The Canadian U18 men's hockey team continued its dominance of the annual Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament held in the Czech Republic this past week. Canada won the gold medal for the 8th straight year, defeating Sweden 7-3 in the final.

The 22 man squad was captained by Oakbank, MB native Brett Howden. Howden, who plays for the Moose Jaw Warriors in the Western Hockey League, had nothing but praise for his squad. "It's a once in a lifetime opportunity to play with those players. There were 22 leaders on that team. Every player was an unbelievable player and an unbelievable guy." He credited the gold medal win to great team chemistry. "We were a big group and we meshed really well together, and I think that showed on the ice."

Howden added that having that many high calibre hockey players and leaders on the same team took the pressure off of him being named team captain. The honor of wearing the "C" was bestowed on Howden when the team landed in the Czech Republic. " I knew it wasn't going to be a big deal at all. I knew I wasn't going to be doing it on my own." Howden also noted that his main goal was to lead by example.

Most young hockey players can only dream of being the captain of a hockey team on the international stage, and while the weight of it was not lost on Howden, it also was something he tried not to dwell on. "It crosses your mind every once in a while," he acknowledged, "but at the same time, you can't think about it too much." He added that his main goal was to take it one step at a time when he played.

This mindset was clearly helpful for the whole team, as they systematically worked their way through the tournament with high-intensity offense, outscoring opponents 19-7 in the tournament. Canada opened the tournament with a 3-1 win over the host Czech Republic, and followed that up with a 2-0 victory over Sweden. Canada wrapped up round robin play with a 9-2 drubbing of Switzerland, giving them a bye into the semi-finals.

A semi-final tilt with Russia was the Canadians biggest test of the tournament, going all the way to a shootout. It took another Manitoban, Winnipeg native and Brandon Wheat Kings forward Nolan Patrick, to win it for the Canadians in that shootout to advance Canada to the gold medal match. That game featured a rematch with team Sweden, but saw a very different outcome as the Canadians scored four goals in the first period on the way to a 7-3 romp.

Patrick finished the tournament as Canada's leading goal-scorer with 3, and had six points during the tournament. Fellow Wheat King Tanner Kaspick of Brandon also represented Manitoba, recording two points in the tournament.

Howden praised his fellow Manitobans for their play at the tournament. "They're unbelievable players," he said. "I can't say enough about them." Howden also gave credit to his hockey development in Manitoba, particularly his two years spent in the Manitoba AAA Midget Hockey League with the Eastman Selects, where he says his coaches gave him lots of opportunity to develop as a player and pushing him as he grew as a young hockey player. "They definitely helped me be where I am today."

With the gold medal under his belt, Howden now travels back to Moose Jaw to attend Warriors training camp. He had 46 points and 22 goals with the club last season. The Warriors' season gets underway on September 24th, when they host division rivals the Regina Pats in Moose Jaw. Meanwhile, Patrick and Kaspick are returning to the Wheat Kings, who kick off their season on September 25th when the Swift Current Broncos come to town.