(posted Apr. 28, 11:30AM NST - Issue Number 29)
Mount Pearl -- PARENTS 24 BLADES 25

What a great year for some great kids!

Farewell Edition

Closing out the hockey season is sometimes disappointing for a team that finds itself coming up short of a championship. However, with the sweet days of summer ahead, the end of the hockey schedule can also be a welcomed milestone.

The cool days of winter will soon be replaced by the warm (we hope) days of summer, and the slap of the puck replaced by the crack of the bat. For some it will be soccer or tennis, and others will enjoy strolls along the peaceful fairways of the golf course. The nail-biting countdown of the last minute in the third period will be forgotten by the time we don our swimming trunks to replace our snowpants. And while the arenas will be closed for the summer, the memories and friendships that were forged in those buildings will last forever. 

This has been a fun hockey season for a great team. Our players have developed friendships that in some cases will last forever. One day they will recall a time and a place when friendships and bonds developed in what can only be described as a surreal world. The french fries tasted better, the Gatorade was sweeter, the snow was deeper and the air was cooler.

In the same way that we look back on our childhood years, our players … our children will recall with the same fondness and nostalgia their days of yesteryear.  As one wise mother so perfectly pointed out during the season … “We are creating memories for our children.” She is absolutely right. So much of what we do creates lasting memories for them. In the years to come our children will remember their teammates and all the good times they shared. In the end, it is the season’s greatest victory.

This season has been memorable for me too. I enjoyed the company of a terrific group of  minor hockey moms, dads, and grandparents. I hope you have been entertained with “The Blades Report”. It has been both a pleasure and a privilege to write for our young All-Star Team. To the coaching parents, the parents and especially the players … you have made this task most enjoyable ... thank-you. And on that note I bid a farewell (not goodbye) to all of you. To steal a quote from a legendary entertainer … ‘Thanks for the memories!’

GO BLADES GO!!!

A special thanks to Dean Younge who brought you this Blades Report along with all the other special features on the Blades Atom B website.  Dean, you certainly kept us informed and on schedule. Thank you for doing such a terrific job on this website !!!