The 2002 Okanagan Lakers went 2-2 at the B.C. Bears Spring Hockey Tournament last weekend at the Olympic Oval in Richmond.
The Lakers played a smart passing game to double the B.C. Blackhawks 4-2 and ice the Vancouver Selects Blacks 5-4.
The Lakers, featuring 14 North Okanagan products, stumbled with an 8-5 loss to the Island Stars and a 5-0 defeat to the Bears.
The Lakers, coached by Jason Danbrook and former NHLers Sandy Moger and Byron Dafoe, started their spring season with gold at the Kamloops Ice Pirates AAA Tournament.
The Okanagan crew went 5-0, starting with an 8-5 win over the Vancouver Jr. Giants, despite being shorthanded nine times. They then rolled wins over the Calgary Havoc (11-1) and Ice Pirates (5-1) before stuffing the Giants 6-2 in the final.
Meanwhile, Gavin Fleck fired the overtime winner as the 2001 Viper Pride shaded the B.C. Blackhawks to win the Gold Division at the Mainland Cup last weekend in Vancouver.
The Pride struck first on a goal by Rowan Miller before the Hawks stormed back with three unanswered goals. Undeterred, the Pride replied on a hard slap shot from the slot by Ben McDonald, assisted by defenceman Ley Christensen. With 1:45 remaining and their goalie pulled, the Pride tied it up on a goal by hard-working Kael Black, assists to Fleck and Miller.
Coached by Jonathan Miller, Doug Fleck and Don Brew, the Pride opened the tourney by stuffing the West Vancouver Blackhawks 2-1, with speedster Riley Keyes and Miller handling the attack. Hard-hitting Ben Imrich earned game MVP and Caden Colmorgen took the win.
Colmorgen was MVP as the Pride bowed 4-2 to West Coast Elite Hockey Academy. Miller and Colten Irmen netted the Viper goals.
In their final round-robin, game MVP Miller scored with the goalie pulled and 18 seconds to play to salvage a 3-3 draw with the Vancouver Jets. Keyes and Dylan Huber each added a single.
In a semifinal rematch with the Jets, the Pride played a complete team game to secure a 5-0 win. MVP went to Rory Christie-Hoyle.
In Novice action, the 2004 Lakers won the silver division at the Mainland tournament, spooking the Vancouver Mutants 4-3 in OT. Scotty Hoffman capped a stellar solo effort with a nice deke for the winner.
The Novice crew – comprising local players Bennett Kuhnlein, Hoffman, Adam Bourgeois, Jace Weir, Liam Leibel and Nicholas Noren – went 1-1-1 in round-robin play, including with a 4-3 loss to the Westcoast Wolverines, a 4-4 tie with the Vancouver Selects and a 9-2 win over the Vancouver Jr. Giants. They bounced the South Surrey Tigers 6-2 in playoff action.
