Year of transition for P.E.I.’s two major midget teams
Wild, Pride open provincial championship series in Kensington on Saturday
It’s safe to say it’s been a year of transition for Prince Edward Island’s two entries in the New Brunswick/P.E.I. Major Midget Hockey League.
The adjustment period is over, and now the stakes are raised as the Kensington Monaghan Farms Wild and Charlottetown Bulk Carriers Pride prepare to open the best-of-seven provincial championship series at Community Gardens in Kensington on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
“We are preaching to the guys we did a great job accomplishing what we did in the regular season, but it’s time to move on and try to get that much better for the playoffs.” Wild head coach Kyle Dunn
“It’s going to be a hard-fought test,” said Wild forward and captain Tayler Read, who was named a league second-team all-star earlier this week. “It’s going to be a tight series, and we are going to have to work for it.”
New faces
The Wild, coming off a firstplace finish in the 2015-16 regular season, welcomed 13 first-year players in a rebuilding year. Meanwhile, it was the first season for the Pride organization under new ownership, management and coaching staff.
The Wild, who won nine of their last 12 regular-season games after winning just seven
of their first 22 contests, finished in third place at 16-15-4 (won-lost-overtime losses).
“I always give the guys to about Christmas time to adjust and adapt to the league with the speed, pace and playing against bigger and stronger guys,” explained Wild head coach Kyle Dunn. “After Christmas, once we hit the Ice Jam (tournament in early January), our team seemed to really come together.
“Our first-year players really figured this league out quick.
These guys have adjusted, bought into the role and worked to get better every day. “One thing we have preached is we have the hockey talent, you have to play at that speed every day on a consistent basis. Our young guys figured that out early.”
However, Dunn has stressed to his players the playoffs are a brand new season.
“We are preaching to the guys we did a great job accomplishing what we did in the regular
season, but it’s time to move on and try to get that much better for the playoffs,” he added.
The Pride completed the regular season 12-21-2, and head coach Luke Beck offered this assessment of his team: “We were pretty happy with how things went. Any team that finishes fifth, you wish you would have won a couple of more games.
“Having said that, it’s all about a process that we tried to instill in our group starting in August. . . Overall, collectively as
an organization, we couldn’t be happier with how the first season went, both as a team and the individual development of our players.
“The group has come together nicely as a team, and we have a great group of kids.”