The year was 2001. It was one of the most hotly contested spring league seasons in the history of Planet Ice Coquitlam, a season filled with surprises, contraversy and of course... Fantastic beer league hockey.
The course of the season saw two div 2 teams emerge as the power houses. The Tri-City Icehawks were the wily veterans, and they played with the unshakeable confidence and panache of a team that knew they were the team to beat. Meanwhile, the upstart Beavers, a rag tag group of youngsters, proved to be a perfect foil for the well oiled Icehawks. Led by the veteran goalie known only as Dwayne, they tore through the regular season with a youthful fervor that stunned opponents, and thrilled the crowd.
It was kismet that these two teams would meet in the finals, and once there, they did not disappoint. The Icehawks proved to be the better of the two squads in the first, their stifling defense, and insatiable offense breaking down the Beavers spirit slowly. But as is the want of youth, the Beavers came back in the next game stronger and more determined, taking the game and bringing the series to a deciding third contest.
Game three was played, seemingly, on a giant marshmallow. Both teams were loathe to take too many chances, and the wear and tear of a longish season and intense playoffs had finally gotten the best of these two ice platoons. Like two old heavyweights, they each landed body blows, both too stubborn to show an inch of wear. The game was deadlocked through regulation.
Overtime was a tense affair, and both sides were tentative. It seemed neither side had the energy for that one last burst that was needed if they ever wanted to hoist the planet ice cup. the overtime dragged on, each goalie making routine save after routine save.
Then suddenly, a break for the Icehawks! Jonathan Brooks, the Icehawks star player, broke in off the wing, spinning Beavers defenseman Caesar Devera around in circles, and fired a bullet at Dwayne Zemenchik. The puck sailed high and careened off the boards landing as if by divine intervention onto the stick of Xuan-Thy Bui. Bui and Milan found themselves on a two on one break! Bui attempted a saucer pass to Milan, but the puck was intercepted by the diving Icehawks defenseman. However, nobody had noticed the Beavers Justin Salon speeding into the zone, and as the puck bounced out into the slot, Salon took a blind swat. The puck fluttered in behind Icehawks goalie Tony Nicholas and the Beavers had won their first Planet Ice Spring Season Championship!
Spezza was a lazy floater without the puck and the bluecollar workers of Windsor preferred the lunchbucket attitude of going to work every shift full tilt as Steve Ott does.
), and rarely did I see the Whalers get dominated like that (yes, even the lowly whale didn't drubbed that badly often). The Soviets were just so incredible. 
. One minor, three majors, two 10-min misconducts and three game misconducts. A brawl filled game to remember.
