Richmond Minor Hockey’s Pee Wee C1 Eagles capped off an amazing season by capturing the Sheraton RMHA Spring Classic tournament.
All eyes were on this team after an impressive season that included a tournament win in Hope and Pacific Coast regular season and playoff banners. The wins did not come easily as all team members had to contribute big. The games were close and the RMHA Spring Classic Tournament was no different. The team had to overcome, injuries,the flu, and fatigue, but they did it with strong teamwork, and good clean hockey. Everyone contributed, with goals coming from every line and unexpected players.
The Eagles opened with wins over Vancouver Minor C2 (4-1) and Coquitlam Chiefs (8-0), before settling for a 3-3 tie against Surrey. The hosts took momentum into the playoff round with a 7-0 victory over Nanaimo C1.
The semi-final was a re-match against the Surrey team.
The first period was end to end hockey. The teams finished tied at 1-1 but the second period definitely belonged to Richmond. Surrey could only get to centre ice before being turned back by the strength of the Eagles’ defense. In the end, the forwards decided the game’s result and scored three more goals to end the game at 4-1.
The win sent them to the gold medal final against the equally strong Richmond Minor C2 Titans who were one of the few teams to beat the Eagles in the regular season.
The all-Richmond match-up would be the crowning glory of an intense season for the Eagles.
The game was close all the way into the third period. The Eagles were ahead by two goals and the Titans pulled the goalie. There was a flurry of shots, but the puck slipped to an Eagles player who lobbed it down the ice and scored to cap a 4-1 win.
Kudos to game MVP’s John Laitinen, Gerard Ordonez, Jerry Fan, Brayden Ho, Evan Statham and Jay Wang. A special award was given to Derrick Wong who won tournament all-star.
