The Terrace River Kings won the 2025 Coy Cup, beating the Rossland Warriors 5-4 on Saturday, March 29, their second BC Hockey Senior AA championship in a row.
Their journey in the tourney is best described by the phrase, "you can fool me once, but not twice," beating opponents who they had lost to in the round robin when it really mattered.
The River Kings lost to the Dawson Creek Canucks 7-4 on March 25 in round robin play.
Terrace got into the winning column, beating the host Prince Rupert Rampage 4-3 on March 26.
A 4-3 overtime loss to the Rossland Warriors on March 27, however, meant their fate rested in the hands of Dawson Creek. If the Canucks beat the Rampage on the same day, the River Kings would face Dawson Creek in the semi-finals. Fortunately for Terrace, the Canucks won 4-1.
"Starting with Dawson, first game of the tournament, we knew that we didn’t have our best game and were hoping to get a second chance at them," said River Kings Captain Colten Braid. "They are a good, skilled hockey club and we needed a little reminder of what it was going to take, which in turn prepared us for when we faced them again in the semi-finals."
On March 28, Terrace beat Dawson Creek 2-1 in a double overtime thriller with Trevor Ebeling scoring the game-winning goal. This set them up for a rematch with Rossland in the final.
"As for Rossland, it was a one-goal game for our third game of the round robin," said Braid. "Going to overtime, I felt like this one could have gone either way. Unfortunately they struck first in overtime but this taught us we needed to tighten up a bit as Rossland [was] quick to capitalize on mistakes. All being said, when we got our second chance at both these teams, we recognized mistakes made and made changes to make sure we came out on top.
"The keys to victory [in the final] were playing smart, disciplined hockey where we had to compete and outwork the other team during every battle on the ice. Despite the bumps, bruises and injuries, it came down to who wanted it more."
Braid added that winning a Coy Cup takes a lot of commitment.
"We had the experience from last year and a pretty good idea of the sacrifices it takes to win this trophy. I really feel like we have something special here and we feel privileged to keep playing the game we love with the people we love. With the support of our friends and families and of course our fans, who filled the Jim Ciccone [Civic Centre], none of it could be possible."
