Carmeuse Start O.M.H.A. Playdowns Saturday Night
Carmeuse Lime Ltd Minor Midget Rep played the regular season in the
Midget AE/Minor Division of the Shamrock Hockey League, where they finished in third
place behind the second place South Kent Lightning AE and the first place
Strathroy Jr Rockets AE. It was a
healthy achievement, as there were seven teams which followed Carmeuse in the
standings. All seven were also AE teams.
At the minor midget level, the term alternate entry, or AE as it is known, is slightly different that other levels in the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (O.M.H.A.) A minor midget rep team is comprised of fifteen and sixteen year olds. A minor midget AE team has seventeen year old players on the roster, making this third place finish quite an accomplishment.
This wasn’t the only accomplishment for Carmeuse Lime Ltd this season. In October, the team finished the Lincoln Fall All Star Tournament as Semi-Finalists. More recently, in January, Carmeuse defeated the home town South Kent Lightning in the championship game to win the South Kent Groundhog Tournament.
With a successful regular season behind them, Carmeuse is now focused on their O.M.H.A. Playdown Season which starts tomorrow night. Playdowns are different than regular season; no longer will Carmeuse meet AE teams, they will meet only true minor midget teams.
Carmeuse head coach Henry Catry was only too happy to oblige the media with an impromptu news conference earlier today, where he spoke about some of his fondest memories and favourite moments of the regular season.
“I am pleased to have the record we have since we had about a four week stretch with some keys players out with suspensions, injuries and illness. The players who remained on the roster played hard and determined. That lean time truly started to help the team bond. Throughout the regular season that bond continued to grow. This team has bonded or melded together to form a team effort that plays like it is US against them.”
“Favorite moments, too many to list; from picking the team, first practice, first game, first win, both goalies getting a win, having five all-star players, coaching the all-star game, tournament games, bonding and getting to know their parents (this bunch is a hoot). Oh, and when I got hit by the puck in Ridgetown! Listening to my boys scream at the St Marys player who shot the puck. It was an accident; it’s a risk we take being on the bench. My own players saw the puck and moved, I didn’t see it and it caught me square in the chest. It was quite a shot too, knocked me off the bench. That St Marys player felt horrible and later apologized; poor kid.”
With the Playdown Season one day away Catry expects his team to “Keep their legs going and aim for the big prize, (O.M.H.A. Champs), fine tune a few items and be ready to rock tomorrow night.”
Carmeuse Lime Ltd will start their O.M.H.A. Playdown Season as they host Collingwood Blackhawks tomorrow night at 8:00 PM at the Ingersoll District Memorial Centre. Though in demand, some good seats are still available and can be purchased at the door!