The KIJHL champion Revelstoke Grizzlies won the B.C. Junior A Championship Mowat Cup on Sunday, April 21 with a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory over the Ridge Meadows Flames in Kimberley.
The Grizzlies went 3-and-0 in the round robin to guarantee its spot in Sunday’s final against the Pacific Junior Hockey League champion, Flames.
The Grizzlies Colton McLeod scored on the power play, burying a rebound from a Luke Aston shot with 3:13 left in the first overtime period for the game-winner and the B.C. championship.
Grizzlies head coach Jiri Novak was at a loss for words during the post-game celebration.
“It’s an amazing achievement what these guys did, I’m so proud of this group,” Novak said in a release.
He added that it started with general manager Ryan Parent and the other coaches.
“It’s kind of just the cherry on the top on what we achieved,” he said. “It’s an awesome season that I will never forget. It is something special. It’s back-to-back provincial champions. It shows the class of this organization.”
Aston had a goal and two assists, while Mikkel Hrechka had a goal and an assist in the final match, with Hrechka earning the Mowat Cup MVP with three goals and three assists in four games.
The Saanich Predators of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League (VIJHL) won the bronze medal with a 3-0 shut out of host Kimberley Dynamiters.
Revelstoke opened the Mowat Cup, formerly known as the Cyclone Taylor Cup, with a 7-4 victory over Saanich on Thursday.
The Grizzlies then defeated Ridge Meadows in a close 2-1 match up on Friday, before beating the Kimberley Dynamiters 3-1 on Saturday.
The Grizzlies won the Teck Cup (KIJHL title) with a sweep of the Kootenay Conference champion Fernie Ghostriders to punch their ticket to the Mowat Cup earlier this month.