The Whitehorse Bantam Mustangs kicked off their season in style last weekend.

The squad went 5-0 en route to their first tournament title of the season at the 12th annual Seafair Sandman Hotel Icebreaker Rep Tournament in Richmond, B.C.

Whitehorse beat Saanich 3-2 in the Tier 2 tournament final Monday, in what was a battle of unbeaten teams.

The Yukoners played their first game Friday, beating Juan de Fuca 4-1, and then rapped off wins against Phoenix 5-2, Nanaimo 5-2 and the hosts from Seafair 6-2.

“I was very happy,” said bantam head coach Martin Lawrie. “They surprised me with where they were at this point in the season. ... The team seemed to get better and better each game we played.”

In the final, newly minted captain Joe Stokes, 14, scored the game-winner, one-timing a slick pass from linemate Bryce Anderson into the back of the net on a late power play.

“They have such a good feel for the game,” Lawrie said of the duo. “They seem to be able to figure out what needs to be done when, whether it’s a big bodycheck or a shift down deep in the other end.”

The top line of Stokes, Anderson and Oscar Sawicki was dominant from the first shift on, Lawrie added.

“Any time we needed it, they were able to turn the momentum.”

After Whitehorse went down 2-0 versus Saanich, 13-year-old Dylan Cozens put the team on his back, scoring twice to knot things back up.

The line of Cozens, Johnny Elias and Oscar Burgess also had a great offensive weekend, although individual point totals were not available, Lawrie said.

“It was interesting. We didn’t have anyone asking about that,” he added. “I think it was all about winning for these kids.”

With backup goalie Ethan Vanderkley in P.E.I. for the U-14 soccer nationals, Cole Smith started each of the five games in net.

Alongside their offensive guns, the team’s defence was solid, anchored by Niall Lawrie and first-year Brett Walchuk.

The Mustangs rep program also sent peewee and atom teams to the Seafair tournament. Both teams went winless in five games.

“This is our first real competitive games outside of Whitehorse for all these kids,” said Whitehorse Minor Hockey Association head coach Derek Klassen. “And for a lot of these other teams, it’s their third tournament already.

“So you can’t really look too closely at the wins and losses at this time of year for us. I was happy with how the peewees and the atoms played.”

As for the bantam squad, Klassen said some top-end skill combined with a solid work ethic helped the Tier 3 club rise above their rivals.

“I watched every game, and the whole group worked harder than any other team,” Klassen explained. “Martin Lawrie’s got them working pretty good. ... There’s probably four or five guys that really make the team click.

“For them to be winning games the way that they won them at this time of year is a real positive thing for sure. ... They’re going to have a pretty successful year for the most part.”

Last year, the Peewee Mustangs also won gold in Seafair, thanks in large part to a 21-goal performance from Cozens.