to go over the schedule. This tournament is the Tier II Bantam National Tournament. Teams from across the U.S. come to compete in this tournament and represent their states. Now not every state has a team represent them, so around 40 teams are coming to Salt Lake City this year for the tournament. So this year, my team got a good schedule, playing teams from across the U.S.. Our first game will be against Mission Red from Arizona. This game is on Thursday morning at 11:45. This game will be interesting, because according to the US Rankings, Mission Red is 249th in the nation. My team, the Grizzlies, are 159th, so this game will be interesting. Our next game is against the Nashville Jr. Predators. This team will be much more challenging because they're ranked at 111th. We beat them last year at Nationals but this year it will be a greater challenge. Our last game for the qualifying round is against the Manchester Flames. This team is basically the same level as us, as they're ranked at 162. This game will be a really evenly-played game, and I can't wait to play this team. If we win at least two out of the three then we will move on. From there it goes into quarter finals, semis and the finals... Now for the preparation...

So in preparation for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I have to do a few things. One major thing I have to do is stay healthy. If you're sick, you obviously won't be able to play at the highest level you usually can. So to stay healthy you have to eat healthy, get to bed early and drink water. Another thing to do before the games is make sure you have all of your schoolwork done. I am a student athlete, NOT an athlete student. So if my work's not done, then I can't play in the games. One last thing to do in prep before the tournament is to shoot pucks and stickhandle. Keeping up your game before going into an actual game is imperative; if you don't keep working on your skills, they won't be present in the games you play in. So all this week I'll be studying, stayin' healthy and keeping my skills up so I can succeed in the tournament! So after this tournament I'll let you guys know how I did! Any comments on how else to be prepared would be appreciated! Talk to you soon!

A sneak peak of the National's medals...
Creds to USA Hockey