San Jose Jr Sharks

     The Jr. Sharks Squirt 2006 team just returned from Canada with some hardware! After going 6-0 in the Silver Stick Regional tournament at Sharks Ice in November, the Squirts punched their ticket to the Silver Stick Finals in Pelham, ONT located between Buffalo, NY and Toronto, ONT.

     They kicked off their tournament on Thursday January 7th as they took on the Hamilton Hills Thunder (from Ontario) and the Lincoln Blades (from Ontario). Following the games, the Jr. Sharks headed to the Opening Ceremony and Pin Trading located at the Convention Centre in town.

     Friday morning was the conclusion of the Round Robin play as the Jr. Sharks played against the Napanee Stars. Following that game, all Squirt teams in the tournament were reseeded and the Jr. Sharks were designated to division 2. Friday afternoon, the quarterfinal took place as the Jr. Sharks took on the Bloomington Blades (Indiana) were they came out ahead 5-2 and moved on.

     The hometown Pelham Panthers invited the players and families of the Jr. Sharks to the town Fire Hall Friday night. Although the current winter weather was warmer than the Canadians are used to, both teams were able to skate outdoors under the stars on the frozen man-made rink. The Pelham Firefighters graciously flooded an empty field next to the Firehouse early in the week as we kept our fingers crossed that it would become cold enough to freeze. Luckily, it did and the California boys had to be dragged off the ice after about 3 hours of skating, in the rain. The team thanks the Pelham Panthers and the people of Pelham for being an excellent host.

     The Semi Final game took place on Saturday as the Jr. Sharks battled against the Mt. Brydges Cougars (Ontario). After going down 2-0 early, the boys battled back to gain a 4-2 lead and never looked back. To celebrate, the team headed to Toronto to check out the Hockey Hall of Fame. Following the HOF visit, they headed back to the hotel to watch the San Jose Sharks defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs much to the dismay of the hotel staff.

     Sunday held the championship game where the Jr. Sharks would take on the Napanee Stars again. After falling to them 4-1 in the round robin, the team looked to find some sweet revenge. There were 14 total teams playing in championship games on Sunday, with only two being from the United States. The Jr. Sharks went out and proudly represented the US, however were unable to counter the attack of Napanee. The Jr. Sharks were on the wrong end of a 3-1 final, but came home with 2nd place in the Silver Stick Finals which is something they all are very proud of.