THE 2017 KEYSTONE CUP
The Ice Dawgs went through the round
robin with two wins and three losses, but
their Opening Day win was pretty sweet.
Although, they’d fallen in six games to the
Peguis Juniors in the championship round
of the Keystone Jr. Hockey League playoffs,
the Ice Dawgs came out in the tournament
opener against the Juniors and destroyed
the Manitoba champions. Colton Davies had
three goals and an assist while Kyle Bark-
man and Travis Kilbrei each had a goal and
an assist and Clint Torfason had four assists
as the Ice Dawgs blasted the Juniors 7-2.
That game set the tone for both Manitoba
teams. While the Juniors finished with a re-
cord of 1-3-1, the Ice Dawgs went 2-3-0 and
played in the Bronze Medal game against the
Regina Capitals.
“Although we lost to BC, Alberta and
Saskatchewan, we defeated our arch rivals
from Peguis 7-2 and the Ontario champion
30 GAME ON
2017 CHAMPIONS EDITION
Nipigon Elks 9-4,” said Gulay. “That win over
Ontario was huge for us. It was a big win.
“We reached the bronze medal game
against Regina Capitals, but did not come
out strong from the start. We were down
5-0 heading into the second period, and lost
the game 6-2. However, with that there was
no quit in our club, and we worked hard to
the end. With 70 per cent of our team core
coming from the small community areas of
Arborg and Riverton, that says a lot. They all
played with heart and determination from
day to day.”
In the championship game, the Wain-
wright Bisons beat the Beaver Valley Nite-
hawks from B.C., 4-3 in overtime. Nothing
like an OT thriller to wrap up the event.
“The approximately 80 volunteers of this
prestigious event dropped what they were
doing at home and spent four days in and
around the arena to help the tournament
run smoothly,” Gulay said. “Arborg also had
tremendous support from the sponsors, and
that led to the huge success of this event.
The 45-plus businesses from Arborg and
surrounding area who committed to the
championship cannot be thanked enough,
contributing greatly to make this one of the
largest hockey events ever staged in Ar-
borg.”
Peguis’s best game of the tournament
came early when the Juniors bounced back
from a 3-1 deficit in the third period with
goals from Coulson Nepinak, Waylon Nault
and Keifer Tacan – with just 17 seconds left
– to beat the Ontario champs 4-3.
However, for the home fans this was all
about the Ice Dawgs and their gutsy play
right to the Bronze Medal game. Travis
Kilbrei was Arborg’s leading scorer with four
goals and 10 points during the tournament.
He was tied for fifth in scoring. Davis fin-
ished with five goals and six points.
“The Arborg Western Committee and the
Arborg Ice Dawgs achieved their goal,” said
Gulay. “All the other provincial teams have
left with happy memories. We’ve had posi-
tive feedback and comments from all prov-
inces and we’re very proud to have hosted
this event.” n