Kenton Larson of the Havre Ice Hawks gets a shot on Fort Macleod Mavericks goalie Owen Archibald, with Kylan Blackwater defending.
Fort Macleod Mavericks fell just short of the championship game of their own weekend U15 hokey tournament.
The Mavericks were knocked out in the semifinals of the seven-team, three-day tournament.
Also taking part were Havre Ice Hawks, Wetaskiwin Kings, east Wheatland Coyotes, Crossfield Renegades, Calgary Knights and Edmonton Outlaw Huskies.
Mavericks 6 Coyotes 3
The Mavericks hit the ice for the first time in the tournament at 8 a.m. Saturday, and the early-morning start didn’t slow them down.
Fort Macleod opened a 4-1 lead in the first period and after the Coyotes scored two in the second period, the Mavericks closed out the win with two unanswered goals in the third.
Pryce Schneider scored twice for the Mavericks and Layne Sharratt, Lukah Day Chief, Kylan Blackwater and Michael Sweet Grass each had a goal and an assist.
Kaleb Doyle had two assists and Zayah Bevans and Eddie Little Shields each had one helper.
Kings 5 Mavericks 2
The win over the Coyotes sent the Mustangs to a Saturday night showdown against Wetaskiwin Kings.
The Kings took a 2-1 first period lead and increased it to 5-2 in the second, before shutting out the Mavericks in the third to clinch the win.
Michael Sweet Grass and Matthew McNab had Fort Macleod’s goals and Pryce Schneider and Layne Sharratt each had an assist.
Owen Archibald was in goal for Fort Macleod, facing 59 shots. The Mavericks got 31 shots on the Kings goal.
Hawks 6 Mavericks 4
That loss stopped the Mavericks from advancing to the tournament final, but the double knockout format of the tournament gave them a chance for redemption.
The Mavericks met Havre Ice Hawks on Sunday morning, with the winner advancing to the championship game against Wetaskiwin Kings.
Havre scored with three minutes to play in the first period, and held that 1-0 lead until Matthew McNab tied it with an unassisted goal with 1:22 left in the middle frame.
The floodgates opened in the third period with the games combining for eight goals as Havre pulled off a 6-4 victory.
The Ice Hawks scored just over two minutes into the third, but McNab tied it two minutes later with his second of the game.
After Havre took a 3-2 lead mid way through the third period, McNab completed his hat trick, with this goal assisted by Kylan Blackwater.
The Ice Hawks scored a pair of goals just 41 seconds apart to lead 5-3 with 2:49 to play.
Pryce Schneider scored to pull Fort Macleod to within a goal with 1:30 remaining, but Havre iced the victory with another goal with 36 seconds on the clock.
Fort Macleod goalie Owen Archibald made 25 saves in the loss, while the Ice Hawks goalie Sean Nagel faced 35 shots.
