Monday Commentary: Maybe Next Year

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If you love sports – particularly hockey – you’ll like this story.

You might not have heard but my hometown Milestone (SK) U18 Flyers were headed to the provincial final against the Aberdeen Flames with the chance to win the whole thing for the first time since we did it back in 1989 with yours truly in goal.

So they asked me to broadcast the home game(s) in the series and that’s what happened on Sunday from the still-beautiful Milestone Memorial Centre.

It was a thrill, an honour, and something I was going to take very seriously because it’s a big deal for everybody. Plus I was a little envious of the furor sweeping the province which comes with spring hockey playoffs, so it was nice to be able to experience a little chunk of it.

Now, after calling thousands of games and after decades in the business, I think one of the things I still love the most about it is never knowing what’s going to happen! There’s always the chance we’re going to see something we’ve never seen before. And we did.

The Flames won Game 1 at home last weekend 5-3 but I was informed the Saskatchewan Hockey Association did away with the traditional two-game total goal format a few years ago.

Milestone had to win Sunday’s Game 2 to force a Game 3, which would be decided in the form of a 10-minute OT period. No sudden death. Just like the NLL’s popular playoff format.

So there I was calling the action and wouldn’t you know it, Milestone dominated Game 2 by a 4-1 score, forcing the 10-minute Game 3.

But a funny thing happened on the way to ending the 36-year drought.

Aberdeen flipped the script. And the Milestone Flyers did too.

In that 10-minute OT, the two teams swapped roles. It was the Flames who dominated, Milestone inexplicably forgot how to play, and Aberdeen walked off with a 3-1 victory and the provincial title.

Game, set, match.

What the hell happened?

We saw the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat all wrapped up in one evening and judging by the messages I got on my phone, there was a heckuva big audience tuning in from all across the land. They were stunned too.

The pleasure was mine but the pain belongs to those 20 kids wearing Milestone uniforms who are probably waking up today wishing they could play it all over again.

Maybe next year.

That’s today’s Rod Pedersen Commentary.

(The Rod Pedersen Show airs daily at 12 pm & 4 pm ET on Game+TV, Podcast & YouTube Live)