Two-time A Division champs
Rankin Rock defend atoms crown at Munn Cup
Darrell Greer
Northern News Services
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
RANKIN INLET
The Rankin Rock successfully defended its atoms 'A' Munn Cup hockey title in Thompson, Man., earlier this month.
The Arviat Wolves finished fourth in the A Division, while a second Rankin team competed in the B Division at the event.
No Kivalliq squads competed in the AA Division.
The Munn Cup A Division champion Rankin (Inlet) Rock atoms are Sandy Tattuinee, Owen Connelly-Clark, Charlotte Siksik, Keenan Eetuk (assistant coach), Gregory Wiseman, David Clark (head coach), Liam Tattuinee, Daniel Curley, Ben Kusugak and Sidney Nichol (assistant coach), back row from left, and Ben Tulugak, Daniel Wertwyn, Terence Pilakapsi, Maxine Ronald, Preston Kaludjak, Kaine Towtongie and Kaidin Eetuk, front row from left, in Thompson, Man. earlier this month. - photo courtesy of Uvinik Towtongie |
Rock head coach David Clark said eight of his 14 players were rookies this year, with only six returning from his 2015 championship squad.
He said the Munn Cup is one of the top highlights of the season for the young Rankin players.
"Just going somewhere new to play is a lot of fun in itself for most of them," said Clark.
"We had 68 people travelling together on this trip, including the parents, so it was a nice big group that had a lot of fun together.
"The players enjoy playing in a nice, new rink against teams they've never seen before.
"They also had the chance to go bowling, go swimming, hang out with their friends, and visit McDonald's, so there were a lot of different things to keep them happy and
busy."
The Rock went through the tournament undefeated, topping Gillam, Man., 5-3 in the championship game.
Clark said both Rankin teams carried themselves well at the tournament.
He said he was extremely proud of his player's behaviour, both on and off the ice.
"Both Rankin teams are very disciplined, well-organized, have structure to their game and the players all know the team comes first.
"I was proud to see our B Team named the most sportsmanlike team of the tournament.
"It didn't matter if we were up by seven, or down by seven, with both our teams because the kids always played hard, had fun and were cheering on the bench.
"We always show respect to the officials and the other teams, and that's why the organizers enjoy having our teams back every year."
Clark said skating was the key to the 'A' team's success this year.
He said he plans to move up to coach at the peewee level after this season, but he'll ensure the atoms return to the Munn Cup again in 2017.
"I work on skating with the kids more than anything else and it really showed in this tournament.
"We had the best skating team in the A Division.
"In fact, in my opinion, we would have been competitive in the AA Division.
"We owe a lot of thanks to the community of Rankin Inlet for all the support we received in being able to bring 37 players down to the Munn Cup, which is pretty amazing."
