Sports
The Seafair Islanders won the Western Canadian Bantam AAA Hockey Championship Sunday in Kamloops.
Photo courtesy Steve Robinson
Western title final chapter in Seafair story
The final chapter in the 54-year history of
the Seafair Minor Hockey is an inspiring narrative of camaraderie.
With the newly-merged Richmond Seafair Minor
Hockey Association set to begin play next season, the Islanders capped the
story of best friends uniting for a common goal last weekend in Kamloops,
seizing the moment to capture the 2018 Western Canadian Bantam AAA
Championship. Thomas Tien’s third goal and sixth tournament point earned the
Islanders a dramatic 2-1 double overtime victory over the Airdrie Xtreme, a
pre-event favourite that ranked among the top 15 clubs in the country.
“I can honestly say it was probably our best
game of the season, and to do it on that stage (with television cameras rolling
and 400-plus fans in the stands) I was blown away,” said coach Steve Robinson.
Though underdogs, the heart of the Islanders
consistently came to the forefront. That heart, combined with obvious athletic
talent, explains how they were able to not only finish best among six elite
teams, but also defeat the Xtreme twice—the first a 3-1 win in pool play.
Robinson recognized the difficulty in beating
such a team twice in a row, let alone in such short order. But he said this
Islander team, that a few weeks earlier won the provincial championship to
qualify for the Westerns, was clearly special. He said they believed early in
the season such heights were attainable. As the season wore on, that belief
only grew.
Now, a team that few knew much about, is well
known in hockey circles. And Robinson expects at least three or four players
will likely be selected in the upcoming Western Hockey League Bantam Draft on
May 3.
The Islanders’ run to the Western
championship was also inspired by their former strength and conditioning coach
Scott Hebert. They learned he had passed away just 48 hours after their final
session with him before leaving for Nanaimo to play for the provincial title.
The Islanders purchased Superman tape and attached stickers to their helmets
and sticks as a way to honour Hebert, with whom they trained each week.
“Most of the kids trained with him for three
years, and for most of them this was their first experience of loss in their
life,” Robinson said. “He was a guy who was like a bolt of lightning. It’s hard
to wrap your head around.”
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