It was a productive tournament for Swift Current Broncos prospects at the prestigious Mac’s Midget AAA World Invitational Tournament in Calgary as eight prospects playing on eight different teams excelled on both team and individual levels.
Dom Masellis, a Broncos’ third round pick in 2012, was the last Broncos prospect standing on New Years Day when he skated in the championship final for the Vancouver North West Giants.
Masellis and the Giants emerged from double overtime with a 3-2 victory in the championship final over the Carolina Junior Hurricanes to win the 35th edition of the Mac’s Tournament.
Masellis and the Vancouver North West Giants had a dominating run through the round robin with four straight wins, scoring at least four goals in each game and never allowing more than two goals.
Masellis had an assist in a 5-2 win over Leduc to open the tournament. The Giants faced the Red Deer Optimist Chiefs in the quarters in a good old fashion barnburner, advancing past Red Deer with an 8-5 win on the strength of four third-period goals. They made it six straight wins with a 4-2 win over the Czech Republic’s Pirati Chomutov in the semi-final.
Wyatt Sloboshan and the Saskatoon Contacts snuck into the playoffs with a 2-1-1 record. Sloboshan, a third round pick in 2012, had a goal and an assist during a 4-3 win over the Okanagen Rockets. He added an assist during a 5-4 win over the Carolina Junior Hurricanes and scored again during a 5-3 loss to the Lethbridge Pronghorns.
The Contacts took on St. Albert in the quarterfinals and trailed 2-1 late before Sloboshan scored a powerplay goal with only 2:52 remaining to force overtime where Kade Kehoe would eventually score in the second extra period to lift the Contacts to the 3-2 win.
Sloboshan scored another goal in the semifinals in a 5-4 loss to the Carolina Junior Hurricanes.
Broncos 2011 first round pick Zack Gonek and the St. Albert Raiders also made a playoff appearance. Gonek scored the team’s first goal of the tournament during a 3-2 win over the Calgary Buffaloes. He added two assists in a 3-0 shutout of the Saskatoon Blazers.
Gonek scored again during a 7-0 rout of the Battlefords Stars. He added his third goal in a 4-3 loss to the Greater Vancouver Canadians to round out the round robin.
St. Albert faced the Saskatoon Contacts in the quarterfinal and lost 3-2 in double overtime.
2012 first round pick Glenn Gawdin helped the Greater Vancouver Canadians recovered from a tournament opening loss to make a playoff appearance.
Gawdin, who was picked fifth overall last May, had an assist during a 4-2 loss to the Battlefords Stars to open the tournament. He scored the game winner with 3:02 left in regulation during a three-point outing in a 5-3 win over the Calgary Buffaloes.
Gawdin added a goal and two assists in a 4-2 win over the Saskatoon Blazers, helping set-up the game winner midway through the second period and then adding an insurance marker later in the stanza. He picked up a point in a fourth straight contest with an assist in a 4-3 win over the St. Albert Raiders to lock up a spot in the playoffs.
The Canadians took on the Carolina Junior Hurricanes in the quarterfinals and Gawdin set up two goals in a 5-4 loss to the eventual silver medalists.
Jackson Keane and the Winnipeg Wild just missed the playoffs with a 2-1-1 record. The Broncos 2012 fourth-round pick registered a goal and an assist in a 5-2 win over the Prince Albert Mintos to open the tournament. He added another goal and an assist in a 5-3 win over the Edmonton SSAC Athletics.
Jake Debrusk and the Edmonton SSAC Athletics finished with two wins and two losses at the Mac’s. The Broncos 2011 seventh round pick scored the first goal and set up the second in a 4-1 win over the Calgary Northstars. He added two helpers in a 5-3 win over the Prince Albert Mintos. Debrusk added another goal and an assist in a 5-3 loss to the Winnipeg Wild before being held off the board in a 7-2 loss to the Cariboo Cougars.
Maxime Lajoie and the Calgary Royals finished with a 1-2-1 record in Pool 4. Lajoie picked up an assist on the game winner in a 2-1 win over the Red Deer Chiefs. Lajoie was the 95th overall pick in the 2012 Bantam Draft.
The Tisdale Trojans finished with one win and three losses to miss the playoffs. Brandon Arnold helped set up Tisdale’s first goal of the tournament in a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames but was held off the scoresheet the rest of the way. Arnold was chosen by the Broncos in the seventh round of the 2012 Bantam Draft.
On the girls' side, the Edmonton Thunder defeated the Saskatoon Stars 3-2 to become only the second team from outside the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League to win the championship during the tournament's nine-year history.
