The Port McNeill Bantam Warriors battled it out with six other teams in an all weekend house league minor
hockey tournament, which was held from Friday, Jan. 29 to Sunday, Jan. 31, at the Don Cruickshank Memorial
Arena in Port Hardy, and they came away with a very solid fourth place showing. The tournament, which
included 50/50 draws, concession, a free snack table for the players, trophies for the top three teams, and a
player of the game award for each game, featured great play from the seven tough bantam teams who came
from all over Vancouver Island to participate. The Warriors started the tournament off bright and early Saturday
morning at 8:30 a.m. against the Nanaimo Timberwolves. The Warriors played well for three periods, scoring
four goals, but ultimately lost 5-4. The Warriors kicked it up a notch in their next game against the Nanaimo
Lucky 7's, beating them 4-2, and then continued on winning, hammering the Nanaimo Coyotes 6-0 in their third
game of the day. With the two big wins, the Warriors qualified for the third place finals on Sunday, Jan. 31,
against the Campbell River Rangers. The game was a wild, action packed showdown from the drop of the puck
in the 1st period. Both teams battled hard against the boards, passing the puck up and down the ice, but it was
the Warriors' captain Jesse Lloyd who got his team on the scoreboard first with a big rebound goal at 9:59. The
Rangers quickly tied it up at 7:30, and then scored again at 6:16. With 2:30 left in the 1st period, the Warriors'
Lloyd scored his second goal of the game to tie it up 2-2, only for the Rangers to answer back with two more
goals, making it 4-2 as the 1st period ended.The 2nd period started off with big chances at each end of the ice,
but it was the Rangers who capitalized first, scoring at 10:18. The Warriors, now down 5-2, dug down deep and
started to amass a comeback. William Johnson stole the puck and got a breakaway at 7:09, roofing it top shelf
over the Rangers' goalie Luc Barbot, and then with 4:30 left, Lloyd scored a nice wrist shot goal to complete the
hat trick. The Rangers added another goal at 1:06 to go up 6-4 before the 2nd period ended. The Warriors
looked fired up as they came out flying in the 3rd period. Johnson made an excellent pass in front of the net to
Reece Lloyd, who wristed it past Barbot to bring the Warriors within one goal of tying the game. The Rangers,
however, refused to break. They scored at 16:07 to go up 7-5, and held on to the lead. Reece Lloyd got his
second goal of the game with a huge slap shot from the point at 8:56, but it ultimately wasn't enough. Time ran
out and the Rangers held on to win 7-6, taking the third place trophy from the Warriors grasp.