Not to be outdone by the 14 Wing Greenwood younger men’s hockey Bombers a couple weeks of ago, the Oldtimer Bombers defeated CFB Halifax February 17, capturing first place in the Atlantic region.
On the first day of competition at CFB Shearwater February 15, the Bombers lost their opening game to Halifax 1-0, but followed up that evening with a confident win over Gagetown, 9-2. This solidified a spot in the semi-final game, and therefore a “nothing” game against Shearwater the next morning. The Bombers once again played a solid game, out working the rival Flyers to a 6-3 win. Later that evening, in the on-the-books semi, Shearwater had their opportunity to seek revenge and – potentially – knock out the Bombers just before the final. With hard fought and respected play between these two teams, once again, the Bombers prevailed, taking a 3-2 win.
On finals day, the Bombers played against Halifax, from whom they took their only defeat of the tournament, but – this time – controlled the play throughout the game. Greenwood took the early lead and, while Halifax got on the board late in the second period to make it 2-1, held it throughout – including adding their second goal in the third. Greenwood scored an empty netter to seal the deal, made for a 4-1 finish. The Bombers’ own Warrant Officer Joel Brooks named tournament MVP for solid work throughout the week in nets, keeping his team in the lead with a number of highlight-reel saves in the final game.
The gold medals and trophy were presented by 12 Wing Commanding Officer Colonel Patrick MacNamara and Chief Warrant Officer Kevin Wezenbeek.
“Our staff have been involved with hockey for a long time and they clearly still know what it takes to put on a great tournament. I know there were long hours and a lot of preparatory work, and that all paid off this week,” MacNamara said.
The Greenwood win comes after the base’s younger men’s team also took gold at their Atlantic Region tournament, held in Gagetown in January. That team is set for nationals, February 26 to March 3, at CFB Wainwright. The Oldtimers will also head west for nationals, March 12 to 17, at CFB Esquimalt.
The Bombers would like to thank 12 Wing Shearwater Personnel Support Program staff and tournament volunteers, as well as our own PSP staff here at 14 Wing, for support throughout the year.
The 14 Wing Greenwood Bombers won the Canadian Armed Forces Atlantic region oldtimers’ title February 17 in Shearwater: they head to CFB Esquimalt in March for nationals.
