The Home Hardware Midget AAA Legionnaires' hopes of reaching the playoff round at the Mac's Midget AAA Tournament have been extinguished.

Swift Current first needed the Hungarian National U18 team to beat the St. Albert Raiders, then the Red Deer Optimist Chiefs to win over the Saskatoon Contacts to advance to the playoff round.

That scenario ended in the first matchup as, after leading 2-1 through 20 minutes, Hungary ended up losing 4-2 to the Raiders.

Finishing with a 2-1-1 record was certainly a positive outcome for a Legionnaires team who hadn't made an appearance at the renowned tournament since 2003.

"Well, I think it's just our Legionnaires organization right now. We're starting to get into opportunities where you become a successful team," said head coach Darren Evjen.

The Legionnaires started on a rough note, losing to the Calgary Buffaloes 9-1 in their first game of the round-robin.

"Getting to the Mac's is one thing," Evjen added. "Once we got here we were a bit awe-struck the first game, and then started getting some experience and started understanding how hard you have to play here every shift."

Swift Current moved to 0-1-1 with a 5-5 tie against the Cariboo Cougars - a game that saw the Prince George-based team jump out to a 5-0 lead, only to have the Legionnaires battle back for the single point.

The Legionnaires close the tournament out with two straight wins - a 5-2 contest on Friday over the Knights of Columbus Pats, and a 7-2 victory earlier this afternoon against the Carolina Jr. Hurricanes.

In the first Mac's for this Swift Current roster, it was a learning experience their head coach expects will continue to aide what's been a positive 2017-18 season to this point.

"We just take it step-by-step, learn every day, and make our organization better every day," said Evjen. "That's what we did here [at the Mac's]."

The Legionnaires aren't back into their league schedule until a January 9 home game against the Notre Dame Argos.