LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
The Fort Simpson men's hockey team faced off against teams from Hay River, Fort Providence and Deline during their 30th annual hockey tournament.

The Deline Braves played for keeps on Jan. 22, waging a fierce battle against the Hay River Huskies, but couldn't quite top them in their final match. Braves' Gerald Tutcho, left, and Aaron Mackenzie skate around the back of the net while the Huskies' Matt Millar comes up from behind them. - April Hudson/NNSL photo

The tournament kicked off with a round robin the evening of Jan. 20, continuing into Jan. 21.

The weekend culminated in an ultimate win for the Hay River Huskies, who won their round robin games against the Deline Braves and K&K from Fort Simpson. The Huskies subsequently lost 3-4 to Fort Simpson's Nahanni Flyers but came back in the semi-finals to beat the Fort Providence Bulls, moving on to the final round where they rolled over Deline and claimed top spot and a prize of $5,000.

The Braves had a comeback after arriving late to their round robin due to travel delays. The team was forced to forfeit their first round robin game against the Eagles on Jan. 20 but made up for it over the rest of the weekend by winning their semi-final against the Nahanni Flyers and seizing second place.

The Bulls, which rolled over the competition during the round robin - including a 17-1 score against K&K - hit a wall during their consolation match against the Nahanni Flyers, losing 0-2 and bumping the Flyers into third place.

Frustration grew among Bulls teammates during the consolation game as their players racked up penalties and finally came to a head in the third period when the team walked off the ice with 37 seconds left on the clock.