In front of a huge, enthusiastic crowd of fans, the Bentley Generals skated, stick-handled and shot their way to a 3-0 victory against the Clarenville Caribous, bringing home, once again, the coveted Allan Cup.
The game held April 20 at the Red Deer Arena, marked the second Canada’s senior amateur men’s hockey championship for the Generals, who also brought the Allan Cup home in 2009.
Goalie Dan Bakala, the team’s tournament MVP, made 35 saves in Saturday’s game while opposing goalie, Jason Churchill kept out 30 shots.
Bentley General Chris Neiszner scored the first goal of the game, 14 minutes into the second period and just under five minutes later, Scott Doucet scored the second goal.
The third period had barely got underway when Generals’ Keenan Desmet scored, bringing the score to 3-0.
Reflecting on the final game, Generals manager Jeff McInnis admitted to a few nervous moments before his team got down to the business of winning.
“They (the Caribous) looked very polished in the semifinal. I was quite nervous when we went in,” he said.
However, he noted being nervous wasn’t such a bad thing, because he was fairly confident when the Generals went up against the Caribous in 2011, and the game did not turn out the way he expected.
“I think we were overconfident then,” he recalled.
McInnis said it was rewarding to defeat the Caribous and especially rewarding for the nine veterans who were on the team in 2011.
The manager sees Bakala as an amazing goalie who has been a huge asset for the Generals.
“He is a special young man and we hope to have him back next year but he has had professional offers judging by his performance (in the tournament).”
While Mcinnis is proud of Bakala’s performance in the net, he noted the Generals defense was excellent in the final game. “They played it (their positions) to a tee.”
Fan support for the Generals has been amazing, he added.
“This is the old school kind of hockey. You don’t come for all the bells and whistles, like a nice, warm arena. You come because you love the game.”