Warriors Boys Hockey Season Comes To A Close In 3AA Opener Against Eastview

It was looking good for a short while as the Henry Sibley boys hockey team took a 1-0 lead just 30 seconds into the Section 3AA playoff opener at Eastview on Tuesday night.

However, despite the smart goal from defenseman Joey Affolter,  the good times wouldn't last for the tenth-seeded Warriors as the Lightning pounded home five unanswered goals between the closing minutes of the first period through the opening moments of the third period en route to a 6-3 victory that ended Sibley's season.

"I thought our first period was definitely good," Warriors head coach Tony McGee said. "All season long, it has been our best period — however, the second period is a horse of a different color."

After tying the score at 1-1 at 14:21 of the first period, seventh-seeded Eastview took the lead for good with two more scores in the middle frame while Sibley mustered up just three shots total.

"I felt we could've given more there," McGee said. "You are not going to win many games with just three shots in the second period."

The Lightning added two more power-play goals in the third period to take a 5-1 lead before Sibley returned fire with goals from forward Cole Chapman and defender Sam Gottfredson at 13:52 and 15:37, respectively.

However, the Warriors uprising was squelched by a final Lightning strike at 15:50 that brought the final count to 6-3.

"We played good hockey on both ends of the game," McGee said. "We were just flat-footed in the second and, give Eastview credit, they stuck it to us there."

The Sibley leader noted that the loss brings to an end a season that was "a little disappointing," as the Warriors finish the 2010-11 campaign with a 7-18-1 record—a season that hinged on the loss of one crucial player.

"We had, head and shoulders above anyone else, the best goalie in the conference," McGee said. "David (Gonzalez-Cameron) was a stud and we played well because of him."

However, the senior netminder was lost to the team over the holiday break after a collision in front of the goal left him with torn ligaments in his ankle—he wore a boot and watched Tuesday night's game from the bench.

"Our goal was to place third in the conference, and if David was in the nets for this whole season we could have won a lot more games," McGee said. "However, his loss created a great learning experience for our sophomore goalies, Cody (Dornbusch) and Justin (Zeis).

Dornbusch was in goal for the season finale and made 29 saves despite the defeat.

McGee held up the team for reflection behind closed doors after the game. The Warriors were still wearing their game gear after the Eastview players had left the arena.

"I was telling our juniors and sophomores to remember the looks on the faces of our seniors," he said. "It's a crappy feeling and it hurts, but it builds character."

It's been a character-building season for the Warriors, who have still succeeded in the classroom to the tune of a 3.42 team grade-point-average.

"It's always great to coach kids with a lot of heart and these kids have so much heart," McGee said. "We may not have as much talent, but we've got lots of heart."