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THEBACHA/FORT SMITH
Three games into the Hockey Bags Invitational, the Moosehide Mammas had a revelation.

The Moosehide Mammas won The Hockey Bags Invitational in Fort Smith. Team members include from left, back row: coach Ted Grant, Beth Jumbo, Kelley Andrews-Klein, Erin Wyatt, Sydney Rowe, Stephanie Cudmore, Kristen Morrison, Jennifer Thistle, Teresa Chilkowich and Leif Amundson, front row Trish Clough, Ashleigh Cudmore and Laurie Ozmun. - photo courtesy of Teresa Chilkowich

By that point on Jan. 19 the Fort Simpson team had defeated or tied each of the other teams in the Fort Smith tournament. The Mammas started the day with a 2-0 win against the Fort Smith Fury Rage followed by a 1-1 tie against the Fort Smith Fury Wrath.

The team was in the dressing room that evening after a 6-0 win over the Hay River Hazards.

"We realized we could take the whole tournament," said Laurie Ozmun, the team's captain. "It was unreal in the dressing room," she said, referring to the energy level of the team members.

'It was great to win'

On Sunday, the Mammas went on to defeat the Fort Smith Fury Wrath, the fourth-placed team, 4-1. In the finals the Mammas played the Hay River Hazards, winning the game 6-2 to take the tournament. Stephanie Cudmore and Jennifer Thistle each scored a goal in the first period while Ashleigh Cudmore pocketed two. In the second period both of the Mammas' goals came from Kristen Morrison.

"It was great to win the tournament, especially considering that four of the 11 team members had never played in a tournament with the Mammas before," said Ozmun.

Beth Jumbo was one of those players.

Jumbo joined the Mammas this season and scored her first tournament goal in the round-robin game against the Hazards. Jumbo shot the puck towards the net where it bounced off the goalie's pads and went in. Jumbo said she was a bit astounded at first after she made the goal.

"I was like, did I really just do that," she said.

Jumbo said getting a goal and being part of the winning team were both great motivators that encouraged her to keep playing hockey. Not sure what to expect going into the tournament, Jumbo said there was good competition at the event and that it was fun.

"I think all the girls played really well as a team," she said.

Ozmun credited the team's practice sessions in part for the Mammas success. Since Christmas a group of 10 players has been dedicated to practicing twice a week knowing the tournament was coming. The players also gave each other confidence, she said.

The tournament, however, wasn't without its challenges.

"We had to change our strategy for each team because each team was so different," she said.

Rage had a strong goalie while Wrath had a lot of players so they were always fresh and fast. Hay River, on the other hand, was a more aggressive team, Ozmun said. Dealing with the differences was good because it make the players think and change up their game all of the time, said Ozmun.

"It definitely made our girls better players," she said.

After taking a break from practice on Jan. 21 the Mammas will be back on the ice on Jan. 23. The team is now gearing up for its own tournament, Chicks with Sticks, that will be held in Fort Simpson from Feb. 8 to 10.

The Mammas are looking to get a lot of community involvement in the tournament and to have a lot of teams participate because it hasn't been held in a few years, Ozmun said.

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