The U16AA East Coast Eagles traveled to Florida this past weekend and played 6 games in 3 days to capture the tournament title. The hockey was exciting, the facilities were great and the weather was beautiful 90 degrees and sunny. The team pulled together when it mattered and filled the net in grand fashion to capture the title.

Day one, game one the Eagles played an outstanding game outshooting the hometown Florida Everblades 2 to 1 but fell short 3-1. Sean Gelband was the lone goal scorer.

Game two was an exciting contest vs the North Carolina rivals Charlotte Jr. Checkers. The ultimate goalie battle ended in 0-0 tie. Eric Daniel finished the game with the shutout.

Day two, game three was against the Florida Golden Wolves.  After a sound game by the Eagles they were again on the shortend of a 3-2 loss.  Goal scorers were Eric Todd and Connor McCreedy.

Game four was the about pulling together and by doing so they ultimately defined their march to the finals. The opponent was the Palm Beach Hawks.  It was a playoff matchup with the winner advancing to the #4 seed in the semifinals on Sunday.  The team finished with a complete game in all areas. East Coast had 40 plus shots on goal. Goal scorers were Hayden Dewey, Zac Horn (penalty shot), Alex Robinson and Noah Mizerk. The game ended with a 4-1 win for the very fired up East Coast Eagles. The Eagles learned putting the team first approach together can bring that winning feeling to locker room.

Championship Day. The Semis brought a rematch with the Golden Wolves. A start of a new day, and a with new determination the team overcame adversity to find some answers to their lack of goal scoring. The game started with two quick goals by East Coast in the first two shifts by Ryan Niles and Eric Todd. However, the next two shifts were dominated by and resulted with two goals by the Golden Wolves. The game was locked at 2 until Eric Throndson's PP goal put the Eagles ahead in the second period. The Wolves scored shortly after to tie it at 3. The third period was punctuated with many saves and offensive pushes. In the last few minutes included many defining moments. The Eagles went on the PK with less than 3 minutes remaining. The Wolves finally crafted some offence with a PP goal at 58 seconds remaining and left the Eagles bench and faithful stunned in the seemingly insurmountable situation. A timeout was called by Coach Horn. After a short discussion about determination and a strategic lineup adjustment. The puck dropped with 58 seconds left in regulation...it only took the next 15 seconds, East Coast drove toward the offensive zone. The puck went toward the Wolves net off the stick of Ryan Niles, followed by the rebound shot by Jimmy McShane with the finish by Nick Lewis. The score was tied again 4-4. The faceoff at center led to another rush by Nick Lewis off the rightwing as he launched a rocket toward the top right of the net that only found pipe.  The end of regulation led to an exciting 4 on 4 overtime. The team was then lifted onto the ice in celebration as a 2 on 1 rush was finished by Hayden Dewey as he found the back of the net in the first shift of OT. The Eagles were headed to the finals.

The Championship game was played at the beautiful Germain main arena in Estero, FL . The Eagles came out firing early but with no NET results. The Blades struck first with a quality shot from the high slot. The second period brought a net front goal from Jimmy McShane to tie the game at 1. The Blades quickly answered to go ahead 2-1. The score remained 2-1 with 1:13 left in the 3rd and the Eagles went up on the PP.  Coach Horn went to the well and put a 5 man unit together for the Eagles. The unit set up in the zone and after some puck movement, Zac Horn walked out of the corner to bury the tying goal on a slick baseline play. The Eagles on Championship day were again lifted by a determined effort and last minute heroics. The OT started with 4on4 for 5 mins and 3on3 for another 5 mins. The result was a stalemate and 3 man shootout remained. The only goal scored was a beautiful move by Parker Jones for the game winner as goaltender Eric Daniel shut down 3 straight Everblade shooters. The bench cleared in jubilation as twice on Championship Day the determined group of U16AA Eagles found an answer late in regulation and a game winner in extra time.

The team had some great memories and learning experiences to bring back from Florida. They will serve them well as they push for upcoming games vs the Atlanta Knights and the Atlanta Fire as well attending the Bauer World Invite Tournament in Chicago.