ESTEVAN - The Estevan Primec Control Canada U13 AA Bruins finished second at their annual home tournament, held from Friday to Sunday at Affinity Place and the Power Dodge Arena.
Estevan lost 4-3 to the Melville Millionaires in the gold-medal game of the four-team Primec Controls Challenge Cup. The two teams were tied at 2-2 after the first period and 3-3 after two. Melville scored the winner with less than five minutes to play in the third.
Andin Barlow scored twice, and Penn Tytlandsvik notched a goal and two assists in the final.
"It was a good game, tight right till the end," said coach Lorne Tytlandsvik. "It was a little disappointing to lose, but at the same time, I think the kids learned a lot and it was a fun weekend."
The coach was pleased with how the club's puck movement improved during the tournament.
"Getting a good forecheck going … helped with our success, but it was good to see the puck movement and the defence handling our defensive zone better. There were lots of positive things," said Lorne Tytlandsvik.
Estevan opened the tournament with a 9-2 win over Weyburn on Friday night. Penn Tytlandsvik had four goals and an assist for Estevan, and Ethan Phillips had a goal and five helpers. Barlow, Tucker Hilstrom, Kip Geiger and Braxton Shier had the other goals.
Up next was a 4-4 tie against the Regina Blues. Penn Tytlandsvik scored twice in the game. Bentley Hebert and Nixon Laurent also scored. Phillips assisted on three of the goals.
Their final game of the round robin was a 6-1 win over Melville. Geiger had the hat trick for Estevan. Hebert scored twice and Penn Tytlandsvik also scored.
Ty Blackburn and JJ Nagy shared goaltending duties for Estevan during the tournament.
Regina defeated Weyburn in the bronze-medal game.
The coach said there was a lot of fun on the ice during the tournament and the hockey was competitive.
"In our league, almost any team can win any night, and with four teams from our league playing in this tournament, aside from a couple of lopsided games, most games could have gone either way, especially in the finals … so the competition and the parity are close," he said.
Lorne Tytlandsvik thanked the sponsors, team supporters, volunteers and other clubs for their support, and added there were a lot of positive comments about Estevan throughout the weekend.
He expects the tournament will give the Bruins a boost. There are little things they need to keep working on, but getting four games at home helps the team improve.
Estevan is 2-2 in the Saskatchewan AA Hockey League to start the season. They will host the Regina Mustangs on Nov. 2 at 4:30 p.m. at Affinity Place.
