I have always loved playing ice hockey.  I have been playing ice hockey since I was 6 years old. I play for both the school and a club. For my club team, each year players from the team move to a new team based on our age.  

At the start of one season, all team members, including me, didn't think we would make it far in the league. We knew we were small in height and weight to compete with the other teams in our league.

Some of the kids on the other teams were 6" tall and weighed 200 pounds. No one on my team was close to the size of those kids, my coach still pushed us to come to practice three times a week.

During practices, we would start with warm-up drills to get our blood flowing then we would do game-like drills that would prepare us for in-game situations. While doing these, we would have to do them correctly, skate hard, and make smart plays. We also ran through practice plays so that we were ready to score during games and create more chances to score. 

Sometimes when we wouldn't do the drill the way that the coach wanted, he would make us get on the goal line, he would blow the whistle, and we would have to skate from one side of the rink to the other over and over until we did the drills right. We were also made to do this if we didn't play well in a game.

After our first game, we lost 4-1 to start the season.  But then we went on a huge winning streak beating teams left and right to make the playoff with a 17-4 record. When we got to the playoffs, we were ready.

We crushed the regular season and came out in the top 3, we knew if we had been playing the way we played all season, we could win the championship. Our first game in  playoffs was a team that we had played before and had beaten in the regular seasons. We beat them 6-2 in the playoffs. In our second game, we won 5-3 against another team.

We dominated those first two teams and had to play one of the best teams in our league, the Jr. Pens. Each time we played this team in the past, they were close games, as each of us had similar skill levels. This time, we played a great game and won to go to the championship game. 

At the championship game, we would play the same team because of the number of games that they had won.  We knew they were a tough opponent, and they were determined to beat us because their season was on the line, and we knew that we had to lock in and play hard if we wanted to come out on top. 

During the first period of the game, it was a battle, with both teams fighting hard for every 50/50 puck battle. Then we managed to put one in the back of the net first. 

But the Jr. Pens quickly answered back with one of their own.

The rest of the 1st period was very back-and-forth, with both of us getting chances to score but coming up short. In the second period coach said, “We can't come out slow like the whole first period, come out strong and control the game ,” so we did just that and were determined to take control of the game. 

We scored two quick goals and suddenly we were up 3-1.  

The Pens wouldn't give up, they continued to fight as they slipped passed our defense with a couple of moves and passes, and in a blink of an eye, the puck was in the back of our net to make it a one-goal game.

The third period was the most intense because the season was on the line for both teams. It was the  hardest period of hockey our team had played all season. 

Both teams came out fast, but with 10 minutes left in the game, the Pens scored to tie it up. 

We stuck to the game plan and played how we practiced and ran the plays that we went over. 

We quickly got it into their zone, took over the game, got a couple of shots on the net, and got a goal off a rebound from one of the shots to go up 4-3 with 8 min left.