By Kristi Patton /
Nestled in the top scoring leaders of the Alberta Major Midget Female Hockey League is a trio of Medicine Hat Hounds ready to take the league by storm.
The problem is their bark is bigger than their bite—at least for the time being. Young and offensively gifted, the Hounds coach knows it’s just a matter of time.
“The team is statistically warped but the players are starting to mature,” said Hounds assistant coach Kevin Brost of the young squad that is putting points on the board but holding a not so stellar win-loss ratio. “We are a very, very young team but we are blessed with pretty strong players who are emerging as offensive juggernauts and working really hard.”
The trio of Karlee Odland, Erika Sowchuk and Ashley Fitzpatrick are respectively the league’s top three point-getters whose talents complemented each other. The chemistry was instant when they first hit the ice together in a summer tournament that took them to Boston. Before anyone jumps to conclusions claiming the Hounds are a one-line team, coach Brost has something to say about that.
“You look at those three that are leading the league statistically but that is not all there is to this team—they aren’t the only story. We have two pretty strong lines that have a lot of youth and a little bit of bad luck. They produce great scoring chances and play strong around the net but they haven’t found a way to find the back of the net. The team needs to find balance that way,” said Brost. “We are really pleased with how they are all coming along and soon as we start getting some of those wins, this young team will start to get confidence.”
Filing up the bulk of the Hounds roster is a group of 15-year-olds with three under-age players and a handful of veterans. On the back-end, goaltenders Sam Rupp and Tori Campbell have been sharing the duties while in front of them rookies have been earning experience points locking up the blueline. Out of six defenders, only one has AAA experience but combined with the offensive firepower up-front, the team is starting to step into their roles. |