“[The game] was extremely frustrating because we were clearly the better team but we just dıdn’t execute at the same level we have ın our first two games,” he said. “They played extremely defensively, which at times frustrated us.”

The Canadians then hit their stride in the remainder of the round robin, winning five straight and dropping just one, finishing with a solid 6-3 record. This left them on par with the Czech Republic, whom they met again in a tiebreaker. Like in their first matchup with the Czech team, the Canadians fell short, losing 11-7. Vandermade was upset with his team’s inability to play to its potential when it mattered.

“Once again, we did not play our best against this Czech team and I have no idea why that is,” he wrote.

In a later interview, Vandermade felt that their opponents’ different style of play was one of the reasons the Gaels had trouble winning.

“It was very different. We are used to the Canadian style of play,” he said. “The international teams, I don’t think they were any better than us, but they have a different style. Some teams just hit whatever we threw in … that really frustrated us, it made it difficult for us to get going.”

Vandermade was positive about the trip to Turkey as a whole.

“It was really quite an experience,” he said. “Wearing those Canadian colours is pretty special, not many people get to do that, especially in a place like Turkey.” Being in Erzurum, a city some 10,000 kilometres from Kingston was an unforgettable cultural experience for Vandermade and his teammates.

“It was pretty exciting,” he said. “There were a lot of things to get used to, such as the Call to Prayer that came at 5.30 a.m.” Vandermade said that he was impressed by the warmth and hospitality of Turkish people.

“They were really nice and really excited to host the Games,” he said. “They were really accommodating and made us feel at home in such a foreign place.”

Still, Vandermade could not mask his regret.

“Whenever you’re representing Canada, and you come home without a medal, it’s always disappointing,” he said. “I don’t think we can say we’re satisfied when we come home without a medal.”

Vandermade’s teammate, Scott Chadwick, said he was dissatisfied with the results as well.

“It’s definitely disappointing when you don’t win gold,” he said.

Chadwick said the team’s early exit down to their poor start.

“We struggled early on,” he said. “We had chances in our earlier games, but we couldn’t capitalize. It was frustrating.” But like Vandermade, Chadwick was able to see a silver lining.

“[The tournament] was a great for all four of us,” he said. “To have that Maple Leaf on your back is really a unique experience.”