If there's one championship every midget hockey team covets, it's the Mac's triple-A Midget title.
Two years ago, the Cariboo Cougars lost in the quarterfinals of the 25-team international tournament in Calgary.
Last year, they didn't win a game, going 0-4 and failed to advance to the playoff round.
This year, the Cougars brought the trophy home to Prince George and northern B.C. with a 2-1 double-overtime victory against the Regina Pat Canadians in the championship final on New Year's Day.
"This one has been a long time coming," said Cougars general manager and co-coach Trevor Sprague Friday. "As a whole organization and the people who supported us is pretty special. Playing against teams from all over North America is pretty special. They were prepared and I'm proud of what they've done."
The Cougars lost only one game en route to the championship, a 4-2 loss to the Calgary Northstars in their five-team round-robin pool.
They then knocked off Germany's under-17 national team 5-1 in a quarterfinal tilt Wednesday morning. Later in the day on New Year's Eve, Justin Almeida scored the overtime winner to edge the Calgary Buffalos 5-4 in one of two semifinals to advance to the final on Thursday.
The Pat Canadians beat Edmonton's SSAC Boston Pizza Athletics 3-2 in their quarterfinal, and the Vancouver Northwest Giants 3-2 in the other semifinal to reach the title game.
Chase Dubois scored the winner for the Cougars 1:23 into double overtime while goaltender Griffen Outhouse stopped 40 of 41 shots to earn the win in net.
"We didn't know anything about Regina except when they beat the Giants," said Sprague. "I thought both teams played a similar game. It was a fast, physical and had good goaltending. It was an evenly-matched game. We got the first goal and the last goal and that's what counts."
Conor MacEachern was named the tournament's top defenceman and Outhouse earned top goaltender honours. Both were selected to the first all-star team.
Having been away since Christmas Day, the Cougars returned home yesterday and will enjoy a weekend off prior to resuming play in the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League.
Outhouse will play a back-up role tonight (7 p.m.) for the BCHL's Prince George Spruce Kings when they take on the Nanaimo Clippers at the Coliseum.
Kings goaltender Jesse Jenks tweaked his knee in the gym on New Year's Day which means Alex Brooks-Potts will start in net.
The Cougars sit atop the BCMMHL with a stellar 22-3-1 record and have a nine-point cushion over the second-place 17-7-2 Okanagan Rockets.
They host the fourth-place Vancouver Northeast Chiefs on Jan. 10 and 11.
"Now, every team is going to want to beat us and they'll be ready for us," said Sprague. "We're going to have to be even more prepared than everybody else. If we put the same amount of work in, we're going to have success."
Cougars captain and forward Austin Gray has been called up to the WHL Portland Winterhawks and is expected to be in the lineup tonight in Portland to face the Tri-City Americans.
