The Northwest Sockeyes won gold at the Tigers Invitational Tournament in Prince George.
Players from Prince Rupert, Terrace and Kitimat formed a select team, the Northwest Sockeyes, to compete at the Elk Centre from Apr. 5 – 7, against four other teams.
READ MORE: North West Sockeyes compete in Prince George this weekend
The Sockeyes won their gold medal game battling it out with the Prince George Tigers. The home team took an early 1 – 0 lead until the Sockeyes shot four straight goals to take the lead going into the third period.
The Tigers pushed back, taking two further goals, however, another goal from the Sockeyes solidified their win and a gold medal in the tournament.
“It’s really incredible to see these young kids go from battling each other on the ice all winter to coming together and playing as a team,” said coach Aaron von Schleinitz.
“Now you walk in the changeroom and you would never guess these kids were once rivals as they laugh and talk with each other. Even more impressive is the way they are playing together as a team.
“It has been refreshing to see our three towns work together on this too, kids and parents. Our Sockeye symbol even has each town’s colours incorporated into the design. I’m hoping this is the start of something new and that we see more cooperative teams like this in the future.”
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