The Service Cougars take home the Peninsula Ice Challenge trophy for 2017; however, the Kenai Kardinals take the bragging rights.
In the tournament’s final game, the Kenai Kardinals defeated the SoHi Stars 7-2 in the first pairing between the cross-town rivals for the 2017-18 season.
Kenai’s Levi Mese recorded a three-goal hat trick and Jakeb O’Brien added two goals and an assist in the Kardinals’ dismantling of the Stars.
Penalties influenced nearly every score, only two goals of the nine netted were scored in a 5-5 attack.
Kenai 7 – SoHi 2
SoHi opened the scoring with a power play goal by Galen Brantley III. Kenai answered with three goals in the final five minutes of period one: an O’Brien goal, a short-handed Mese goal; and a 5 on 3 O”Brien goal.
The second period added two Kenai goals; one for Mese on a 4 on 4 attack and one for Miles Marston on a Kardinal power play.
SoHi opened the third period with a short-handed goal for Alex Montague to close to 5-2 Kenai. The Kardinals netted a power play goal by O’Brien and a full strength goal for Mese closed the scoring. Final Score: Kenai 7 – SoHi 2
The Service Cougars downed Monroe 3-2 in the tournament’s championship game; both teams were 2-0 entering Saturday’s title pairing.