The South Delta Warriors captured the Princeton Bantam Hockey Tournament, held Nov. 25-27.
The Warriors, under head coach Paul Kirk, won the championship game 5-1 against the Abbotsford Snipers.
The road to gold began on the Firday night with a 4-3 win over host Princeton. The visitors jumped out to a 4-0 lead on two goals from Logan Newman and a goal and two assists from Brad Lebus. The Okanagan team fought back with three third period goals to make it close.
The Warriors took what would be their only loss of the tournament the following afternoon when they faced Cloverdale, which had gone 5-0 in pre-tournament action. The Fraser Valley team scored four times in the first period and three in the second en route to an 8-2 victory.
South Delta bounced back with a strong performance in its Saturday night game against Williams Lake.
The Warriors netted goals from four different players in the first period, jumping out to a 4-0 lead. They extended the margin to 6-1 after two as Brayden Kirk netted his second of three goals on a pass from Spencer Richardson, who finished with four assists. The final score was 10-2.
With its 2-1 record and on the strength of the tie-breaker, the South Delta team earned its way into the championship final Sunday morning.
The game started as a tight-checking affair. Both teams mustered offensive opportunities, but the strong and steady defensive pairings of Alex Cafik-Irwin with Newman and Connor Bower with Kaden Janzen rebuffed every Abbotsford foray into the South Delta zone.
Up front, wingers Liam Peake and Michael Manojlovic confounded their opponents with their tenacious forecheck and strong positional play.
In the first minute of the second period, Brad Phillips scored off a brilliant rush by defenseman Tanner Dulko, who blazed up ice and into the Snipers' zone, drawing both defenders before leaving a perfect drop-pass for Phillips, who snapped a quick shot just inside the post on the Abbotsford goaltender. The Warriors added to their lead with goals by Lebus and Kirk later in the second period.
With the score 4-0 and eight minutes remaining in the third period, the Abbotsford players became their own worst enemies, taking penalties that handed South Delta a two-man advantage. With Liam Maloney wreaking havoc in front of the net, the Warriors moved the puck around, eventually getting it to Richardson, who wristed home the team's fifth goal from the high slot.
Despite losing his shutout bid with just over two minutes remaining, Declan Bostock was strong in net and was named the championship game's most valuable player.
The Warriors now look forward to four regular season games in the next three weeks. Just after Christmas, they will suit up for the South Delta Party In Da House Tournament, where they will be joined by teammate Mackenzie Marquis, who was unable to make tge trip to Princeton.
In addition to Kirk, the Warriors are coached by Cliff Maloney, Brian Newman and Andrew Richardson.
