The Novice Canadians from the Sunshine Coast Minor Hockey Association struck gold last weekend in Powell River.
Starting the year with eight players who had never played hockey before, the team then went ahead and lost every game until mid-January, then miraculously came together, worked hard, became friends and ended their year in an incredible way.
The tournament featured teams from as far away as Vancouver Island.
The Canadians won their first three games seeding them first overall, setting them up against Powell River in the championship game. The final was an incredibly close game with the Canadians winning 4-3. All the players played better than they ever had, and four were honoured with special achievement awards from the tournament.
Other highlights included a 10-goal tournament performance from Oliver Dorey, defenceman Finn Brooks scoring a hat trick, Aman Smardon scoring eight goals and adding several assists, and goalie Liam Allen was stellar in net, making saves that Roberto Luongo would love.
After the final seconds ticked away in the last game and the Canadians had won, suddenly the rink surface resembled the gold medal hockey game after Sidney Crosby slid in that famous goal. There was hockey gear and sticks all over the ice while players hugged and jumped into a pile. The boys and girls on the team then shook hands and thanked their opponents, lined up along the blue line and received their medals.
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