When all the goals had been scored and penalty minutes tallied, the north ended up the big winners at the BCAHA Bantam Tier 3 Provincial Championships, with Smithers running and hosting a successful tournament, and Terrace reigning as the Provincial Champions.
The teams were fairly evenly matched throughout the five days of hockey at the Smithers Civic Centre Arena. Nine zones across the province were represented by Whistler, Revelstoke, Whitehorse, TriPort (North Vancouver Island), Nelson, Dawson Creek, Ridge Meadows, Quesnel, Terrace and Smithers.
At the end of three and a half days of round robin play, both divisions of five teams had ties that needed to be sorted by either numbers of wins and losses, or by points for and against. In Division A, Revelstoke and Whitehorse finished with five points each; Revelstoke took the second place spot with more wins. In Division B, there were three teams tied for first, all with three wins and one loss. After adding up goals for and against, Nelson and Quesnel moved on, while Dawson Creek’s run at the Championship was over.
The Smithers Storm played hard throughout the tournament, although they didn’t make the finals. Their week started out with a heartbreakingly close 7-6 loss to Nelson. Later the same day, the tired Storm players fell 4-1 to Quesnel after the official opening ceremonies. On Monday, the Storm were beat 5-2 by the Dawson Creek Canucks; on Tuesday, the boys rebounded, beating out Ridge Meadows 7-1 in both teams’ last game of the tournament.
Organizer and Storm parent Chris Steenhof said he was pleased with how well the team did, as well as the crowd support during the home team’s games.
“They were competitive with a team that made it to the finals,” he said.
In semifinals on Wednesday evening, Terrace beat Nelson 7-4, earning a spot in the gold medal game against Quesnel, who beat Revelstoke 3-2 in a come-from-behind tie that ended after a Thunder goal less than a minute into overtime.
Thursday morning started out with the third place game between Nelson and Revelstoke, which ended with a 4-3 win for Nelson.
The gold medal final between Terrace and Quesnel – the only team in the tournament with a female player – took to the ice at 11 a.m. in front of a couple hundred hockey fans that managed to make time for the game on a weekday.
“There was great attendance today for a final game,” said Steenhof.
Terrace came out playing hard, taking a 4-0 lead after the first period. By the end of the second, the score was up 9-0, but Quesnel fought back in the third, holding Terrace scoreless and racking up two goals of their own, for a 9-2 final score.
Terrace coach Jesse Schroeder said his team had a game plan they’ve been working on all year, and it paid off in the Provincials.
“One tough loss can put you out,” he said. “We worked on our game plan all year, and we implemented it in every game.”
Schroeder said the Quesnel Thunder’s energy and perseverence impressed him.
“They put it all out there. They played really tough to get here,” he said.
Organizer John Wreggitt pointed out that the fight for third place might have been more energetic if bronze medals were awarded at provincial hockey tournaments.
“Every other sport I’ve been involved in, there’s been bronze medals,” he said. “Teams put more effort into it, there’s more meaning to that final game.”
Schroeder said the tournament as a whole was a pleasure for the Terrace team and their families and supporters.
“It was a great tournament. The whole Smithers area, the people put on an excellent tournament,” he said.
Organizers also said feedback from businesses in town was positive, as well as their support of the tournament. Parents of players were for the most part impressed both with Smithers, and with the tournament itself.
“Provincials aren’t just about hockey, it’s about the whole experience,” said Steenhof.
When asked if all the countless hours volunteered were worth it, Wreggitt didn’t hesitate, saying “absolutely, I’d do it again.”