It’s been a little more than a month since the Huntsville Muskoka Otters were upset in their opening round of the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League playoffs, and head coach Tom McCarthy still has trouble believing the season is over.

“It has been difficult to be even interested with what is happening with the league. It is always a quick reminder of what you think might have been.”

The Otters were dumped in seven games by a hot Stouffville Spirit, a team that finished 17 points behind Huntsville in the regular season standings, but were on a roll when they faced the Otters.

Huntsville, who received a first round bye for winning the North Division’s regular-season title, never got on track in the series. The Otters trailed every game but managed in each contest to fight back.

Huntsville had a 3-2 lead in the series after five games, but couldn’t put away the plucky Spirit.

McCarthy said that even weeks after the defeat, he is still replaying the series over in his mind now and then.

“You question everything. You question everybody. When I say everybody, you include yourself as well. It is a time of digesting. Sometimes it takes longer, sometimes it takes no time at all. Other people handle it in different ways, but as far as an athlete goes, when it’s over, it’s over but it has been a little time for us to get rolling again.”

He said what hurts him the most about the loss is how the players took it, especially the veterans like Josh Vatri, Ron Rogers and Ken Carswell, who have all played their last junior games.

“I feel bad about the lost opportunity that was available to them,” he said.

McCarthy, true to form as a players’ coach, wouldn’t say what decisions or player moves he should have done differently during the series, but he does say some mistakes were made.

“It would be like opening a can of worms to make some suggestions what hindsight can tell you. There were a lot of things decided upon that didn’t work out or weren’t the right decisions at the time. It doesn’t have to mean about what went on the ice. It is about preparation of a number of things. It is not always execution. Maybe some of the decisions made during the break (between season’s end and start of the playoffs) weren’t correct. But if you made the same decisions next year, they could turn out to be the best thing in the world.”

He did say that the run for first place in the North Division took a big toll on the players’ health and mental state before the playoffs began.

“We put a lot into (winning first) and we worked very hard. But at that point I think we needed to get some rest as opposed to trying to keep rolling. These players never get a break, and you can’t do this or anything 12 months a year. That’s why they get burnt out. We tried to stay the course to first and it hurt us.”

The next step in getting the team prepared for the 2008-2009 season begins next month as the Otters host their first pre-season training camp.

The first camp will be May 24 and 25. The second camp is June 21 and 22 at the Allandale Arena in Barrie. Both camps will feature a special on-ice clinic for goaltenders only. Only 12 goalies will be accepted for each camp.

Each camp includes three game sessions with game practice time. All participants will receive an Otters practice jersey. The fee for each camp is $135. All players must have a permission-to-skate form before stepping on the ice. There are no exceptions.

Players interested in trying out for the junior A hockey team are asked to fill out the forms found on the Otters’ website www.huntsvilleotters.com  and send the completed documents in to guarantee a spot.

The forms can be returned either by fax 788-5066, e-mailed to office@huntsvilleotters.com or sent by mail to Huntsville Muskoka Otters, c/o the Jack Bionda Arena, 20 Park Drive, Huntsville, Ontario Canada P1H 1P5.