Hurricanes and Huskies joined forces to win gold on Wednesday.
A mixed squad of players from the Holy Family Hurricanes and the Hidden Valley Huskies went undefeated in seven games to take the top spot at the Whitehorse Elementary Hockey Tournament at the Canada Games Centre.
The mixed team captured the gold with a 6-1 win over the Whitehorse Elementary School #1 team in the final.
“Out of all the teams I’ve been around, it was like these kids almost coached themselves,” said Elgin Schwantz, coach of the Hurricanes-Huskies team. “They all knew what they were doing; they knew their jobs. It was fun. It was a great experience for everybody.”
The Hurricanes-Huskies took control of the final early on. Kailem Letto scored three minutes in during a scramble in front of the Whitehorse Elementary net.
Teammate Joe Stokes then got the game-winner a minute later - the first of two goals by Stokes - on a tight-angle shot on a rebound.
Letto and Stokes provided goals and leadership for their team, said their coach.
“They were like our leaders. They brought our little ones under their wing and tried to set them up for goals,” said Schwantz. “It was a great treat to watch.”
[image2]
Also scoring for the Hurricanes-Huskies were Paige Stockley, Bryce Anderson and Mack Whip.
Goalie Ethan Vanderklay, who posted two shut-outs during the tournament, got the win for the Hurricanes-Huskies.
Defenseman Jared McCulloch scored for the Whitehorse Elementary Wolves midway through the 30-minute, one-period final to make it 3-1.
The silver-winning Wolves was one of three teams entered by Whitehorse Elementary with a total of 36 players competing from the school.
“It’s a record,” said Wolves coach Alain Desrochers.
“I’m really proud of the participation. Every kid participated,” he added. “We had a big number of participants - 36 kids - that’s a big thing for me.”
The Elijah Smith Elementary Eagles, last year’s champion team, took the bronze in an 8-1 win over a mixed team of Selkirk Elementary and Ecole Emilie-Tremblay.
Jordan Vallevand had two goals for the Eagles in the bronze game and Aimery Barreault scored for Selkirk-Emilie-Tremblay, nicknamed “Sleet” at the tourney.
A total of 11 schools were represented on 11 teams with players from Grades 4 through 7.
“All these kids look forward to this event because it is the only time they can wear their school colours and play hockey for their school,” said Ted Hupe, tournament organizer and Holy Family principal. “They play together all the time in the house league, but this is a chance for them to kick it up a notch.
“But there’s no rough stuff. There’s no contact; it’s a clean tournament - we ref it strictly. We’re trying to foster sportsmanship and fair play. If you noticed: our little ones were playing.”
Contact Tom Patrick at
tomp@yukon-news.com