Muskies strike gold at Winnipeg tourney

The Muskie boys’ hockey team evidently likes playing in the annual John Piper Classic in Winnipeg, bringing home the gold medal last weekend for the second-straight year and third overall.
The black-and-gold wrapped up a perfect weekend with a solid 10-2 win over St. John’s Ravenscourt in the final.
“It was pretty one-sided,” Muskie head coach Glen Edwards said of the final. “They scored first and then we dominated after that.
“[The team] played well this weekend,” he enthused.
Jeff Savage led the attack with three goals while Adam McTavish and Cole Hayward each netted a pair. Bryce Witherspoon, Lorne Koski, and Kevin Webb added singles.
The Muskies also had an easy time in the semi-finals, blanking Kelvin High School by a 6-0 count to earn the berth against St. John’s Ravenscourt.
Webb had a hat trick in that one, with McTavish netting two goals again and David Lloyd one. Blake Carlson earned the shutout in goal.
The Muskies had opened the round-robin portion of the tourney with a 6-1 win over St. Norbet (Winnipeg).
Webb, who scored 11 goals in just five games in Winnipeg, scored twice, with Savage, Hayward, Dallas Mosbeck, and Steve Niskala netting the other goals.
The black-and-gold then squared off against Sisler High School (Winnipeg) and squeezed out a tight 2-1 win on goals by Savage and Webb.
“That was our closest game, by far,” noted Edwards. “It was the best and most intense game.”
In their final round-robin action, the Muskies trounced Fort Richmond (Winnipeg) 8-1. Webb had four goals to pace the offensive outburst, with singles going to McTavish, Savage, Mosbeck, and Ross Anderson.
Webb was named the tournament MVP and set a new record for most goals scored. Savage and Kris Esselink were named to the tournament all-star team as defencemen.
Meanwhile, Edwards also noted some key players who had been out due to injuries have returned to the Muskie lineup for the rest of the season.
“David Lloyd was back, which solidified our defence,” said Edwards, adding he hopes James Asplund also will be back soon.
Jamie Booth played three of the five games between the pipes, with Carlson going in the other two.