The Devils Lake boys’ hockey Peewee B team won the Bronze State Tournament in Watford City that took place from March 1-3. They were led by coaches Megan Lebrun and Travis Zahn.
The Flames, as the lowest ranked team in the east, beat Williston White 7-1 in a play-in game on Friday morning. They came back Friday evening to play Dickinson Orange, the highest rated team from the west. They trailed 4-1 after the first period but came back to win 7-5 and advance to the semifinals.
The Flames beat West Fargo Red 7-4 on Saturday to move on to Sunday’s championship, where they beat Fargo Green 5-4. Bryson Dather scored the game-winning goal with 23 seconds left in the third period. It secured a hat trick for Dather with three goals in the game.
Dather also led the team in goals throughout the tournament with nine. He added five assists and earned the Playmaker Award. Ethan Bracken was second with four goals, while Nickolas Holter Jr. and Hunter Lebrun each had three. All three of Holter Jr.’s goals came in one game, joining him with Dather in achieving a hat trick.
The team was also fueled by goalie Cayden Christianson. To start the season, he shared goalie duties with Lebrun, but Lebrun broke his collarbone after the third game. He eventually worked his way back, but Coach Lebrun opted to keep Christianson as the team’s primary goalie and place H. Lebrun at forward.
Devils Lake battled through its underdog status and came out on top.
“It was a rollercoaster season with injuries and illnesses,” Coach Lebrun wrote in an email. “We didn’t have many league wins, but the boys worked hard at the end and came together as a team.”
The Flames proved the importance of catching fire, so to speak, at the right time and persevering when it mattered most — and it culminated in glory.
