WESTVILLE -After winning their division in the 7th Annual Danny Dorrington Memorial Tournament over the weekend, the Northumberland Nigthhawks hopes of winning the banner were lost as eventual tournament winner, King’s-Edgehill, defeated them 4-0 in the crossover.
Losing the past few years in the final, this meant not only the hosts were not in the hunt, but their cross-county rivals were also eliminated their crossover against Dalbrae, 5-4.
Nighthawks head coach Jim McIvor said losing in the home tournament is something they didn’t want to do, but by playing King’s-Edgehill it will help the team moving forward towards provincials.
“We were in a tough division and we didn’t know what any of the teams were going to bring,” he said. “We knew it was a going to be a competitive tournament and we were satisfied with finishing first in our division, I mean our work ethic was there and that’s what I wanted them to bring. When you get up against a good team like King’s-Edgehill, who has a solid team; it’s disappointing to lose, but when you look back at the whole picture it highlights some of the weaknesses we need to improve to get better for the provincials we’re hosting here in Pictou County.”
McIvor said the game against King’s-Edgehill showed the defensive weak points of his team, something they need to work on. He said his team needed to play a stronger team to learn where their focus needs to me.
“I find our team is getting better each month and one of the biggest things we had to work through was the quick puck movement from the better teams and that’s what we’re working on and going to the net,” said McIvor. “Those are key points to develop as a hockey club and I think we’re getting better at that. Our biggest focus now is defensive zone communication and systems in order to control our zone, something we’re lacking slightly.”
“You don’t notice it as much until you meet a really good team like King’s-Edgehill and that’s why our focus will be on our defensive zone control.
He also said there was great feedback from all the teams and players about the tournament and wanted to thank everyone involved in making the tournament a success.
The team is back to regular action this upcoming weekend.
