Max and his squad punched the ticket to National's after forging a 3-0 record in Park City culminating in a 2-1 Shootout victory over the Ice Miners in the finale. With 11 first-year players on the roster, Coach Oly was nothing short of impressed with the efforts of his team, which also competes in the National Junior Prospects Hockey League (NJPHL). "It was an eye-opener for them playing in the NJPHL, as well as the intensity of the practices which they have never experienced here in this state before," said Oly in a recent article I was reading today at Player's Bench while getting Max's skates sharpened. "I liked the fact they came to practice wanting to learn, but we needed to find our work ethic; the boys had to make that choice to work to improve." The team's growth since the start of the season has been nothing short of dramatic, he continued. "You have no idea. These first year players (Max is a first year Midget) have improved tenfold..."
He goes on to say, "It takes a good four years of proper training and development to see the proper results."
At Nationals, which was in Plano, Texas, Oly expected his team to bring plenty of grit to the table. "We want to be the hardest working team every game. We may not win every game, but every team that plays us will remember us. Promise."
