The Sechelt Hurricanes picked up an unlikely, come-from-behind shoot-out victory in Victoria Jan. 17, in the Pacific Cup hockey tournament.
The old timers men's teams have been perennial competing teams in this event, won of the largest old timers' tournaments in North America. Sechelt won their division after 15 years of trying.
Sechelt's march to the podium got off to a faltering start with Campbell River B-Tram dropping a 3-2 decision.
However, Sechelt regrouped with a 2-1 victory over Esquimalt Holms Slackhawks.
On Sunday they took the next game, an impressive 4-1 win over the Coquitlam Diplomats, which qualified them for the gold medal game later that day. Injuries took their toll, though, and the 'Canes with only nine players on the roster found themselves facing the same Campbell River squad that had defeated them on Friday.
The Hurricanes found the net first, with Albert Bezaire scoring on a nice shot from the faceoff circle. Campbell River came back to go ahead 2-1, setting the stage for a dramatic comeback.
With 'Canes goalie Ron Skei on the bench for the extra attacker, Scott Fearnley tied the game with only 37 seconds left on the clock. The teams then went to five minutes of sudden death overtime, with Skei making one spectacular save after another, including a penalty shot, to preserve the tie and send the game to a shoot-out.
Skei was the story again in the shoot-out, stopping the first three Campbell River attempts, while Scott Leibing, Ken Capron and Bezaire scored consecutively for the Hurricanes to give them the title.
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