Bisons Bring Keystone Cup Title to NEAJBHL

Two Championships in St. Paul lead Bisons to Arborg

An incredible run for the Wainwright Bisons came to an end Easter Sunday in Arborg, Manitoba. And what an end it was. Sunday the Bisons played for a gold medal and a Western Canadian Junior B title.

NEAJBHL Finals

March 16^th the NEAJBHL Championship series began between the Bisons and St. Paul Canadiens. The championship was a preview of what was to come for both teams because both teams had punched a ticket to the Alberta Jr. B Provincials.

Wainwright would win four straight in the NEAJBHL Championship to finish the league season strong. The deciding game was a triple overtime thriller that fans in St. Paul are not going to forget any time soon.  The Bisons celebrated a hard fought league title in the Lakeland.

Provincials

A week would pass, and the Canadiens and Bisons hit the ice once again in St. Paul. Junior B Provincials were held at the Clancy Richard Arena and CAP Arena. St. Paul was eliminated in the early going of the tournament, and it was Wainwright who became the team to hope for, for many in the arenas. Wainwright played two hard fought games on Saturday to advance to the gold medal game on Sunday, April 2^nd. The Bisons captured a gold medal in overtime against the Cochrane Generals. The Bisons captured another deciding overtime victory in St. Paul, and advanced to Arborg, Manitoba for the Keystone cup.

Keystone Cup

The Wainwright Bisons won three games and tied once during the tournament before finding themselves in the gold medal game. In what became typical Bisons style, Wainwright took the gold game to overtime to decide things. Bryce Woodward scored the Keystone Cup winning goal 16:55 into the overtime period. The final assists of the incredible run went to Keenan Scott and Brant Saretsky.

With the Bisons Keystone Cup title, the Western Canada Junior B season has come to an end.