What does it take to win championships in hockey? Most people will say good sound coaching, excellent goaltending, great offence and a solid defence … throw in a little luck and that’s what the Drayton Defenders Peewee LL team had going for them as they took the ‘C’ Division WOAA Championship against Lion’s Head in front of a large and boisterous crowd in the PMD arena on March 17.
Easy is not the word to describe the PeeWee LL season as they played in a very tough WOAA South loop compiling a 4-14-1 record during the regular season as they played in a very tough WOAA south loop compiling a 4-14-1 record during the regular season
However the team set the bar high for its appearance in the WOAA playoffs and won six of eight round robin games to take the WOAA southern loop championship. With the Bruce Peninsula Predator’s (Lion’s Head ) coming out the champion’s in the north, the stage was set for a best-of-three series, and game one would be very important.
Drayton made the long drive north on March 16 and handed the Predators a 5-1 loss in front of a large base of Drayton fans in Lion’s Head.
The fan support continued into game two in Drayton with the Defenders starting to pull away midway through the second period, winning 10-2 after wearing the Predators down with strong positional hockey and timely goaltending.