RANKIN INLET
A dream tournament for Iqaluit was a nightmare for Rankin Inlet at the Sakku First Aviation Avataq Cup senior men's hockey championship in Rankin earlier this month.

Iqaluit's Phillip Verreault (14) helps goalie Steve Alivaktuk turn away a scoring chance by Repulse Bay's Justin Kidlapik (61) during action at the Sakku First Aviation Avataq Cup in Rankin Inlet earlier this month. - photo courtesy Noel Kaludjak

Iqaluit doubled Repulse Bay 6-3 in the final to claim its first Avataq Cup title.

The Rankin Inuks dumped the Rankin Miners 7-4 to claim bronze.

Coral Harbour, Whale Cove, Chesterfield Inlet, Arviat and Rankin's Team Todd and the Sea Dogs completed the 10-team lineup.

The final day on March 2 saw Repulse eliminate Whale Cove 6-3 and the Miners oust Coral 5-2 in quarter-final action.

The semifinals saw Repulse nip the Inuks 7-6 in overtime, while Iqaluit shocked the Miners 5-4.

Iqaluit's win marked the fifth-straight year a different team has won the Avataq, with Arviat winning in 2013, Repulse in 2012, Miners in 2011 and the Inuks in 2010.

It was also the third year in a row a team took the Cup for the first time.

Most disheartening to Rankin fans, however, is it has now been three years since a local team captured the prestigious title.

And, the Iqaluit vs. Repulse final marked the first time in the history of the tournament no Rankin team advanced to the big game.

Star forward Pujjuut Kusugak played the Miners first game before shutting it down and moving behind the bench to coach the team.

Kusugak suffered a bad groin injury during the final of the Jon Lindell Memorial in Arviat on Jan. 23.

Better goaltending and hockey sense are the main reasons Kusugak sees for the improved play of other teams.

He said goaltending has reached the point where you can't take teams lightly any longer.

"You also have goalies like Josh Tartak of Rankin playing with other communities - Repulse this year and Arviat the previous year - which evens things up a bit," said Kusugak.

"With hockey sense, teams have really improved their positioning, breakouts, work on the power play and on the penalty kill.

"People have been coaching in the region for a while and the younger guys have really caught on.

"People are also more hockey educated, so the level of hockey sense has built-up."

Kusugak said he was a little surprised neither the Miners or Inuks made the final.

He said not having a Rankin team in the big game was disappointing.

"Everyone wants to win the Avataq, so we have to expect top competition because it brings out the best in every team.

"Teams now are a lot more prepared when they come to Rankin for the Avataq.

"We just didn't score on enough of our chances to pull off the win this year.

"Sateana (Goupil) and Dwayne (Twerdin) really led the way for Iqaluit, and when a team has leadership like that anything can happen."

Inuks coach Brian Sigurdson said he was also surprised neither of Rankin's top two teams made the final.

He said the tide changed in 2012 when Repulse became the first non-Rankin team to win the Cup.

"When Repulse won, other teams realized just because the Avataq is a Rankin tournament, that doesn't mean Rankin teams always have to dominate it," said Sigurdson.

"The Rankin teams also started to think that way, and that may have played a role in no Rankin team winning it for the past three years.

"We expect a Rankin team to win the Avataq every year, but that's just not the case anymore."

Sigurdson said he expected both Rankin teams to be in the final, or, at least, one would be in to play Repulse. He said that's how most fans saw it when the tournament started.

"On paper, it looked like those three teams were the strongest of the 10.

"But it's hockey, so anything can happen."

Sigurdson said Repulse deserves praise for its play, having now reached the final twice in the past three years and claiming one title.

He said anyone who takes Repulse lightly because it's a small community will find themselves in trouble.

"Repulse has highly skilled hockey players.

"You don't see too many players from Repulse who aren't great skaters.

"They might be from a small community, but all their skaters are very strong. They're skilled and fast, and you rarely see them lose their cool on the ice."

Sigurdson said the Inuks have to play with more discipline at the 2015 Avataq.

He said everyone on the team felt it when they had one of their spark plugs thrown out in a crucial semifinal against Repulse.

"I'm not saying that's the reason we lost, but it certainly contributed to it.

"Having discipline is key to a team.

"It allows you to work your lines at full strength all the time and not have to shorten your bench.

"We had the team to do it this year, we just didn't get the job done."

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