Despite losing 7-1 to Okanagan Hockey Academy Red in the semifinal a day earlier, the Northern Alberta Xtreme of Edmonton still found themselves in the 2017 BDO Kelowna International Elite Midget Tournament final on Sunday.
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Squaring off with their Canadian Sports School Hockey League rivals, the Yale Lions, the Xtreme took full advantage of a second chance, defeating the Abbotsford-based team 3-2 to claim the 38th annual tournament title at the Rutland West Arena.
The OHA Red were disqualified from the event on Saturday for icing two ineligible players borrowed from OHA White. The ruling opened the door for Northern Alberta to not only step through to Sunday’s final, but to win it as well against a team that had defeated the Okanagan Rockets in their semifinal.
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Both the multi-talented Xtreme and the Lions came into the game with multiple players having received tournament all-star nods — Bowen Byram, Josh Williams, and Alex Swetlikoff for Yale, and Jayden Platz, and Kaleb Ergang for Northern Alberta. Swetlikoff is also a 2016 Seattle Thunderbirds bantam draft, while his teammates Roman Basran and Wil Kushniryk are prospects of the Kelowna Rockets.
Josh Williams of the Lions led the tournament in scoring (12G, 7A), in addition to being named tournament MVP. The Xtreme were recipients of the Blair Dietz – Bill Wylie Memorial Trophy for displaying an exceptional level of sportsmanship, work ethic, and fair play throughout the week.
When the puck dropped, Northern Alberta grabbed the lead at 11:53 of the first period when Daniel Baker deposited a set-up from Platz and Josh Prokop. Goaltender Ty Grant turned aside all 16 of Yale’s shots in the period, and their lead stood after 20 minutes.
Yale got to Grant in the second though, as Dylan Cozens took a pass from Swetlikoff, and scored to tie the game at 1-1 at 7:49 of period two. But with just over a minute left in the frame, Northern Alberta’s Prokop made a nifty cross-crease pass to Cole Wyatt who put the puck behind goaltender Mathieu Caron to restore the Xtreme’s lead.
Northern Alberta extended their lead in the third, when Cole Basnett jammed in a juicy rebound created by the hard work of Prokop and Daniel Baker below the goal line. Now down 3-1, the Lions cut their deficit to one goal at 9:43 of the third, as Holden Kodak’s shot bounced off the goaltender’s glove, back, and crossbar before finally resting in the Xtreme’s net.
Seeking the equalizer, Yale pulled its goaltender to add an extra attacker with over two minutes to go. Despite heavy pressure, the Lions could do no better than ringing the post with 1:23 left. Northern Alberta held the fort, and when time ticked down, the championship trophy was headed one province east of B.C.
“It feels great,” said Prokop, who tallied three assists in the championship game. “The boys put in a good effort today and we’re really happy we came out on top.
“I was trying to show as much patience as I could out there — waiting for the right play, the right pass, and didn’t force anything. Things went my way today and I’m happy with that.”
Swetlikoff, was proud of his team’s efforts, despite ultimately dropping the decision in front of his hometown cheering section.
“The boys battled hard today,” said Swetlikoff. “It was a tough loss. We gave it all we had, but it wasn’t the result we wanted. We hit a couple of posts, had some good chances, but we just couldn’t find the back of the net. We’re disappointed, but that’s the way it goes sometimes. We’re going to learn from this experience.”
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