GOLDEN BOYS, SILVER GIRLS

As the clock ticked down and Ben Roulette took what amounted to the final faceoff of the game, the captain of Team Manitoba knew exactly what he and his new friends had accomplished. Coming from a province in which the entire population barely equals the population of Ottawa, let alone Toronto, Roulette was quite proud of the fact Manitoba had beaten Team Ontario 5-2 in the men’s gold medal final of the 2023 National Aboriginal Hockey Championships at Seven Oaks Arena in Winnipeg. “This was a team that got better as the tournament went on, I believe that 100 per cent,” said Roulette, a 17-year-old from Rivers who plays for the Manitoba Junior Hockey League’s Waywayseecappo Wolverines. “We grew friendships during the tournament and the group got closer. We spent a great week together and winning is all you can ask for. It’s been a good week.” “I love these boys and before the game I just said, ‘This is a great opportunity, let’s not take it for granted.’ This victory means everything to me. I’ve never had a chance to win something like this nationally. It’s cool to get this opportunity.” In the championship game, Hayden Paupanekis from the RINK Hockey Academy scored twice while Roulette, Carter Campbell and Ian Buors added single goals as Manitoba pounced on Ontario quickly and rolled to a relatively easy win. INTERESTING WEEK It was a victory that capped off an interesting week for Manitoba. The men went through the preliminary round with a second-place record of 2-1-0 (behind. No. 1 British Columbia), beating Ontario 4-1 and tying fifth-place with Team Atlantic 4-4. Then Manitoba beat Nunavut 10-4 in the quarter-final and Saskatchewan 5-2 in the semifinal. That set up the gold medal win over Ontario. On the women’s side of the tournament, Manitoba lost a heartbreaker in the final. The women went 4-0-0 in the round robin, beat Alberta 4-1 in the semifinal and then fell 2-1 to Ontario in the championship game as Ontario scored with 44 seconds remaining in regulation time to secure the gold medal. “That was a big-time heartbreaker,” said female Team Manitoba head coach Dale Bear, who had led Manitoba to the gold medal in Membertou, N.S., in 2022. “We just weren’t up to it, I guess. They had the momentum and we didn’t. Penalties played a big-time role. Those two power-play goals at the end cost us the game. That’s what happens when you don’t move your feet. We were tired chasing the power-play so often at the end. And we had key injuries to key players. That hurt us, I think. It is what it is.” While the women took home silver, the men grabbed gold as one of the smallest provinces in the country came up big again. For Team Manitoba men’s coach, Micheal Ferland, the former six-year NHL player from Swan River, it was a satisfying victory. “Yep, I thought we really dialed in our defensive game and bought into the system and got rewarded for it,” said Ferland. “(GM) Kevin (Monkman) did a good job getting us these players and we were fortunate enough to get a few practices together. We were able to mix up some guys and find some lines that worked together. It’s been a fun process.” ‘IT MEANT EVERYTHING’ For players like Roulette, who is a member of Sandy Bay First Nation, this was not only a chance for some solid spring competition, but also an opportunity to avenge last year’s fifth-place finish in Membertou. Roulette was on that team in 2022, and this was a much more satisfying outcome. He was also proud of the fact he was named the team’s captain. “That meant everything to me,” he said. “I thought that if I could help take this group all the way, it would be really special. We had 10 or 12 guys who could have probably worn the C, so my job was pretty easy. “The last time I won anything was back when I was like six or seven. It’s been a while so, this one feels nice.” Roulette’s teammate, Marlen Edwards, who is a member of Lake Manitoba First Nation, was named the tournament’s Top Forward. The 16-year-old Winnipeg Wild left-wing/centre was coming off a season in which he had 25 goals and 47 points in 41 games. He continued to play brilliantly during the NAHC. “I definitely didn’t expect it (to be named Top Forward),” he said modestly. “I just thought it would be a great tournament overall and it was going to be a fun week with a new team and I didn’t expect to get best forward. It was so much fun. The guys here are amazing. I had a lot of laughs with these guys. “Winning this event means everything to me. This team is amazing. We couldn’t have done it with a better group of guys.” COACHING IN HIS FUTURE Ferland, meanwhile, might use this Team Manitoba coaching experience as a springboard to a second hockey career. After concussions ended his playing career at age 28, the now 31-year-old Ferland is contemplating a jump to coaching. “I really enjoyed this experience,” he said. “It’s always fun coming back to this tournament and helping out and it’s fun to help out these young guys, for sure. “As for trying my hand at coaching? I think I would. I guess I’m at a little bit of a crossroads with what I want to do now, but I definitely enjoy coaching, for sure.” It didn’t hurt that with Team Manitoba, he had a great team and a terrific group of young men. “We had a good dressing room,” he said. “We had (Dawson) Andries, (Ben) Roulette, a lot of returning guys, Hayden (Paupanekis), a young guy who just came up with the team and when he talks other guys listen. (Carter) Campbell, another young guy who is just a great kid. We had a lot of leaders in that dressing room.” He also had great goaltending and could have easily gone with either the tournament’s Top Goaltender Mariko Bercier from Notre Dame or Chase Glover from the U18 AAA Parkland Rangers in the final. “I guess that’s what makes our job hard,” Ferland said with a laugh. “We could have put Glover or Bercier in goal in the final. They are both very talented goalies and it’s nice that it makes our job hard when we have to decide who to put in. We got great goaltending from both guys all week.” Before the gold medal game, Ferland admitted that he didn’t have to say a lot to his team: “I said, ‘Go out there and enjoy this process. Go out there and enjoy playing in big games like this because you guys are going to be playing in a lot of them. Just have fun!’” A DAMNED GOOD TRY Meanwhile for female coach, Bear, the heartbreak of losing a 2-1 final by giving up two goals in the final eight minutes was a tough pill to swallow. However, to be fair, Ontario came in with a powerhouse team, drawing from the largest population in the country. “We had a great group of girls,” Bear said. “Probably the best group of girls in terms of attitude that I’ve ever had. They played hard and stayed positive as long as they could. “I’m proud of our girls. We played hard all week. We just couldn’t pull if off, that’s all. It was a damned good try.”