Generals' forward Ben Duperreault during league action this season

They played well, but the Moose Jaw Generals just couldn't get into the win column at the 35th annual Mac's Midget AAA Tournament in Calgary, Alberta.  The Generals ended up finishing tied for third in their pool after wrapping up the round robin with three straight ties.

“We would have obviously liked to win, but I thought we worked extremely hard and just couldn't find a way to win,” said head coach Ray Wareham from the team bus on Sunday afternoon after the team ended the round robin with a 1-1 tie against the Calgary Royals.  “We battled hard and grabbed some points, but in this kind of a tournament, you need the wins unfortunately.”

The Generals' only loss came in the tournament opener, 4-2, to the Red Deer Optimist Chiefs last Wednesday.  The team regrouped during their day off and fought their way through three more tough games, but wins alluded them as they tied the Lloydminster Bobcats, 3-3; then Pirati Chomutov, 4-4; and then wrapped up with the 1-1 tie against the Calgary Royals on Sunday.

“We were in a real tough pool, they were big strong teams and obviously the Czech team was highly skilled, so we had to adapt our game to different styles,” explained Wareham. “It was a good experience for the guys and hopefully we're better for it in the second half.”

The Generals looked like they were going to pick up their first win of the tournament in their final game against Calgary as they jumped out to 1-0 lead midway through the first period on a goal from Regan Nagy.  They held onto that lead until the 6:12 mark of the third period when the Royals' Taylor Allan tied the game up.

Brett Banda, who was called up for the tournament, gave Ryland Pashovitz a rest in goal in the final game and made 28 saves in the tie.  Pashovitz had been busy in the Generals' first three games, facing over 30 shots each game and giving the Generals a chance to win in each of them.

The young Generals squad didn't have high expectations going into the tournament as they were put in a pool with teams ranked high in the Alberta Midget AAA League, including the defending national champion Chiefs, but wanted to have a consistent effort every game.  Wareham says they were able to accomplish that and it should a good step for the second half of their season.

“That seemed to be our problem in the first half of the year, we've looked real good some game and then we've lost it for periods, or two-three game stretches, so I thought the last three games we were pretty good as far as consistency goes with work ethic,” said Wareham.  “That's going to be the big focal point in the second half, just being a little more consistent and then hopefully wins will be a result of that.”

The Generals went into the tournament a bit shorthanded with their captain, and leading scorer, Rhett Gardner gone to the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and goalie Grant Naherniak called up to the Red Deer Rebels for the post-Christmas schedule.  There were a number of players that stepped up in those players absence according to Wareham.

“I thought the Duperreault line was real strong for us throughout the tournament; obviously Ryland Pashovitz had three really solid games for us; Brett Banda played for us (Sunday), he was pretty solid; I thought all the APs held their own; and overall after the first game, I throught it was a really good team effort,” explained Wareham.

Duppereault had three assists in the four games; Riley Cannon and Trey Tendler each  finished with two goals in the tournament; and Wareham also applauded forward Michael Korol for jumping back on defence for a couple games during the tournament to help out.

The Generals will return to league play coming up on Sunday, January 6th when they head to Yorkton for a meeting with the Harvest.

Two Moose Jaw Warriors prospects have advanced to the playoff round at the Mac's Tournament.  Logan Hermus and the Red Deer Optimist Chiefs will be taking on Brandon Del Grosso and the Vancouver Northwest Giants on Monday morning in the semifinals.