Spurred on by their undefeated season and cohesive team chemistry, the Waskaganish Future Wings have proven that when it comes to Atom A hockey in Quebec, they are the best!
“We were the heavy favorites going into the tournament,” said coach Charles Hester. “We played against the best teams from each region in the province.
“The first game we won 5-4 even though we got in at 4 in the morning and played at 9. The guys were tired,” he said.
They followed that up with a convincing 6-1 win and a 6-4 win in the semifinals. The final pitted them against The Masson-Anger Sharks and they came out on top 4-2.
“When we got home to Waskaganish there was a parade waiting for us,” said Hester. “They got a real kick out of it. We went around the community in their hockey jerseys to show off the banner they won. Everyone was honking their horns.”
The tourney was a cap of a perfect season. The Future Wings did not lose a single game during the regular season and a host of other tournaments. Hester stopped counting the wins at a certain point, but not before he reached the number 50.
Hester’s son Alex led the team in scoring with a record-setting 107 points in the 14 game-season. Close behind was his nephew Chris, with 104.
Hester told the Nation that the kids were jubilant on the way up from Montreal in the bus. “We had a little party. They were watching The Mighty Ducks and singing ‘We Are the Champions’. It was a dream season for us. We were really confident we were going to win.”
