It was a wild and woolly weekend in Cougar-town for @sliderlee and the Novice Seals as they played three games in 5 hours at the annual Carman Novice Tournament. The Seals came away with a 1-1-1 record, including an exciting 12-7 victory over Portage 3 in the 3-on-3 game.

The opening game of the weekend for the Seals was an extremely tight-checking 4-4 tie with the host Carman Cougars 1. Christopher Topfer was rock-solid in net and Cam Sarna fired a pair of goals to lead the Oakville offence. Jackson Lee and Kirby Vince also scored for the red and white with Vince scoring "the best goal of his life" on a top-shelf backhand. Maddox Shindle had three helpers for the Seals and Jack Holmes added an assist of his own. Andrew Buchanan was a force all game, generating a number of good chances through hard work.

The second game of the day saw the Seals take on Portage 3 on Carman's B Side Arena. The 3 on 3 format on the modified ice surface always makes for a high-scoring game and the Terriers and Seals didn't disappoint. Rebounding from an early 2-0 deficit the Seals got on the board with Shindle's first of seven goals in the game. Trailing 4-2 after a period the Big Red Machine roared back with six unanswered goals in the middle frame, including two by Tristan Blight and another trademark slapper off the stick of Daehan Butler. Holmes and Topfer added goals in the third period to support Sarna's efforts in goal and the Seals would cruise to a 12-7 win.

The final game of the day saw a tired Seals squad drop a 6-3 decision to Carman Cougars 2. Oakville fell behind 4-0 before Sarna got them on the board in the second period. Blight picked up his third point in two games earning an assist on the play. The momentum was short-lived however as the Seals would give up two quick goals to fall behind 6-1 despite Lee's heroics in net. Oakville started a late comeback when Shindle stole the puck and ripped a wrist shot home with just under five minutes left. Taylor Klaassen kept hopes alive when she set up Shindle for another goal just two minutes later but the well-rested Cougars were able to hold on and close out the game with a comfortable 6-3 win. Vince's physical style was a highlight of the game as he used his generous frame to wear down the Cougars.

It was another great day at the rink for the Seals who played without Colby and Seanna Nikkel who were apparently recovering from a wild 40th Anniversary party the weekend before. Next weekend the team will travel to Portage to play in the annual PMHA Novice Tournament.

Seals Squeals: Kirby Vince was called up from the Oakville Seals Squirts team and was fined by the coaching staff for "failure to utilize a hairbrush"... Jackson Lee was the big winner in the Seals informal colouring contest, creating a monster using only 47 different crayon colours... Andrew Buchanan received a warning from the Tournament organizers for continuing to wear Montreal Canadiens socks... Blight and Lee have been suspended by the team for this weekend's games after Oakville School Principal G. Shindle admitted that some test marks were tampered with in order to ensure that the two remained academically eligible to play...