We all went back to the hotel on cloud nine and filled with an unbelievable amount of pride after beating the Petrolia Oilers to advance to the Semi Finals!
We had a get together in the lobby and the team took the opportunity to present their thank you gifts to the coaches. These young men had us all in tears when they gave heartfelt speeches and expressed their thanks to Dave, Jay, Rod and Jeff for being the best coaches they could ask for. The coaches, in turn, made us all cry when they talked about their experiences with the team over the years and how proud they were of each of the boys. Jeff, who sure knows how to give a good speech, talked about how much he enjoyed coaching them and watching them grow into, not only amazing hockey players but more importantly, amazing young men. Jeff made it clear that no matter what happens tomorrow in semis that they are already going home as winners because of how far they've come, and how hard they have worked to get to where they are. And although we all agreed with that sentiment, everyone went to sleep dreaming of Red Hats.