“This has been the best season in terms of success for the team”, the words of Trevor Green, one of the goalies for the Trent hockey team who has done outstanding this season and shown they can contend with the best in Ontario.
They have evolved from a team that was obsolete in regards to championships and will now be a top contender in the Challenge Cup. The hard work put in by both players and coaches continues to pay off with their success on the ice and officially being ranked number one in the province.
On Thursday, March 5, they attended a tournament in Alliston winning three of four of their games. They beat Lakehead 3-1, Humber-Lakeshore 4-2 and Fleming 5-1. They lost in the semi-finals against Georgian-Owen Sound. Georgian-Owen Sound went on to win the tournament against Fanshawe.
This was Trent’s first regular season loss, which is an incredible accomplishment.
The Trent hockey team in the previous years have been less than outstanding. They have always been a decent contender, but never a top contender like they are this year. Out of five tournaments that they have attended this year they won three. In the other two tournaments they made to at least the semi-finals.
The amount of tournaments they have won just this year matches the amount of tournaments they have won in the previous three years. This goes to show the drastic transformation that this team has gone through and the success of not only the players and the team, but the success of the coaches.
The Trent hockey team has attended the Kawartha Cup final game three times in their history, and won it for the first time this year, clearly showing that this team is the best team throughout their past seasons.
Though hockey is easily the most popular sport in Canada; the Trent hockey team has not usually been the top sport throughout the University. The students around the campuses in previous years have not heard much about the team or had not known Trent had a team at all.
However, that is all changing as the Trent hockey is becoming more and more successful and gaining the attention of students. Trent now has a team playing Canada’s most loved sport that they can rally behind and be excited for.
When asked what the hockey team means to Trent, assistant coach Jack Barry had this to say: “Over the years the team has had different meanings to Trent. I think at one point when the team was originally founded around 2010 it represented an experiment to see if it would actually work. Since then we have had a lot of really dedicated players and coaches who have been able to demonstrate through our success that this team is here to stay.”
He continued, “The Trent hockey community is alive and thriving and interested in supporting our team as evidenced by the success of the Kawartha Cup events. The team represents a real opportunity for the University to be able to grow athletic programs, boost University pride, and increase the Trent’s profile through high-level competition with Colleges and Universities across the Province.”
Jack Barry especially knows what he is talking about, having been on both sides of the bench. Before he became the assistant coach to head coach Gavin McKnight he was a player for the Trent hockey team for two years. Having been a player as well as a student (and is a current student) he knows the effect of the hockey team on the Trent community and the importance of the hockey team to Trent students and vice versa.
The team is more than just a hockey team for the players. A lot of them have been on the team for the past four years and have been through the tough years and endured the hardships to achieve their most successful year yet.
However, for the team, all of their success means nothing if they cannot win the championship. Trevor Green is one of the players that have been on the team for the past four years and knows first-hand what it means to have come as far as they have this season, but knows the importance of continuing their hard work, “I don’t want to say the season was a success until we ultimately win the championship.” This goes to show the dedication the players have to the team and the importance of the team to them as students and players.
The Trent hockey team plays in the championship tournament for the Challenge Cup on March 19 in Cornwall. Though the players will not define their season as successful without the championship, the school and the students regardless of the outcome in Cornwall see this year’s hockey team as incredibly successful and awakes the love of Trent and the love of hockey in all of us.