Prince Albert plays the eventual Esso Cup champions Stoney Creek Sabres in preliminary action on Apr. 27, 2023. (Mark Peterson/Hockey Canada)

By Logan Lehmann

national championship

Year in Review: Puck drops at Esso Cup in P.A. after three year postponement

Dec 29, 2023 | 8:00 AM

As 2023 draws to a close, paNOW is taking a look back on the most important and impactful stories of the year, as selected by our reporters and editorial staff.

After being postponed for the last three years, the Esso Cup finally came to fruition inside the Art Hauser Centre in 2023.

The U18AAA Female National Hockey Championships were supposed to happen in the spring of 2020 but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, tournament organizers and Hockey Canada were forced to postpone the tournament to the following year, which ended with the same fate.

After a two-year hiatus, the tournament was to be held in 2022 however, not in Prince Albert. That year, the tournament was held at a neutral site in Okotoks, Alta. and the Northern Bears played in the championship as the hosts.

Finally, after years of waiting, the puck dropped at the Esso Cup in P.A.

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The tournament saw six teams from across the country competing for National Gold, including the Prince Albert Northern Bears (Host), Regina Rebels (West), Fraser Valley Rush (Pacific), Étoiles de Laurentides-Lanaudière (Quebec), Northern Selects (Atlantic), and the eventual champion Stoney Creek Sabres (Ontario).

The Stoney Creek Sabres pose for a photo after winning the Esso Cup. (Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

The Sabres finished the tournament undefeated at 7-0 en route to the program’s first national title as they downed Fraser Valley in an intense gold medal game.

READ MORE: Stoney Creek Sabres win 2023 Esso Cup after third-period comeback

Entering the final period down 3-1, Stoney Creek managed to erase the deficit and tie it up midway through the frame. The Sabres scored again moments later to take the lead before the Rush swiftly answered back making it 4-4. With 1:20 left to play, tournament MVP Madison Burr scored the cup-clinching goal to hand Fraser Valley their second consecutive silver medal at the championship.

“I’m so glad it ended up like this,” said Burr following the game. “I wanted it to be a close game, it makes it so much more exciting and I just can’t believe it even happened.”

Claiming the third spot on the podium was Regina who defeated the Northern Selects 5-1 in the bronze medal game. Rounding out the standings was Laurentides-Lanaudière in fifth while Prince Albert finished in sixth.

Joining Burr on the awards list from the tournament was Regina’s Greta Henderson who won Top Forward, Fraser Valley’s Aynsley D’Ottavio who won the Top Defenceman, Laurentides-Lanaudière’s Béatrice Plouffe took home Top Goaltender, Selects’ forward Kendall Doiron won the Most Sportsmanlike, and Prince Albert’s Jasmine Kohl was awarded the Esso Scholarship ($1000).

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loganc.lehmann@pattisonmedia.com