Looking to start strong
Kensington opens play with two games against N.S. teams at Atlantic championship
KENSINGTON, P.E.I. – Day 1 could go a long way in setting the tone for the Kensington Monaghan Farms Wild at the Atlantic major under-18 hockey championship.
The Wild opens roundrobin play at the East Hants Sportsplex in Lantz, N.S., with two games – against the Nova Scotia-champion Halifax Macs and the host Steele Subaru from Dartmouth, N.S – on April 4. Play continues through until April 7.
“The biggest thing is focus, especially on Day 1 when you have two games,” Wild head coach Nathan Desroches told Saltwire before a recent practice at Kensington Credit Union Centre. “I’ve been fortunate to be part of some of these tournaments in the past, and it’s important you put your best foot forward for the next shift and not worry about too much about how big of a day it’s going to be.
“For us, I feel we are in really good shape and that’s going to be key, especially for the first day, because it’s going to be a grind from start to finish.”
The Wild, Macs and Subaru are joined in the fiveteam tournament by the New Brunswick-champion Moncton Flyers and the Pinnacle Growlers, Newfoundland and Labrador champions.
“It’s going to be a pretty competitive Atlantic (championship), probably the most competitive one in a long time where you don’t really know who is going to win,” said Wild centre Michael Arsenault, who recorded 37 points in 21 regular-season games after starting the season with the Summerside D. Alex Macdonald Ford Western Capitals in the Maritime Junior Hockey League.
The teams will play a round robin and the top two teams will advance to the championship game.
Desroches said the Wild team is ready and has worked hard during a long layoff since completing a sweep of the Charlottetown Bulk Carriers Knights in the bestof-seven provincial championship series on March 17.
“We know we are going to face some great competition over there, but we also have a lot of belief in our room and what our capabilities are,” said Desroches. “If we look back on our year and having the experiences we did, whether it be through playoffs, Monctonian or Icejam, we put ourselves in a lot of big hockey games, close games and we are a pretty confident group.”
CLOSE GAMES
The Wild has defeated every team in the regional championship except the Subaru. Kensington edged Halifax 5-4 in overtime in a quarter-final game at the Monctonian AAA Challenge in November, and then lost a semifinal game 4-2 to the Subaru the next day.
The Wild defeated the Growlers 3-1 in at the East Coast Icejam tournament in January and are no strangers to the Flyers as both teams play in the New Brunswick/ P.E.I. Major Under-18 Hockey League.
The Wild went 3-4 against the Flyers in regular-season play, with four of those games decided by one goal. Moncton also edged the Wild in a shootout in an Icejam quarter-final game.
The Flyers finished in first place in the six-team league with a record of 24-6-3-0 while the Wild was second at 20-10-2-2.
“Knowing that we’ve beaten every team other than one gives us a lot of confidence going in,” said 16-year-old Wild forward Jordan Shaw of O’leary. “I really think we can do good at this tournament.”
Shaw said a key to achieving that goal will be sticking to the game plan and taking advantage of the team’s depth.
“We are fast, we can hit and we just have to play the way we have been playing,” said Shaw.
Arsenault said the Wild must be consistent and make teams play Kensington’s game.
“The day you play two games, you have to make sure you are doing all the right things, eating well, getting your rest because one game can make your whole tournament,” said the 17-year-old Arsenault, who is from Cornwall. “You have to make sure your attention to details is huge, and you have to know your identity and play to it.”
TEAM CHEMISTRY
Defenceman Jacob Denomme of Stratford, P.E.I., who is in his second season of playing under-18 hockey., joined the Wild a couple of months into the season after starting the year with the Knights. He likes the attitude and chemistry of the Kensington team.
“Ever since I got here the boys have been super nice and it’s the most team (atmosphere) I’ve been a part of,” said Denomme, 17. “Everyone gets along and we’ve had a couple of ups and downs, but now we are on a roll, and I think we can get it done.”
Denomme said the Wild obviously wants to have a strong performance for all players but acknowledged the Atlantic championship means a lot to the third-year graduating players.
“We have a great group of third-years here, and I don’t want anything less than them winning Atlantics,” said Denomme. “I was at the Atlantic tournament with the Eastern Express in U15, and we came third.
“I was a last-year (player) on that team, and it was a big deal for me. I know what it feels like for these guys here.”
The winning team will represent the Atlantic region at the Telus Cup Canadian under-18 hockey championship in Membertou, N.S., April 22- 28.