The North Island Peewee Eagles earned silver medals during their post-Christmas holiday hockey tournament.
The tournament ran from Dec. 28-30 in Courtenay, and the Eagles ended up with a first round match up against the Comox Valley Chiefs right at the start on the 28th, where they cruised to a 5-2 victory thanks to goals from Zach Spafford (x2), Maddox Peterson, Jack Barrett, and Landon Turgeon.
The next day the Eagles faced off against the Campbell River Tyees at 9:00 a.m., which turned out to be a real high scoring affair.
The Eagles netted 11 goals to the Tyees six. Goals came courtesy of Barrett (x6), Spafford (x4), and Turgeon.
The Eagles continued to score goals in their next game against the Cowichan Valley Capitals, skating away with a big 8-1 win. Goals were scored by Spafford (x3), Turgeon (x2), Lucca Stewart, and Barrett (x2).
With the win firmly in hand, the Eagles moved on to the final day of the tournament, where they had to play the Port Alberni Bulldogs in the semi-final.
The Eagles again came out firing, scoring five clutch goals thanks to Barrett (x2), Spafford, Stewart, and Turgeon, with goaltender Lucas Handley picking up a hard-fought shutout.
After celebrating the victory, the Eagles realized they would have to play the final game of tournament roughly 15 minutes later in a rematch against the Capitals.
The Eagles ultimately lost 3-1, with Barrett scoring the team’s lone goal in the third period with one second left on the clock.
Team manager Bonnie Barrett said the Eagles “played amazing and dominated all weekend until that final game and they just couldn’t bring it home.”
Assistant coach Kevin Livingston agreed, noting the coaching staff were pleased with the team.
“We as coaches are happy with the progress we have had up to this point in the season,” he said. “To be where we are in Tier Two and picking up silver medals in this tournament sets us up for a very strong finish to the season! We are now starting to get ready for playoffs starting in February.”
Livingston added he felt the Eagles got stronger every single game, and that every player on the bench “played their hearts out. Every player in the room contributed to our success. We look forward to seeing everyone come out and support us next weekend against Victoria.”
The Eagles will be back in action Jan. 12 against the Victoria Ice Hawks in Port Hardy at 4:15 p.m.