YORKTON: “We just always believed in each other, and we never quit.”
That’s a very common response that players and staff say when asked what made the 2013/14 Yorkton Terriers so special.
The Terriers, led by their general manager Don Chesney and head coach Trent Cassan, were coming off an SJHL title the previous season and had some pretty good expectations heading into the new campaign, with several returnees coming back.
“We knew that we had a bit of momentum from the previous season, but we also knew that it was a new season, and we knew we needed to continue to work hard to put it all together to make it all work,” said then-Terriers General Manager Don Chesney.
The Terriers finished the regular season with a league-best 81 points and then dispatched the Notre Dame Hounds and Humboldt Broncos in five games before sweeping their Highway 10 rivals, the Melville Millionaires, to capture their second straight league title.
After capturing the Western Canada Cup title, the franchise earned their fifth-ever berth in the National Championship.
The Terriers got a wake-up call in Game One of the event, dropping a decision to the Toronto Lakeshore Patriots before they went on a roll, earning themselves a berth in the National Final. against the Carleton Place Canadians.
After killing off a late penalty, Yorkton still trailed 3-1 with three minutes remaining before Tanner Lischynsky and Dylan Johnson scored goals just eight seconds apart to keep them alive and force overtime.
“It was an exceptional comeback, no question, and to say we were able to tie it up like that late and it was just meant to be, Chesney added.
Then, 15:01 into the extra period, Derek Falloon scored his second overtime goal in four days to complete the Terriers’ comeback and give Yorkton its first-ever national Junior A championship.
“I just remember I won the face-off back, and we got a shot on goal, and the rebound came out, and I walked it and tried to jam it through, and I don’t think it even went all the way to the back of the net, but it went in,” Falloon said, reflecting on his OT winner.
Audio with Don Chesney is below: