The Sharks wasted no time introducing themselves to the U13 AA ranks, taking home the gold at their inaugural out-of-province tournament as a team, this year. (Submitted photo/Carla Bernier)

By Martin Martinson

Benchmark Victory

U13 Sharks win Okotoks Female Hockey Classic

Nov 17, 2022 | 3:57 PM

The U13 AA NorthWest Sharks have shown their bite through the early going this season, coming off a tournament victory in Alberta, at the Okotoks Female Classic.

In just their first season of play in the inaugural year of the Female U13 AA League in Saskatchewan, the tournament gold serves as a benchmark win for the local female program.

It’s the kind of success head coach, Greg Slabaida said he hopes can serve as a springboard for the team moving forward, through the season.

“The girls had a strong weekend and it’s something we needed as a team moving forward, as it came at a perfect time just getting into the league,” Slabaida said. “I feel that with this win in Okotoks we can get some [other] wins here and hopefully grab a top spot by Christmas time.”

The Sharks opened the tournament red-hot, going undefeated through their three round-robin games, to earn a spot in the final against Grande Prairie.

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Going right down to the wire, with the score tied 4-4 through regulation time, the tournament final would need extra time to determine a winner.

Following five minutes of scoreless sudden-death overtime, the Sharks went to the shootout, taking home the clinching victory with a pair of shootout goals, the latter scored by Amelia Bernier, who sealed the gold for the team in the second round of the shootout.

Goaltender Teal McDonald backstopped the Sharks to victory with strong play between the pipes, which included the save of the game delivered on a penalty shot with just two minutes to go in regulation to get the game to OT, on her way to earning Player of the Game honours.

Slabaida said the team played to their strengths, with quick puck movement, using their speed to their advantage.

“We’re a smaller team and we don’t carry a lot of size, so we really rely on our skating and our puck movement to carry us through, and we played some strong defense,” he said. “We have some girls who can find the back of the net, and we really focus on our skating and speed.”

The U13 Sharks will return to play this weekend for a busy schedule of three games in three nights.

The Sharks will play host to the Northeast Aces Friday night at 8 p.m. at the Don Ross Centre, before setting out on the road for stops in Saskatoon Saturday for an afternoon game with the Saskatoon Comet Hurricanes, and Sunday in Prince Albert versus the PA Foxes.

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1