Another Zattzoo Cup Memorial Hockey Tournament has come and gone in Port Alberni, and Team Double R Meats has emerged the winner for the year of 2024.
The tournament started off on Friday, Dec. 27, 2024 with a kids' game between Cloud City Jr. and Funtastic Jr. According to organizer Nolan Ward, they played in front of the largest crowd the event has seen to date. Both junior teams were neck and neck in a back and forth affair right to the bitter end, when Cloud City Jr. finally pulled ahead. They finished with a 10-7 win to advance to the Zattzoo Junior Cup Finals.
Next up was Double R Meats Jr. facing off against Shaker Jr. The game had a slow start, as it was scoreless through the first half of the first period, before Shaker Jr. finally broke open the scoring. Shaker Jr. added their lead, going up 3-1, before Double R Meats Jr. locked it down and came storming back with 11 unanswered goals to take a 12-3 win, solidifying their spot in the finals alongside Cloud City Jr.
The final was another back and forth game. Double R Meats Jr. climbed to a 5-3 lead before giving up five unanswered goals to go down 8-5 in the back half of the game. Double R Meats Jr. showed some life in the final minutes, climbing to within one, then pulled their goalie for the extra skater. It wasn't enough, as they gave up not just one but two empty net goals. Cloud City Jr. finished the game with a 10-7 win, claiming the first ever Zattzoo Junior Cup.
Cloud City Jr. team captain and goalie Charlie Orser earned MVP honours, while his younger brother Bowen Orser — one of the youngest players to hit the ice — would earn honours as the Most Sportsmanlike Player. The Digger award was awarded to opposing Double R Meats Jr. goaltender Greyson Ward for his strong play throughout the tournament.
The senior division started off with Team Cloud City facing off against Team Funtastic. Funtastic came out of the gates flying, putting up an early 4-0 lead before Cloud City goaltender Eric Johnson and his team finally settled in and started clawing their way back. Cloud City managed to finish the game with a 5-5 tie, forcing a shootout to decide who would be the first team to advance to the Zattzoo Cup Final. It wasn't until the fifth round of the shootout that Funtastic took the win and advanced to the finals.
In the next game, Team Double R Meats faced off against Team Shaker, the defending champions from 2023. This was a lopsided affair, with Double R Meats on the attack for most of the game. Their goaltender, Brian Carriere, faced no more than seven shots against. Shaker goalie Adam Chamberlain faced a much different outcome, as he was under pressure all game and did everything he could to give his team a chance. The pressure was too much, as Double R Meats cruised their way to an 8-0 shutout victory.
In the finals, Double R Meats got off to a quick start against Team Funtastic, scoring on the first shift of the game. Double R Meats entered the second frame up 3-2, but Funtastic found a way to tie things up 3-3. Double R Meats put on a heavy attack in the Funtastic zone, forcing goalie Tim George to play like he was possessed to keep his team in the game. The pressure became too much, and Double R Meats finally opened the floodgates to put up five unanswered goals late in the final frame for an 8-3 win.
Team Double R Meats won the Zattzoo Cup, while Double R Meats team captain Dallas Ward was named the Rusty Rooster award recipient as the Most Valuable and Sportsmanlike Player, voted on by his team’s coaches.
Nolan Ward says the the Zattzoo Project-Association would like to send a huge thank you to everybody involved in this year’s tournament.
"We look forward to returning for another year of the Zattzoo Cup in 2025," he said.