It was a successful season for his team, but a tough way to end it, said Midget AA Northeast Panthers head coach Mike Pasichnuk.
The Panthers lost all four games at this year's provincial championships, which were held in Taber March 24-27.
Though the results were disappointing, Pasichnuk said his team played hard the entire tournament and simply ran into some hot goaltending.
The Panthers lost the first game of provincials 2-1 to the Knights of Columbus Colts, but outshot the Colts 43-31.
"The effort was there, but we couldn't put the puck past a hot goalie," said Pasichnuk.
The Panthers went on to lose to the Taber Golden Suns, Airdrie Lightning and the Red Deer Elks.
"It was a tough way to go out," he said. "We were hoping to fare a little better."
But he added, it was a good learning experience and his players still gained a lot from losing.
"The season as a whole was definitely a success," said Pasichnuk.
The Panthers finished second in the division and advanced to the Northern Alberta Midget AA Hockey League playoff division finals, before losing out to the Camrose Kodiaks. The Panthers also beat both Fort Saskatchewan and Fort McMurray to advance to the provincial tournament.
They did it all with one of the youngest and hardest working lineups in the league, according to the head coach.
This season will just be another learning experience for the young Panthers squad.
"They battled hard all year and learned a lot," explained Pasichnuk. "They see that it takes discipline to win a hockey game, and they worked very hard to get that discipline under control."
The Panthers have 12 players planning to return next season, which will bode well for the team's plans to continue to compete.
"We expect to be a contender again next season."
The Panthers are holding spring camp April 8-10.
