News

WENATCHEE, Wash. - The sprint to the holidays is officially on for the Wenatchee Wild Hockey Academy.

All four Academy programs suited up for competition this past weekend, with the under-18 and under-17 groups heading north for Canadian Sport School Hockey League competition ahead of the holiday break.

The Wild U18 team wrapped up a 1-3 weekend at the CSSHL's Edmonton showcase at the River Cree Twin Rinks, with all four games coming down to the final moments. Delta Hockey Academy opened its weekend with a 5-3 win over Wenatchee, with the Wild battling back from a 4-1 deficit after two periods. Mikhail Levianuk had a goal and two assists for the Wild, and added an assist the following day as part of a third-period comeback effort in a 3-2 defeat against the Pacific Coast Hockey Academy. Wenatchee picked up a win Saturday with a 4-3 decision against the Notre Dame Hounds, getting the game-winner from Seth Banner with 6:48 left. Paco Hodgson led the Wild offense with three assists. Pilot Mound Hockey Academy used a third-period push to upend Wenatchee 4-3 on Sunday in the final game for both teams.

"You try to take positives out of it. We were in every game we played this weekend," said Wild Hockey Academy director Troy Mick. "Pilot Mound scored with a minute to go in the game. Our commitment to work ethic and systems has to be better, but they know what has to be done and it's up to them to make sure they're working hard together to have success."

Wenatchee's U17 group traveled to the Vancouver area, with the host teams earning wins in a Saturday-Sunday set for the Wild. Wenatchee made a two-goal comeback in the second period, but Yale Hockey Academy took the lead with six seconds on the second-period clock before prevailing 6-2 on Saturday. Burnaby Winter Club finished the weekend with a 4-0 victory on Sunday against Wenatchee. Dominic Deery and Keegan Stickel had two points apiece on the weekend for Wenatchee.

"We played two strong programs, so for our guys, these are all games that the coaches were very happy with the work ethic," said Mick. "There may be some undisciplined penalties here and there and some untimely mistakes, but when we're a first-year program, we're going to take these lumps. You want to make sure you learn from them and get better, and I truly believe that both teams will. Now, we've got to step up and execute it."

The 2008s enjoyed a pair of home games against the North Shore Warriors, while the 14U weekend group earned two wins at the Battle of the Valley tournament in Kelowna, British Columbia. The Wild CSSHL programs will enjoy a smooth transition into the holiday break with a home-and-home weekend against Coeur d'Alene Academy - the U17 program travels to Coeur d'Alene Saturday evening before hosting CDA on Sunday afternoon, while the U18 team will get its turn at home Saturday afternoon, with a 3 p.m. puck drop at the Weinstein Beverage Rink before visiting CDA on Sunday morning.