The Battlefords Midget Stars made their first appearance at the Mac's Tournament in Calgary in 12 years.
The Midget Stars got started on the right foot, as they won their first two round robin games.
On Boxing Day, the Stars faced one of the top teams from British Columbia in the Greater Vancouver Canadians.
The Stars had a slow start, as they trailed 2-0 after the first period of their first game.
Midway through the second period, Spencer Bast scored from Josh Bly and Kent Walchuk.
In the third period, Terrin Belosowsky and Regan Yew scored power play goals 23 seconds apart to give the Stars the 3-2 lead. Braden Lacoursiere and Walchuk had assists while Bly assisted on both goals.
With less than a minute left Walchuk scored an empty net goal and Bly drew his fourth assist of the game.
Rylan Toth made 29 saves in the Stars' net for the win.
Ryan Rewerts was in net the next day for the Stars and he stopped 30 of 31 shots for the 4-1 win over the Calgary Buffaloes.
The Stars struck first when Brian Hillis scored from Ashton Clark and Austin Duzan. Calgary tied the game 40 seconds later on a power play and the first period ended 1-1.
In the second period, the Stars' specialty teams took control of the game. Veteran forward Duzan found the back of the net on a power play opportunity and later Josh Bly capitalized on a five-on-three advantage. Eric Pfeifer, Regan Yew, Lacoursiere and Robin Yew had assists in the second period.
The Buffaloes had a five-minute power play in the third period, but couldn't connect and cut into the Stars' lead. Belosowsky scored shorthanded to make it a 4-1 game with Duzan earning an assist and his third point of the game while Pfeifer drew the second assist.
"We went there not knowing what to expect," explained coach Martin Smith. "Winning our first two games all of sudden put us in the thick of things."
Friday, the Stars faced Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League rival the Saskatoon Blazers. The Stars are 2-0 against the Blazers in regular season meetings and split their two exhibition games in September.
After the first period, the Stars were well on their way to earning their third win of the tournament and another victory over the Blazers.
Regan Yew scored shorthanded midway through the first period and then he added a power play goal from Bly and Lacoursiere.
The Blazers tied the game in the second period, first with a power play goal and later at even strength.
Six minutes into the third period, the Blazers broke the tie and held on for the 3-2 win.
Toth was back in net for the Stars and made 18 saves in the loss while the Stars out shot the Blazers 29-21. The Stars ran into a hot goalie in Evan Weiniger, who also stopped a penalty shot late in the third period.
"Against the Blazers, I thought we out played them, we out shot them, but their goaltender, who got player of the game, was unbelievable," said Smith.
In the Stars final game they went up against the St. Albert Sports Raiders.
St. Albert scored three times in the first period, two in the second and two in the third to cruise to the 7-0 win.
Rewerts was saddled with the loss in the Stars' net.
"Like every team there we had a couple guys injured and a couple guys not feeling well. It was a gruelling test. I was very proud of how we played. The guys never quit. We turned a lot of heads," said Smith.
The Stars were eliminated from the tournament with a 2-2 record. Monday, eight teams remained including the St. Albert Sports Raiders and Greater Vancouver Canadians from the Stars' pool. The other teams in the playoff round include: the Red Deer Optimist Chiefs, Vancouver NW Giants, Cariboo Cougars, Pirati Chomutov, Carolina Jr. Hurricanes, and from the SMAAAHL, the Saskatoon Contacts.
"The experience and the exposure was great for the program," said Smith.
Looking ahead to resuming the SMAAAHL season, the Stars are hoping to build on the momentum from the first half and the experience at the Mac's while setting new goals, which include a long run in the playoffs, says Smith.
"We can play with anybody," said Smith. " We know what it takes to compete."
