Meijer AAA 18U headed to Nationals after winning State Championship
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The Meijer AAA Hockey Club 18U team of the North American Prospects Hockey League (NAPHL) are headed to 2021 USA Hockey Tier 1 Nationals thanks to winning the Michigan State Hockey Championship.
The pathway to the Championship was winning the round-robin, followed by a win in the Semi-Finals, followed by the championship series.
In the round-robin, Meijer went 3-0 defeating Belle Tire, 2-1 in Game 1. The they defeated the Soo Indians in Game 2, 8-1. In Game 3, Meijer defeated Compuware, 5-3.
In the Semi-Finals, Meijer faced the Oakland Jr. Grizzlies with goaltender Nolan Suggs stopping all the shots he faced in a 4-0 win.
In the Championship series, Meijer AAA would face Belle Tire. In Game 1, in was back and forth with Meijer going up 1-0. Belle Tire would score twice to take a 2-1 lead. Meijer would tie the game at 2-2 late in regulation, but Belle Tire would win :20 seconds into overtime.
The loss meant that Meijer had to face Belle Tire again in the double elimination tournament. In the final game, Meijer scored early to take a 1-0 lead. Belle Tire would tie the game late in the 3rd period. In the 3rd overtime, Evan Burkle scored the game-winner on a rebound with Nolan Suggs in net.
Meijer AAA joins CarShield AAA and the Esmark Stars as NAPHL representatives at USA Hockey Nationals this season.