Happy with the hardware

This has been my first chance since their big game on Monday morning to officially congratulate Jaguar Mite #2 for finishing second in the Chi-Town Cup Tournament held in West Dundee over the holiday weekend. While they lost the championship game 2-0 to St. Jude -- still the only team to beat them since Dec. 4 as the team has gone 12-3-2 -- from what I have seen and heard, the team members were still  thrilled to bring home their first hardware.

I missed the game because of other obligations, but I was updated via text message frequently and have been given varied reports on it since then. It sounds like the first goal was a fluke, while the second one was a legitimate tally for the Knights. If a couple of shots off the post had been an inch or two one way or the other for the Jaguars, it sounds like the outcome would be different.

The loss on Monday, however, in no way takes away from the fact the Jaguars defeated St. Jude 2-1 on Sunday, marking the first time the Jaguar Mite #2 has been able to get past the Knights teams that plays one level above them in the Northern Illinois Hockey League.

I am still hoping to obtain the score sheets from each of the tournament games so I can put together a full report on Mite #2's successful efforts to bring home the hardware. When I do, it will appear here, on Facebook and at http://www.jaguarhockeyclub.com/.

It should be noted, with the start of Mite #2's playoff run just a few days away, that the second-place finish in the Chi-Town Cup Tournament may actually be a good omen for the Jaguars. In their first tournament of the year, at Johnny's Ice House over Thanksgiving, before the run of success began, the team finished in fourth place in the four-team tournament.

In their next tournament outing, the Jaguars took third place in Detroit, losing only to St. Jude in the Motown Cup tournament. Now, at the Chi-Town Cup Tournament, the Jaguars have stepped up second place. Their is, of course, only one more step in that progression and the only tournament left for the Jaguars is the playoffs. (Of course, it doesn't hurt that the Jaguars faced and defeated in West Dundee the team they are likely to face should they advance to the Wolves Cup championship).
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The playoffs for the Jaguars will begin with an 8:30 a.m. home game at Inwood against the Sabres on Sunday morning, Feb. 26. After a win, it will continue with play at the Sabres' home rink, Rocket Ice Arena, on Saturday and Sunday, March 3 and 4. Games will be against the Chicago Jets Saturday and, after a victory, most likely the Chicago Bulldogs.

The Wolves Cup Championship is set for Sunday, March 11, at Inwood. The consolation game will be the afternoon before in Crystal Lake.