DEREK VAN DIEST Sherwood Park, St. Albert rivalry kicks off midget girls provincials

The Sherwood Park Fury have been building all season for this weekend.

The midget female elite squad is one of two local-area teams heading to the provincial championships in Calgary with an eye on the title.

Sherwood Park will be joined by the St. Albert Sharks, who finished with the best regular-season record in the Alberta Female Hockey League’s Midget Elite Division.

“We looked at the kids that we had in our evaluation camp and we felt with the rookies we had coming in and with the veterans we had on the team, that we were going to have a good team,” said Sherwood Park head coach Steve Mancini. “We had great mixes of character and certainly lots of mixes of skill and with that the coaches felt right from the start that we were in good shape.”

Sherwood Park finished with a 20-6-0 regular season record and then, after a bye in the opening round of the playoffs, defeated the Peace Country PCFAC Storm in the second-round, best-of-three series to earn a spot in the provincial tournament.

Three of Sherwood Park’s four losses this season came to St. Albert, who finished with a 21-4-1 record and defeated the Lloydminster Elite Steelers in the playoffs to earn their spot in the provincial tournament.

Sherwood Park and St. Albert will square off in the opening game of the round-robin tournament Thursday (1 p.m.) at the Great Plains Recreation Facility in Calgary.

“St. Albert and Sherwood Park have a great rivalry in female hockey in all of our divisions,” Mancini said. “We’ve played four times this year and all of them were one-goal games. Playing them in the first game of provincials is a game that our girls are excited for. I don’t think they could have asked for a better matchup to get the tournament started than to go against one of our biggest rivals in the north.”

As with most female hockey programs in the country, both St. Albert and Sherwood Park have seen a steady increase in their numbers over the past few seasons.

Last weekend, the St. Albert Slash won the midget female AAA provincial title in Red Deer by defeating the Rocky Mountain Raiders 2-1 in overtime in the goldmedal game.

“Hockey for girls has tremendously improved in the last 20 years,” said Sharks head coach Dennis Sundar. “Every year the girls are starting younger and every year the talent gets better. We’re seeing a lot more dedication by the players in regards to preparation and working on their skills. Girls hockey is trending in the right direction and with the progression in the last number of years, you’re seeing some tremendously skilled girls, but to be honest, I think the best is yet to come.”

Unlike the Fury, who expected to ice a championship contender this year, the Sharks were not certain where they would stand this season. They had a number of vacant spots to fill from last year’s squad, which finished fourth in the North Division standings.

We’ve played four times this year and all of them were one-goal games. Playing them in the first game ... is a game that our girls are excited for.

“Coming from where we were last year, I thought we would be a little bit better with the infusion of younger guys being able to step in and take some of the spots from the graduating girls,” Sundar said. “I figured we would be stronger, but I didn’t necessarily believe we would be at the top of the pack. I was pleasantly surprised at the dedication of the girls that allowed us to have such a good regular season.”

Heading into the provincial tournament, both teams will be up against strong competition. The five-team field is rounded out by the Calgary Fire Red, Calgary Fire White and the Airdrie Lightning. The top two teams will meet up in the championship game Sunday with the third and fourth-place teams battling for bronze.

“Our goal is to win the tournament,” Sundar said. “We’re on a mission. We started the journey in September and we’ve been climbing to the top of the mountain and the top is within our grasp now. We’re working towards it and are excited about it. Along the way, we’re trying to make good memories for these young ladies.”

Sherwood Park has similar ambitions of a provincial title.

“The girls are playing great, it’s going to take an entire team effort,” Mancini said. “We’ve been playing really well since December. I think the girls are confident, they ’re ready, they ’re focused and I think with a good team effort we’ll finish with a good showing in representing the north in the Midget Elite Division for sure.