While the Devil and my girls’ team befuddle wishful onlookers and coaches with awesome efforts lacking in desired results, the Boy’s team appears to have hit its stride at about the right time. They’ve turned in a string of successful outings dating back to their International Silver Stick Qualifier tournament a way up north we weekend before last.  I didn’t make that trip as duties called with the ladies squad closer to home, but by all accounts they took their game to another level.

As it turned out, the tournament they entered was primarily made up of teams a level above them (AA). However, they reportedly more than held their own in opening the festivities with a 2-0 win over an undoubtedly shocked host side. They followed that up with a 2-2 ties against yet another AA opponent as the Boy himself counted the tying marker on a shorthanded break. Their third game before the only actual “qualifying” match they would have came against a known powerhouse from the local AA league. Again, the lads held their own in only trailing 1-0 after two periods. They would eventually succumb in a 4-0 loss, however, they were commended by their foes’ coaches on their performance.  Someone was said to have commented that they did not play like “just an A team”; welcome praise indeed.  Finally, in the qualifying game they had made the nearly three hour trip to play, they walked over their opponent in a 4-0 victory, securing a spot in the Silver Stick a few weeks down the road.  I unsurprisingly won’t be able to make that trip either as the Devil has a couple of games of her own on the designated weekend.

Since the tournament last weekend, the Boys have continued their positive play securing wins over a team ahead of them in their league standings and a lesser light they needed to beat which they did quite handily scoring three times in the first four minutes.  At this point in the season they need to keep their momentum as they try to move their way up the ladder and improve their playoff seeding.  Yup, playoffs are just around the corner.  Here we are the week of Christmas and between the two we’ll be at the rink a total of nine times in six days.  The clock ticks quickly once you hit December – or really any time for that matter.

#imahockeydad