LAKELAND – The Lakeland Panthers U11 team claimed its first league banner after winning the 2024-25 Alberta U11 AA Hockey League on March 9, defeating the Wainwright Cave Inspection Polar Kings, 4-3.
“It was a really close game,” said Krystian Ference, head coach for the Panthers, after the teams required overtime to determine a winner during the championship game, where the Panthers nailed the final shot.
It has been a long season with its own ups and downs, according to the coach.
“We’re always trying to be the best team at getting better,” he said, and the athletes did do their best and worked hard all season.
The effort was all worth it, “[because] that [banner] was our goal all season,” he said.
At the end of the day, it took a lot of people's efforts to achieve the results, he said, including the parents and the athletes who played their best.
“That's ultimately . . . what it took to win.”
Ference has been a part of the Panther’s U11 AA program for four years. He said the program is a good option for young athletes in the Lakeland area wanting to get better at the game.
With this year’s success, “hopefully it continues to grow next year and beyond."
