The mission is clear in Jesse Pomeroy's mind - get back to the Mac's final and win it.
Pomeroy, the 17-year-old captain of the Cariboo Cougars, was part of the Cariboo team that won the prestigious Mac's AAA Midget Hockey Tournament two years ago. He was also a member of last year's club, which made it to the semifinal round but was eliminated. Pomeroy and the Cougars start their latest Mac's quest on Boxing Day in Calgary.
"Last year, it was pretty tough to lose in semis because we believed that we could make it and we believed that we could have won that tournament," said the six-foot, 170-pound defenceman. "It just makes it that much more this year, how much we want it."
The Cougars claimed their Mac's title when they downed the Regina Pat Canadians 2-1 in double overtime on New Year's Day of 2015. In their efforts to repeat as champion, they made it to the playoff round last year but weren't able to get past the Lloydminster Bobcats, who beat them 5-2 and advanced to the final against the Calgary Midget Flames. In the final, the Flames emerged as 2-1 victors.
The Cougars are one of 25 male teams in this edition of the Mac's, the 39th annual. To guarantee themselves a playoff spot, they need to finish first in their five-team pool. Failing that, they could still make playoffs based on their record in pool play - outside of the five first-place finishers, the teams with the three next-best records will qualify.
The 15- to 17-year-old Cougars will open the Mac's against the Calgary Northstars. Then, on Dec. 27, they'll take on the Notre Dame Hounds. After a day off, the Cats will be back in action on Dec. 29 against the New York Junior Islanders and they'll close out pool play with a Dec. 30 game against the South Side Athletic Club Boston Pizza Athletics of Edmonton.
Pomeroy, who wants to be a steadying influence for his teammates, has every reason to believe the Cougars are capable of winning the pool.
"We've never actually seen (the other teams) before because they're not in our league or anything but we've searched them up (on the internet)," he said. "We've looked at their records and stuff and we think that we have a good chance to do well in our pool."
In their league, the B.C. Hockey Major Midget League, the Cougars have been dominant this season. The team has been built to host the Telus Cup national championship tournament in April and has shown its power to league rivals almost every game. Heading into the Mac's, the Cougars have a first-place record of 21-2-1.
As the Telus Cup host, the Cats will be looking to make a statement at the Mac's. On the flipside, every other team will be gunning for them.
"Everybody knows that we're hosting the Telus Cup," said Trevor Sprague, head coach and general manager of the Cougars. "Maybe not so much the New York team, but I think the other guys in our pool and the other Canadian teams that will be there have scouted us, watched us, and understand that we're definitely a team that has a chance to do something at the Mac's and get back to the final.
"Our players, they can't take a day off or a shift off," he added. "They have to go to work every day."
Sprague also said this year's Mac's field is the toughest he's seen, partly because of the inclusion of national teams from Belarus, Austria and Hungary.
Tournament games will be held at Max Bell Centre and Father David Bauer Arena. The final, as usual, will take place on Jan. 1 at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
Part of what makes the Mac's special is the atmosphere that surrounds the tournament. It's typical for 3,000 fans (including NCAA and junior hockey managers and scouts) to attend preliminary games. Interest is even higher for playoff contests. Sprague said about 10,000 people were in the Saddledome seats for the final two years ago.
"That all gives it a huge excitement," said Sprague, whose Cougars are in the Mac's for the ninth consecutive year. "And Calgary fully supports that tournament. The community there is very proud of the Mac's tournament. Calgary is represented in each pool, so that brings all their fans, their culture, into the arena. So it's pretty exciting to see all those different walks of people."
Sprague said former Prince George residents now living in Calgary even come out to see the Cougars play. Every year, in fact, he sees people strolling around wearing Cariboo gear.
"It's pretty cool to be able to walk out and see a Cariboo Cougars jersey or a tuque or whatever and you're like, 'Who the heck is that?'" Sprague said. "So that's the type of atmosphere that you get. And just hockey fans. It's crazy. There's people from all over Canada and North America that come to watch that tournament. They're not there just to cheer on one team, they're there because the hockey is so good and the atmosphere is so great."
