A repeat run to the Mac’s tournament final just was not in the cards for the UFA Bisons.
The Bisons failed to qualify for the playoff round after posting a disappointing record of 0-2-2 in an extremely challenging Group 5 at the 2013 Mac’s Midget Tournament in Calgary.
“It was a little different than I anticipated with the team here being in the finals last year,” said Bisons centre Connor Tudor. “It’s a different roster with different guys, but I thought we were capable of being there and we just didn’t have anything go our way.”
Tudor said letting a point slip away in their tournament debut, a 4-4 tie with the Saskatoon Contacts, was an ominous sign of things to come for the Strathmore-based Bisons.
“We really had a chance to take it to them and in the first and second (periods) we didn’t play our game,” he said.
High River’s Brody Valette and Okotokian Matt Forchuk staked the Bisons to a 2-1 lead, but three unanswered goals from the Contacts gave the Saskatchewan club a two-goal cushion going into the third. Connor Boyd cut the deficit in half and set the stage for Okotoks blueliner Mark Nerland’s last minute tally to rescue a point for the Bisons.
An identical scenario played out the following day as the Bisons again came from behind to earn a 4-4 tie, this go around with eventual tournament finalists Carolina Jr. Hurricanes.
The Hurricanes, an all-star team built for the Mac’s tournament with players primarily from the southern United States, built a 4-1 lead after 40 minutes.
Okotoks’ Kurt Fraser got the Bisons back on the board and, following a Mackenzie Bauer tally, Mason McCarty of Blackie played the last-minute hero role registering the tying marker with just 90 seconds on the clock.
“The first two games going into the third period down and coming back to tie the game is tough. You want to get that win,” Tudor said. “Mentally it’s exhausting.”
Without a loss on the docket the Bisons were not in dire straits entering their third game of the round-robin section, but needed to defeat the Lethbridge Pronghorns to have a chance to advance out of the pool.
An undisciplined performance from the Bisons, featuring 50 minutes in penalties, ended in a disappointing 2-0 loss in front of a large crowd at Max Bell Arena on Dec. 29.
“It was a tough game. Nothing was going our way and the penalties were killing us,” Forchuk said. “They’re a hard-nosed team and like chirping so you can’t get sucked into that and we kind of did.”
The Bisons and Okanagan Rockets met in the round-robin finale on Dec. 30, in a meeting of two teams with dreams of a playoff position already dashed before puck-drop.
Okanagan scored two late power-play goals to steal a 5-3 victory from the Bisons.
Bisons captain Markson Bechtold, Fraser, and Blackie’s Brady Reagan tickled the twine in a losing cause for the Foothills team.
Reagan improved as the tournament progressed, earning player of the game honours in the Bisons’ final two games.
“I didn’t think I was as mentally prepared as I should have been. It took a toll on me,” said Reagan. “I got back after the first few games and started playing my best.”
The dynamic blueliner said the Bisons were the authors of their own demise due to their inability to put forth a complete game in four matches at the Mac’s.
“We had to play a full 60 minutes and we would have been fine in this tournament,” Reagan said. “We didn’t come prepared all the time, if we took a shift off it hurt us.
“I think it’s a good learning experience for the tournament and for next year.”
Forchuk, a Grade 11 student at Foothills Composite High School and the Bisons’ leading scorer in league play, was disappointed he and his teammates didn’t reach their potential in Calgary.
“It’s tough not to make it into the semifinal especially with the good team we have. We had the team and could have went all the way,” Forchuk said. “We didn’t have everyone going and we didn’t seem to play to our structure and when that happens everything falls apart.”
The team is looking to rebound in league play as well with just one win in six games in the Alberta Midget Hockey League. The Bisons, fifth in the South division with 24 points (11-13-2), take off on a northern swing with meetings against the Lloydminster Bobcats and SSAC Athletics on Jan. 12 and 13.
“Now we just have to be positive going into the second half of our season to get into the playoffs and keep rolling from there,” Forchuk said. “If we make it to the Telus Cup (the Mac’s) will be a good experience because we will be ready for the crowds.”
For more information on the UFA Bisons go to www.bisonshockey.com.
