PREECEVILLE — Newcomers to the Sask East Hockey League this season, the Preeceville Pats senior hockey team recently completed the 14-game regular schedule without a win.
The Pats began their season with high hopes and after a 20 year absence from senior hockey competition, team members were all eager to kick-start the season. Their hopes soon hit reality with their first game in Kamsack against Cote, a 17-0 win for the Selects. The next game was the Pats home opener played in front of a large hometown crowd on Nov. 11 against Canora that saw another loss, this time 13-0 for the Cobras.
On Nov. 17 the Pats took on Theodore at home with a 20-0 loss. November 25 saw Wapella facing off against Preeceville at the Preeceville Arena, a 3-0 loss for the home team.
December saw the Pats take on Churchbridge in Preeceville. Preeceville fared a little better and scoring two goals but still netted a loss of 9-2. Scoring for Preeceville were Patrick Labonte assisted by Dawson and Dreyton Paul, and Jorie Dull assisted by Carter Masley and Dreyton Paul.
The Parts travelled to Theodore on Dec. 9 and came out on the short end of a 15-1 final score.
The only Pats goal scorer was Coleman Metherell, assisted by Justin Abrahamson and Noah Tonn.
On Dec. 16, Cote was in Preeceville and defeated the Pats with a final score of 9-5, but the Pats did set a season best of five goals. Scoring for Preeceville was Dawson Paul assisted by Hudsyn Nelson and Jarod Prouse; Hudsyn Nelson, unassisted; Jorie Dull assisted by Alex Nagy; Justin Abrahamson, unassisted and Chase Zuroski assisted by Hudsyn Nelson.
Dec. 22 had Preeceville travelling to Canora with a 12-1 loss. Hudsyn Nelson scored the only goal on an assist by Dreyton Paul. The last game of December saw Preeceville in Swan Valley in a game that ended in a 23-1 final score for Swan Valley. Coleman Metherell was the only Pat who put one between the posts, assisted by Noah Tonn.
The first game of the 2024 New Year was in Rocanville and ended in a 23-0 final score for Rocanville. Jan. 12 was the next game against Ituna, held in Neudorf, a 6-3 loss for the Pats. Scoring for Preeceville were: Coleman Metherell, assisted by Jorie Dull and Chase Zuroski; Dreyton Paul unassisted and Jared Prouse, also unassisted.
Cote was back in Preeceville on Jan. 20 and won with a 15-1 final score. Dawson Paul scored for the Pats, assisted by Spencer Leech and Hudsyn Nelson.
February saw Preeceville facing off in their last two games, Feb. 2 against Churchbridge with 14-0 loss and their last game was played in Preeceville against Swan Valley on Feb. 3. The Pats last game of the season was also their closest, with the home team jumping out to a 3-1 lead after two periods of play. But their first win of the season was not in the cards, as costly mistakes resulted in a 4-3 final score in favour of Swan Valley.
“We sincerely want to thank everyone from the sponsors, volunteers, fans and family members who stuck by us and followed us through this first year back. It was because of you we made this season a success and we are already looking forward to sharing next season with everyone,” said Dreyton Paul, spokesperson for the team.
