SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Some veteran hockey players have shown they still have what it takes to get the job done on the ice.

A team of players from Fort Simpson, Fort Providence and four other communities won the Canadian North division at the 28th annual Balsillie Cup in Yellowknife from April 8 to 10.

Mike Squirrel of Fort Simpson gathered the team by first contacting old-timer hockey players - 35 and up - in the village and then expanding his search when not enough people could be found. The team, which had nine players and a goalie, just barely passed the eight-skater minimum for the tournament.

For some of the players, including Squirrel, it was their first time on the ice this season. It took awhile for everyone to get their game legs on and begin playing well together but it worked out, he said.

"The guys were out there to have fun, winning was a bonus," said Squirrel.

The team, which played under the Fort Simpson banner, won its first game against the Det'on Cho Flyers from Ndilo, a regular in the Yellowknife old-timers hockey league, 9-4 after two periods of play. They then went on to lose to the Hay River Rusty Blades D 6-3.

As a result of one team being unable to attend, there were only three teams in the Canadian North division. After the round robin each team had one win and one loss but Fort Simpson had one more point than the others when the goals for and against were tallied. As a result, Fort Simpson immediately advanced to the finals and waited for the outcome of the semifinal game. They were soon joined by Hay River who defeated Ndilo.

Down 2-1, things were looking grim for Fort Simpson at the halfway point of the final. The team, however, came back to score five more goals in the second period and win 6-3.

Fort Simpson had outskated and outshot Hay River for three periods but the Rusty Blades had a good goalie. It wasn't until the last period of the final that the goals started getting around him, Squirrel said.

"We put a lot of pressure on the team," said Jerry Antoine, who was a right winger on the team.

Fort Simpson also had a good defense, Antoine said.

Other members of the team included Shane Thompson of Fort Simpson, Ronald Bonnetrouge of Hay River, who was named MVP for the division; Arvin Landry and Mike Leishman of Fort Providence; Alex Black and Trent Hayward of Behchoko; Rick Moses of Whitehorse and James Dall of Yellowknife.

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