The Islanders came over to Vancouver Island and get to leave with a championship.
The Seafair Islanders defeated the Prince George Cougars 3-0 on Thursday night at the Nanaimo Ice Centre to win B.C. Hockey’s bantam Tier 1 championship.
“I thought we played hard tonight,” said Jaden Uy, who scored the first two goals for Seafair. “We had a good start, we came out with a lot of energy and … I thought we played a complete game.”
The Richmond-based team had the edge in play in the final as shots ended up 43-18.
“Even though we didn’t get a big separation, we controlled the game and I thought we played more of our style today which was nice to see under pressure,” said Steve Robinson, Seafair coach.
Josh Wessels scored the Islanders’ third goal and goalie Ajeet Gundarah registered the shutout in the final.
Wessels, team captain, said the opponents came out hard in the third period and put on the pressure early.
“We had to match their intensity and exceed it,” he said. “So we tried to get pucks deep, forecheck and kept going and get the next one and we got it and we’re provincial champions.”
He said one of the reasons Seafair was able to win a championship was because of the special bond the players share.
“This is one of the closest groups I think as a team we’ve all had,” Wessels said. “Everybody is so tight together, we do it all for each other, battle for each other, compete for each other and it’s a real team game and we really showed it here.”
In Thursday’s bronze-medal game, the Central Zone Rockets edged the host Nanaimo Clippers 3-2 in overtime. Tavish Parkhurst and Miles Carson scored for Nanaimo.
Robinson had only good things to say about the job Nanaimo did hosting provincials.
“Everybody, all the minor hockey, all the people around helping supporting you were super helpful, super friendly. They did a first-class job,” he said.
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