Tears rolled down David Mazurek’s cheeks as he tried to find the words to explain the gut-wrenching end of the season for the strapping Victoria Grizzlies forward.
“Everything happens for a reason. I can’t see the positives right now, but maybe later on I’ll be able to see the reasoning for all this to happen,” said the Ontario native, who ended his junior career in Wednesday’s harsh 3-2 overtime loss to the Alberni Valley Bulldogs.
Mak Barden scored just 18 seconds into overtime, the eighth time the two teams played an extra session this season.
This one was critical though as it ended Mazurek’s junior career and the Grizzlies’ season.
“They’re just a team that didn’t quit battling. … Kudos to them. I wish them the best and I obviously wish them the best in pushing forward and beating the Mainland team,” said Mazurek, who nearly ended it with 40 seconds remaining in the third, only to see Bulldogs goalie Jay Deo make a sensational save, one of 39 on the night.
“Overall, I’m lost for words, lost for emotion,” said Mazurek. “I know that’s cliche, especially in your last year. But looking back and learning everything I’ve learned here with the coaching staff and ownership and players, this has been the best team I’ve been a part of, for sure.
“Everyone, right from the top to bottom, everyone did their best,” he said, his voice cracking and tears rolling. “It’s unfortunate we had to go out this way. It was rough. We could have put them away earlier in the game. But, I’m sure, later on down my journey I will see the importance of this game.”
Of that, there is no doubt.
“It’s bittersweet. We didn’t win the game we wanted to, to take us to the next round,” said GM and head coach Bill Bestwick. “We don’t know how to win yet as a group. We didn’t have that history.
“This would have been one of those watermark opportunities to have won this before our fans and moved on because the kids coming back would have known what it takes,” he added.
“I’m sure the kids coming back will feel this pain for a long time and they will understand what it takes to not have this happen again.”
Mazurek is one of a guaranteed handful of changes, along with fellow graduating 20-year-olds Keyler Bruce, Pearce Eviston (both picked up at the trade deadline), D.J. Jones and Blake Thompson.
Goalie Brady Rouleau is also headed to Quinnipiac University and Nolan DeJong is slated to attend Michigan, leaving holes in the lineup.
Bestwick has already added five players from Ontario, announced last week, and he also looks forward to Edmonton South Side Athletic Club product Nick Chanif, a six-foot, 185-pound defenceman, jumping on board.
“He’s a beauty, he’s going to be a good one,” insisted Bestwick.
“There will be so many changes from what we see now. Some we know now, some we will know between now and Aug. 30. We’ll start to figure out what we need come Monday.”
It doesn’t make the finish to the season any easier for Bestwick and Co., which experienced a solid bounce-back season. The Grizzlies were just 2:38 away from taking the series on Tuesday in Port Alberni, but couldn’t finish.
Two straight overtime losses finished them off.
“Obviously, we had a chance in Game 4 to put this away on the road and we didn’t,” said Bestwick. “We totally dominated the third period [Wednesday] when we needed to and tied it. David [Mazurek] had a chance to win it in the last 30 seconds or so. Their goaltender was the story of this series.
“Hats off to them. Give them credit, they scraped and scrapped and were courageous and did everything they needed to do to win.”
mannicchiarico@timescolonist.com
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