Elijah Smith captured gold at the seventh annual Elementary School Hockey Tournament on Wednesday afternoon at the Canada Games Centre.

The team won seven games and tied one, 1-1 against Whitehorse Elementary, on

route to the finals against Christ the King.

"It was a good tournament,” said Elijah Smith head coach Len Walchuk, who was joined on the bench by coaches Pat Burrel and Angie Troke.

"We had good participation, good fun, and some good hockey.”

Twelve teams, formed of students from St. Elias, Jack Hulland, Golden Horn/ Hidden Valley, WHSE, Teslin, Emilie Tremblay, Holy Family, Selkirk/JH/Takhini, Christ the King, and Eljah Smith elementary, participated in the one-day tournament.

Games were 25 minutes long with a running clock and the teams were split into two divisions.

The teams competed in a round-robin format, with the top squad in each pool playing a semi-final game against the second place team in other. The winner of those two games met in the final, while the two losing teams played to decide third and fourth place.

"It's been great,” said tournament co-organizer and Holy Family Elementary principal, Ted Hupé.

"The sportsmanship has been outstanding and the teams played their hearts out.”

Jack Hulland Elementary went home with the bronze medal after rebounding from a 7-2 loss against Elijah Smith Elementary in the semifinals.

In the final, Elijah Smith opened up the scoring five minutes into the game. A shot from in front just sneaked by the glove of Christ the King goaltender, Matthew Blindheim, who was a force in net throughout the tournament.

Elijah Smith built a 3-0 lead before Christ the King got onto the score sheet in the final two minutes.

Despite the 3-1 final score, the fast paced game was close throughout, with both teams battling hard for the puck on the open ice.

"I think the game was closer then the score indicated,” said Walchuk. "It was back and forth.”

Each of the goaltenders played impressive hockey and kept the game competitive.

Campbell Beurdine manned the crease for Elijah Smith and recorded four shutouts in the tournament.

"He was awesome,” said Walchuk. "He played outstanding throughout the entire tournament.”

For Elijah Smith the tournament was a chance at redemption after losing last year's gold medal game to Whitehorse Elementary.

"I thought it went well and the hockey was good,” said Elijah Smith Elementary defenceman, Tynan Hope.

"It was good to win the gold in my final year of elementary school.”

For their efforts, Elijah Smith was rewarded with gold medals and a large banner to

proudly display in their school.

Hupé said the tournament is a good opportunity for kids that aren't involved in minor hockey to experience a tournament setting and represent their school.

Elijah Smith will look to defend their title in next year's event.

The tournament also emphasized good sportsmanship, school spirit and leadership.

As the players from Elijah Smith, Christ the King, and Jack Hulland gathered on the ice at the end of the day to collect their medals, they were quick to congratulate one another and offer words of encouragement.

Despite the highly competitive atmosphere of the games, sportsmanship was the main focus of the day and the players did not disappoint.

"The tournament was really well run and the players displayed great sportsmanship,” said Walchuk.