It’s my yearly wishlist for the upcoming season, but it was hard to come up with many things after a Robertson Cup appearance that’s not “Win the whole thing.” But to get to where you’re going, you’ve got to look where you’ve been. While this past season was a great marker, it does leave more for the Black Bears to do in 2023-24. As always with this– it’s what I want to happen and no indication from elsewhere that it actually will.
1. Continuing the Balance: In their fifth season, the Black Bears eclipsed the 200-goal mark as a team (215 to be exact), while also keeping their goals-against total to 140 goals. With a solid balance like that, it wasn’t a surprise the Black Bears took home the East Division titles in both the regular season and playoffs. While it’s a tough act to follow, the powers that be have had a keen eye to find the talent to be able to continue the balance of having a high powered offense while also being a solid defensive team.
2. Keep the Roster Deep: One of the biggest attributes for the Black Bears for ‘22-23 was the depth that they had through the season. Being able to get scoring from your line-up depth while also not being a liability on the defensive side was a trademark for the Black Bears and something they need to try and recreate as much as they can going forward. Hopefully, with a good amount of returnees and different pieces from the main camp; the depth can run just as deep and provide as much value as it did this past season.
3. Run It Back: It’s always difficult to win back-to-back division titles in sports, especially junior hockey; as the turnover of players is a wild card for every team. However, the Black Bears have shown in years past that the players may change, but the message stays the same– outwork and conquer. This past season showed that the message was received and followed through on. It will be a bit more difficult next season with two more teams entering the division, but the same number of playoff spots being available. More than ever, the work ethic of the 2023-24 Black Bears will be the determining factor when all is said and done.
Clutch And Crab Hockey 