Submitted by Mel Lankhaar-Rejman
Congratulations to this years’ U-13 Creston Chiefs for bringing home the banner once again! In March of 2020, this core group of hockey players battled it out in Invermere after an undefeated season of league play to win their ATOM banner tournament. Within a few weeks time, COVID-19 hit and the entire world shut down.
The 2020/2021 season of play for these young athletes was unprecedented with no travel, no tournament play, and only minimal “socially distanced” practices amongst themselves.
Yet, in two years time, there was a glimmer of hope when restrictions were lifted somewhat in October 2021. These athletes were able to resume some sort of “normalcy” within their now U-13 league play. It came with many challenges and the loss of their home tournament in early January 2022, but these players continued to show up no matter what and made the best of the pandemic situation.
From March 4 to 6, the Creston Chiefs travelled to Kimberley to see if they could bring home back-to-back banner wins as proud ambassadors for their community. They were successful in defeating two Cranbrook teams and two top-ranked Kimberley teams landing them in the final game against the Kimberley Nitros.
At the end of the second period, the Nitros had 4-1 lead over the Creston Chiefs. But with minutes to spare in the third period, the perseverance, determination, and their willingness to never give up prevailed. The Creston Chiefs defeated the Nitros 6-4, and the banner was once again coming home.
A special thanks goes out to the incredible coaching staff and parent volunteers who made this season possible under such unpredictable circumstances!
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