The Battlefords 3 Barons won a gold medal as host team. (supplied photo/Vern Amyotte)

By Keaton Brown

fill the net

Battlefords 3 Barons take gold at peewee tournament

Jan 20, 2020 | 2:03 PM

The Battlefords 3 peewee Barons tore through the competition on their way to a gold medal as the host team at a tournament in the Battlefords over the weekend.

Barons head coach Sean Fauchon said he was happy to see his team come away with the gold this weekend after having a bit of an up and down season so far.

“We started off strong and then we kind of had a little bit of a lapse halfway through the season. We weren’t really playing our best game,” he said. “These last seven games, with two league games and five in the tournament, we found our game and have been moving the puck around.”

On Friday, the team set the tempo for their weekend in their first game of the tournament with an 8-2 win against the rival Battlefords 1 Barons. Fauchon said he was happy to see the team start the weekend off on the right foot.

On Saturday morning the Barons found themselves faced off against the Saskatoon Bobcat Leafs. The Barons came flying out of the gate and trounced their opposition 12-0.

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Their second game of the day once again had them lined up opposite a Saskatoon team in the Renegade Ice Dogs. Fauchon said the Barons had a bit of a slow start, ending the first period 1-1.

“It was a close game at the end of the first. They were beating us to the puck and winning battles. I guess we thought it would be easy because we scored in the opening 15 seconds of the game but they didn’t stop skating,” he said. “We had a bit of a conversation during the intermission and I think the kids really took something away from that because we ended up with an 11-1 win.”

Sunday morning’s opponents were the Lloydminster Blazers. The two teams fought to a draw at 1-1 after the first period. The Barons once again found another gear later in the game and put up another 11-1 win in the tournament.

As one would expect, the toughest game of the tournament came in the gold medal match on Sunday. The team went up against the Wadena Wildcats —a provincial team made up of players from their two local teams. Fauchon admitted he knew they were in for a tough game but said the players knew they had it in them.

The final game of the tournament was a hard fought battle, with lead changes happening in the first two periods. Late in the second period, the Barons managed to edge out a one goal 3-2 lead before their goalie made a big save.

“They got a break toward the end of the second period. They got a breakaway and our goalie ended up standing on his head and shutting the door. I think that was the turning point in the game for us, because had they got that goal at the end of the second they’d come into the third tied 3-3,” Fauchon said.

Fauchon again addressed his team during the second intermission to try and light a spark that would help the team find its game in the third.

“Everyone contributed in the dressing room to the talk we were having and it showed because as soon as we got out there in the third and the puck dropped we had stepped it up another notch. We took it to them in the last 10 minutes and managed a 7-2 win,” he said.

The Barons have three league games left before they will set their eyes on a league championship to close out their year.

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Keaton.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow