U18 AA Panthers regular season ends; playoffs begin

The boy’s U18 AA Lakeland Panthers regular season has come to an end and playoffs are kicking off this weekend. 

After a 3-3 tie against the Strathcona Warriors, the Panthers are set at 12-15-5 on the season.

“We are a fast team when we decide to use our speed. We are a defensively minded team, we got two really good goalies,” said Head Coach, Jamie Myshaniuk.

The Panthers were down 3-0 until the third frame where they put up three consecutive goals with no response from the Warriors resulting in the final tie of the season.

For eight of the Panthers, this is their last season and graduating year from school and minor hockey. 

“I’m gonna miss all of the boys. Our team’s season has had a lot of ups and downs, but we’ve figured out how to play our best way and work with each other to win as much as we could,” said Samuel Comeau, graduating player. 

“We are in playoffs this weekend in Beaumont, and me and the boys feel pretty confident about going into it. We believe we can come out on top, just got to stick to the systems and keep pushing.” 

Jordan Barrett, Zach Lapointe, Jed Houle, Logan Bohme, Jamal Fayad, Aidan McGilvery, and Dymitri Myshaniuk are also in their graduating panthers year. 

“It’s emotional, the end of minor hockey, but it’s not necessarily the end of hockey. The kids get to move on to the next step of life or hockey,” said Myshaniuk.

The Panthers are rematching againstthe Warriors to begin their playoff journey on Thursday, followed by the Wainwright Polar Kings on Friday, March 10 and closing with the Camrose Vikings on Saturday, March 11.

“We have the tools and have a really good chance to win the playoffs when our team brings the effort,” said Myshaniuk.