BY DALLAS SMITH

LEDUC, Alberta - With the Kahnawake Mohawks defeating the Brooklin Merchants earlier on Thursday, there was only one spot left in the National Championship Gold Medal Game. The St. Albert Miners and the Native Sons were the two teams fighting for this final spot. The Miners acquired a bye to this semi-final matchup after finishing first in their division whereas the Native Sons played on Thursday against the Mountaineers. The Native Sons easily won the crossover game and found themselves one game away from the Gold Medal game, looking forward to a re-match with the Kahnawake Mohawks. 

At the outset of the game, both teams sought to set the pace and the tone for the game. The Native Sons fast transition and physical offense was set to attack the Miners rigid defense that only allowed three goals in their previous outing. The Miners attempted to control the offensive end with long possessions that culminated in goals. Initially, the Native Sons were able to have success with consecutive goals from Brandon Brooks and Franklin Brown. The Native Sons defense continued to be dominant until the Miners Chris Schmidt scored on an unsettled fast break opportunity. The momentum of the Miners first goal continued in next few minutes, as Darren Kinnear was able to slip one past Hunyahdengowah Abrams from the outside. With the score tied at two,  the teams fought desperately for a slight advantage heading into the break.  With just over the two-minute mark, the Miners were able to score their third goal of the game, followed by another goal as the first period expired. 

The second period saw the Native Sons desperate to close the lead established by the Miners late in the first. The first two minutes of play saw exactly that, two successive goals from Jonathan Williams that tied the game at four. The Native Sons run of two goals to start the period halted after two quick goals inched the Miners back ahead of their opponents. Another goal from Miner’s Kinnear would give them their largest lead of the game, as they found themselves ahead 7-4. The Miners would continue to build on this lead with an outside goal from Richard Lachlan that prompted a goalie switch from the Native Sons. A much smaller but more active Jacob Lazore replaced the usually stout Abrams. Penalties haunted the Native Sons for the remainder of the period, as the Miners were able to score their first extra-man goal after a five-minute high-sticking call on the Native Sons. 

The Miners entered the third period with a five-goal cushion, as well as four and a half minutes left on their extra man opportunity. After a third consecutive goal from Richard Lachlan, the Native Sons penalty ended, but also saw them trailing 10-4. The Miners goaltender David Marrese was a large factor in their ability to prolong their goal streaks, as he continued to soak up shot after shot. His solid performance was evident on the Miners eleventh goal, as a big save and outlet pass led to a Keegan Bal breakaway goal.  During the remainder of the third period, the Miners continued to extend their lead while limiting the Native Sons chances on offense. The Miners seven-goal run in the second and third period created too lengthy of a deficit for the Native Sons to overcome in the latter parts of the third period. The lead combined with penalties in the last five minutes enabled the Miners to walk away with a 14-5 victory.

The Miners victory over the Native Sons, place them into the National Championship versus the Kahnawake Mohawks. The game will feature both divisional number one seeds, both of whom won convincingly on Thursday. The game will take place on Saturday, September 3rd at 4:30pm in the Leduc Recreation Centre.