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Team play key to Thrashers' success
Chris Clegg
for South Peace News
Nothing is ever as easy as it seems, says the High Prairie True Value Atom Thrashers coach as he looks forward to Provincials.
Steven Cross says if the Thrashers play their game, they should fare well despite moving up a division to play against Alberta’s best “A” teams rather than “B”.
“I think we’ll be in tough,” he says, “but I think we can play at that level. I think we have the ability. We know we’re going to play some tough teams.”
It will be the first Provincial competition for each member of the club.
“None of them have went before,” says Cross. “It’s the first time for all of them.”
Cross is trying to take a bit of a laid-back approach to Provincials so the boys don’t get too “hyped” about it.
The Thrashers breezed through the All Peace Minor Hockey League’s Atom Tier 2 North Division with a 13-0-2 record but lost the two-game total goal league final to Valleyview 6-2 and 5-4. Cross attributes the loss to the long layoff between games, something Valleyview did not suffer as they disposed of second place Peace River in the semi-final.
“Not being in that first round of playoffs hurt us,” he says. “We waited almost two weeks. I think that really hurt us.”
Cross says the undefeated record in league play was not quite as it seems.
“We had a few tough games against Peace River, Valleyview and Manning,” he says.
However, the Thrashers were always able to find a way to win.
The Thrashers also enjoyed success winning the Valleyview tournament and placing second in the “B” Division final at the Lloyd Head tournament in Grande Prairie.
Cross says the strength of the Thrashers rests in its ability to play well as a team.
But it was not easy because half the team was on the Atom “A” team last year and half on the “B” team. It presented problems at the start but the boys responded well.
“They’re willing to learn,” says Cross.
He adds they play positional hockey very well and their forecheck is a huge asset.
“Our forechecking, we’re able to hem people in,” he says. “A lot of our goals are scored on the rebound. We get in the corners and we get the puck and crash and bang the net.”
The key to the forecheck is pressuring the opponent in their end and not letting them build an attack.
He is also pleased on how the team has learned to pass the puck to wingers to get the puck out of its end.
Cross says the team’s continued success will be built on its strong goaltending provided by Theoran Bliss and team play.
“Bliss will lead us,” says Cross. “If he’s on his “A” game we’ll be OK. He’s the best Atom goalie in the zone. If he’s ready to play and gets help he’ll make a difference.
Cross thanks everyone who supported sales of chocolate during the season, True Value Hardware as the team sponsor and a recent donation from APEX Distributors.
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