As they picked up their gold medals and championship hats, the La Crete Lumber Barons capped a week where Lloydminster seemed a lot like home.
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Family and friends followed them to the Border City and made their presence known as they cheered before, during and after the Lumber Barons’ 7-2 victory over the Medicine Hat Cubs in Hockey Alberta’s provincial junior B final on Easter Sunday (April 5).
And the familial feeling at the Hub was fitting for a La Crete team that’s built around community, with multiple sets of brothers, cousins and even an uncle-nephew combination on the roster.
“Nothing was easy,” forward Kade Paul said after the Lumber Barons won their fifth game in as many days in the six-team tournament.
“I just think that we’re such a team and we have such a bond, and we’re a family, I don’t think there’s any team that can compete with that. They don’t have that.”
La Crete checked all the boxes in the provincial championship, posting a perfect 5-0 record, along with most goals for, least goals against and fewest penalties.
Paul believes the rigours of the Northwest Junior Hockey League created that team discipline, as rare as it might be at the traditionally rough-and-tough junior B level.
“I know in our league, it’s really physical and it’s really passionate,” he said. “Guys want to win. They’re all blue-collar guys. It’s a grind.”
That backdrop served the Lumber Barons well in Lloyd, where they averaged less than five minutes per game in the penalty box.
“For sure,” Paul concurred. “The two-hand (slash) on the backs of legs, and stuff like that, we’re all used to it, and we stay disciplined. We know what to do about it and how to manage it.”
The man managing La Crete since the team’s inception four years ago has been coach-GM Dion Knelsen, an NCAA-schooled Albertan who went on to play 12 years of pro in Europe. His diverse resume includes representing Canada in the Spengler Cup, not to mention being one of the three Knelsen brothers to have skated with the junior A Drumheller Dragons in the Alberta Junior Hockey League.
His transition to coaching came naturally as he returned to his native province.
“You come back home, and your town has a junior B club, and it turns out it’s quite a bit of fun coaching,” Knelsen said with a smile.
“These boys have worked hard, and everybody has just bought in so well. It’s just an unselfish, focused group of guys. I’m so proud of them for getting this done.”
That sentiment was the same from the Lumber Barons’ fans, who made noise, waved signs and formed a formidable force behind the team’s bench.
Other than goaltender Ethan Fechter of Meadow Lake, Sask., all the La Crete players are from northern Alberta, many with family connections on the roster.
“A lot of first cousins and there’s an uncle-nephew combination — they’re one year apart,” Knelsen said as players and supporters posed for photographs.
“It’s special to have a lot of family and friends (backing the team). Everyone is very blessed to have a community around them that supports them, as you see here.
“The organization is very top-notch. You get treated closer to junior A than you would a normal junior B team. Everyone does a great job.”
LLOYDMINSTER CONNECTION
Knelsen spent the first dozen years of his life in High Level, Alta., where his minor hockey teammates included Lloydminster sportsman Riley Fletcher, now an assistant coach with the U18 AAA Lancers hockey team.
For their Lloyd stay, the Lumber Barons occupied the Hub dressing room that normally belongs to the U18 AAA girls’ Steelers.
The Border City surroundings proved to be most comfortable for the golden visitors.
“None of the boys were nervous today,” Fechter said after his 30-save performance in the final. “Everyone was happy and in a good mood. We acted like this was just another game, a regular Saturday or Sunday. The boys were locked in and played great. The vibes were great.
“I’m from Meadow Lake and it’s only two hours from here, so my grandma, my dad, my mom and my sister all came. My auntie and uncle came as well, because they’re from Lloyd.”
Now hoping to continue his hockey at the university level in Canada or the U.S., Fechter made the most of his short time in La Crete.
“It’s a nice, small little town,” he said.
Knelsen said the Lumber Barons were fortunate to acquire Fechter in a mid-season trade with the Fort St. John Huskies.
“There was a lot of overagers in Fort St. John and they didn’t have room for him, so he needed a place to play. He had to stay in our league, and I think he wanted to come play for us. We’re very thankful we’ve had him. He’s been a big part of our success.”
Carter Fehr, the top scorer at provincials, is one of the assistant captains with the Lumber Barons, whose roster includes his first cousin Trent Fehr.
“It’s a very tight group,” Carter Fehr said. “Everybody loves each other. It’s pretty easy being leadership on this team. Everybody knows their job. Nobody beaks at each other. It’s all just one tight-knit group. It makes our job easy as leaders and I think it showed this weekend.”
The 20-year-old forward from La Crete is an accounting student doing online studies through Athabasca University. He believes the Lumber Barons were relentless and surprised opponents during the provincial championship.
“I think everybody saw us and said, ‘This team is not as skilled.’ You look at where all our players came from. But, at the end of the day, we just work our bag off, forecheck guys hard, and then the skill kind of goes away from the other team. We put so much pressure on them that they can’t make passes, and that’s what we did all tournament.
“You’ll see us and say, ‘Oh, they don’t look that good.’ But then, we’re on you, we’re on you, we’re on you, and you start to realize, ‘This team is actually hard to play against.’ And their skill doesn’t take over as much.”
It was the Lumber Barons who showed the way on Easter weekend in Lloydminster.
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