Sportshound: Avalanche Alert: Goals, Gold, and Grit on the Ice!

Tales from the Timebox for January 13, 2025

U11 Avalanche take Gold

That little bit of freezing rain Friday night didn’t stop the U11 Avalanche hockey team, who travelled to Bonnyville to play in their annual tournament. They could have skated back home, they had so much energy, winning the first game against the hosts 12–5. Goalie “Benny Boy” Saddleback was named MVP of the game, while Aspyn “Machine Gun” Kelly received the Heart and Hustle award.

Returning early Saturday morning for an 8 a.m. game against Westlock, the Avalanche were down 5–4 with only 28 seconds left in regulation time when Cohen “Big Horn” Brousseau scored, ending the game in a 5–5 tie. “Big Horn” was named MVP of the game, with “Jumbo Jay” Large receiving the Heart and Hustle award.

On Sunday morning, they played Mallaig, winning by a commanding 10–4 score, sending them to the gold medal game against the same Mallaig team on Sunday afternoon. This time, Mallaig came in with a better game plan, taking a three-goal lead going into the third period. The Avalanche, not wanting to go down without a fight, threw it into overdrive and opened up the turbo, coming back to tie the game late in the third period. Then, with only a minute left on the clock, “Big Horn” Brousseau came through with the winner, bringing the gold medal home for the Avalanche. “Hurricane Kael” Large received the MVP in the morning game and Raiden Savadra with the Heart and Hustle award. In the final game, Jase “the Jackal” Malo was the MVP and Landon “Lights Out” St Arnault was awarded the Heart and Hustle.

This coming Saturday, the U11s will host Bonnyville at 11:45 a.m.

U13 Avalanche

Our U13 team hosted the Vermilion Tigers on Friday night and started out very strong. The game was tied 3–3 halfway through, but the Avalanche ran out of gas in the second half, eventually losing 9–3. Tor “The Tornado” Aarbo, Hunter “Hardrock” Pankiw, and “Fearless Frank” Killiam each scored one goal. Mikey “The Beast” L’Heureux, Hudson “The Bull” Brousseau, Hudson “The Hammer” Krankowski, and Ethan “The Big E” Lorenson each provided an assist. Goalie “General Lee” Barstad faced 42 shots, most of them coming in the second half of the game.

U15 Avalanche

The U15 Avalanche team travelled to Cold Lake on Friday night, returning home with two points after an 8–3 win. William “Billy Bob” Ballas and Tristan “Bobcat” Brousseau each scored two goals and assisted on another. The long-legged, lanky defenceman Jaxon “Smitty” Smith scored one goal and added two assists. Dewberry product Cade “Easy Money” Elliot and Remington “Steel” Reynolds each scored a goal and added an assist. Jaxon “Magic” Marcoux also scored, with Liam “Sledgehammer” Swedgen contributing an assist. Owen “Ollie the Goalie” Grykuliak faced 23 shots. This coming weekend, the U15s will have two home games: one on Saturday against the Lloydminster 631 team and another on Sunday against the Lloydminster 632 team. Both games start at 2:15 p.m.

U18 Avalanche

On Saturday night, our U18 Avalanche travelled to Kitscoty to take on the Pitbulls, losing a barn burner 6–5. Defenceman Quinton “Rampage” Quinney went coast-to-coast, scoring two goals. Gavin “Greenlight” Kadutski, Rylan “The Great” Quinney, and “Top Gunner” Crawford each scored a goal. Madden “Mad Dog” Flamand, “Bo Diddley” Fontaine, and Kaleb “Formula One” Flamand each contributed an assist. Drayden “The Wall” Skakum faced 24 shots. The U18s will host the St. Paul Canadiens this coming Saturday at 7:30 p.m.