WENATCHEE, Wash. - The Wenatchee Wild Hockey Academy has had its share of battles over the last couple of weeks. Some have been on the ice, with close games in abundance. Some have been battles just to get in the air, with some players delayed two days in getting home from last week's CCM World Invite in Chicago amid government shutdowns and one of the Windy City's first brushes of the season with Lake Michigan snowstorms.

The Wild 16-and-Under team had the best luck at the CCM World Invite, winning three games and tying another in pool play, tallying back-to-back shutouts of the Odessa Jackalopes 16U and Tri-State Spartans 16U teams in 5-0 and 6-0 decisions. They upended the Queen City Royals 4-2 and tied with the Cheektowaga Warriors out of New York state, 1-1, before dropping a 5-0 decision to the Chicago Phantoms in the semifinal.

"They were disappointed in not winning," said Wenatchee Wild Hockey Academy director Troy Mick. "They got the monkey off their back with a few wins, so good for them."

The 18U team nabbed a win and a tie on the weekend, battling to a 1-1 draw in the opening game with the Pittsburgh Vengeance. The Chicago Phantoms defeated Wenatchee 5-2, followed by a 3-1 win for Lake Forest Academy and a 6-0 defeat of the PHA IceMen in the weekend's final game.

The 15O group finished its weekend with a 4-4 tie against the Orange County Hockey Club, but took losses in pool play to the Northwest Chargers, Markham Islanders and Naperville Sabres. The 14U team came up empty on the weekend, facing the SCS Saints Red, Boston Ice Dogs and Reston Raiders 14U Blue teams in pool play and the Marquette American Legion Jr. Wildcats in the consolation round.

"It was a good opportunity for all of our guys to play good competition," said Mick. "The games were close all the way through - that's what you want, and hopefully that's a stepping stone."

As soon as the teams returned to Washington state, three of them embarked on big weekends again this past week, with the 18U team grabbing a point against Coeur d'Alene Academy to wrap up its three-game series. Aidan Yu scored a goal and an assist in Friday's 4-2 loss in Idaho, while Tyler O'Keefee made 30 saves in Saturday's 8-0 loss in Wenatchee. In Sunday's game, the 18s got early goals from Anderson Carter in both the first and second periods, and another go-ahead goal from Sean Strasser early in the third - however, CDA's Hudson Podollan tied the game with 1:15 to go and Matej Bydzovsky scored 22 seconds into overtime to hand Wenatchee a 4-3 defeat.

The 16U team finished its weekend without a point at the Canadian Sport School Hockey League's Yale Hockey Academy showcase, but came tantalizingly close to finishing its weekend with a point as well, and played competitive games throughout the weekend. Luca Lira scored Wenatchee's only goal Friday in a 4-1 decision against Pacific Coast Academy, and the Notre Dame Hounds used three goals in a three-and-a-half-minute span to surge to a 5-0 win over the Academy on Saturday. Carson Domarus and Caiden Coubertier scored goals in Sunday's finale against the Indigenous Sports Academy, but Lawson Gardipy scored a natural hat trick in a 3-2 ISA win, with the game-winner coming with just 20 seconds remaining.

The 14U team was dealt a quartet of losses in its trip to the prestigious Pat Quinn Classic in British Columbia, dropping 11-0 and 13-2 affairs with the U15 Northwest Hawks and Coeur d'Alene Academy. Wenatchee finished its trip with a 7-2 contest against the Seattle Jr. Kraken on Friday and a 9-4 game in its finale Saturday against the U15 Cariboo Cougars.

Just two games are on the schedule this weekend, with the 16U and 18U teams playing at Delta Hockey Academy on adjacent rinks at Planet Ice. The 16U contest in Delta, British Columbia gets underway at 3:15 p.m. on the facility's Canadian Rink, followed by a 4:15 p.m. start for the 18U team on the Legends Rink.

Just two games await the Academy teams this weekend