As the Osoyoos Coyotes head into the playoffs, starting Friday night on home ice against the Princeton Posse, they have a chance to make a brand new start.
The local squad ended the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL) regular season in a respectable third place in the Okanagan Division.
The Coyotes have proven for most of the 2012-13 regular season that they are an excellent team with many talented players. They make Osoyoos proud and they deserve the community’s full support during what everyone hopes is a long playoff run.
The regular season has been one of ups and downs, but the Coyotes have played very well for the most part since Christmas and have shown that when they play their best hockey, they can beat any team in the KIJHL.
After a red-hot 12-2 start that saw them climb to the very top of the league standings, there was an extended period of poor play where the club lost 13 of 15 games.
But to their credit, the Coyotes found their groove again and finished the season strong.
One trouble spot throughout the regular season has been losing games in overtime as the Coyotes lost seven times in extra time.
But when they were good, they were very good.
There isn’t another team that could dominate them when the Coyotes were playing at their best.
Head coach and general manager Ken Law says his club is confident heading into the playoffs.
His team matches up well against Princeton, even though the Posse won five of eight games during the regular season, including a 7-2 blowout in Princeton last Friday night.
As is often the case in playoff hockey, this series is most likely going to come down to which team plays better defence and gets the best goaltending.
There is little to choose between the two clubs as they can both score goals with the best teams in the league. They both have excellent special teams, although the Posse might have a slight edge in the fact they have an even better power-play than the Coyotes.
If the Coyotes spend too much time in the penalty box, it could prove to be the difference in the series.
Osoyoos is a very good hockey town and large crowds are expected when the series opens Friday night at the Sun Bowl Arena.
After games two and three in Princeton Saturday and Monday night, the series returns to Osoyoos Tuesday night.
This should be an excellent series and one that should go six or seven games.
There is no reason to believe the Coyotes can’t defeat Princeton even though they head into the series as underdogs.
One thing is for sure. Playoff hockey is thrilling most of the time and this series should be great to watch over the next week to 10 days.
It’s time for Coyotes’ fans to rally behind this team, fill the stands and make some serious noise starting Friday night.
If the Coyotes can get past Princeton, they are capable of going on a memorable playoff run.
It’s not going to be easy, but then again, playoff hockey never is.