A Burnaby Minor midget hockey team is doing its best to prove the tiering round was wrong.
The midget A1 Bulldogs won the 11th annual Victoria Midget Classic tournament for the first time, taking top spot in the A flight following a 4-0 victory over newly promoted Coquitlam A1 last weekend.
The Bulldogs, recently bumped to Flight 2 following an 0-6-2 record during the tiering round, were a perfect 5-0 against the 12 mostly Tier 1 teams taking part.
Burnaby defenceman Adam Merenda sparked a four-goal surge in final period of the gold-medal game, scoring the game-winning goal midway through the third frame. First team tournament all-star Alex Ambrosio, who led the team in tournament scoring, added a second goal less than a minute later.
Ken Takahashi counted a pair of late goals to salt Burnaby’s first-ever win at the Capital City competition.
Netminder Garrett Wills was named Burnaby’s player of the game in the tournament final.
Kyle Harpestad shared the goalkeeping with Wills, posting two of Burnaby’s five wins. The Bulldogs outscored their combined opposition 35-4.
“It’s certainly a first, an all-time first,” said Burnaby team manager Paul Conners. “It was kind of a nice statement on our part that we don’t belong in A2.”
