It was an incredible hat trick for Kwanlin Kanucks goaltender Mike Hawkins Saturday in the Whitehorse Recreational Hockey League. Only instead of goals, Hawkins' hat trick came in the form of championships.

On Saturday, the Kanucks swept Castle Rock 2-0 in its best of three series.

Saturday's game was the closest of the two and won by a single goal.

The 4-3 victory earned Hawkins his third hockey title of the 2008-09 season. His previous two included finishing first at the Rendezvous tournament and more recently Kilrich's victory against Edgewater Hotel in the Whitehorse Oldtimers Hockey League final.

"It's fun," Hawkins said. "Because it's such a different group of guys, it's different hockey. I got to play with different people through the whole thing, so it's fun playing."

Saturday's win was thanks, in part, to a thrilling short-handed goal by Harley Bowe, who netted the puck with just seven seconds left on the clock.

The players on Castle Rock gave it everything they had throughout the entire contest, making it anything but easy for Kwanlin. On three separate occasions, Castle Rock battled from behind to draw even with the Kanucks.

"Those guys are a good hockey team," Hawkins said about Castle Rock. "We had trouble with them. They had us on the ropes the whole time we were playing."

The first game between these two teams was played on Thursday, ending prematurely after Castle Rock conceded in the second period. The team's reason for the early defeat was a result of its goaltender suffering a collarbone injury after being struck by the puck. The score at the time of the injury was 4-1.

Thankfully for Castle Rock, however, Envirolube Oilers goalie Floyd McCormick was available for Saturday's Game Two.

Saturday's tilt got off to an entertaining start with Kwanlin scoring on its first scoring chance.

The goal was set up after a drop pass was made to Kevin Smith, who then sent it cross ice to Nick Fraughton. Fraughton made no mistake roofing the puck into the top corner of the net.

Castle Rock weren't discouraged by its early deficit and tied the contest up at 1-1 not even five minutes later. The team's first goal was scored by Terry Slonski.

Both sides once again traded goals before the conclusion of the first period, with Kwanlin retaking the lead at 6:58, followed by Castle Rock tying it back up at 4:45.

Gus Morberg scored for the Kanucks and Derrick Hynes netted the goal for Castle Rock.

Castle Rock had the best chance early in the second frame. The chance occurred after a player on the team stole the puck from one of Kwanlin's defenceman, giving him a clear path to the net. However, thankfully for the Kanucks, Hawkins was there to bail his team out, making a tough stop.

Kwanlin's next goal came moments after being on a powerplay. For a second straight time, Fraughton put his team up by one, scoring on a rebound after the Kanucks were pressuring in Castle Rock's zone.

In typical fashion, Castle Rock responded what seemed like moments later. The team's third goal was put in by Slonski.

The goal was followed up by a near miss when Castle Rock's Linus Fraser just missed converting a cross ice pass that gave him the whole side of the net to shoot on.

The miss was a result of Hawkins getting just enough of the puck to throw Fraser's shot off, causing him to miss the net.

With time winding down and only 1:23 remaining, Kwanlin was called on a tripping penalty. Castle Rock didn't waste a single moment of the advantage, bombarding Hawkins with shots, but the Kanucks' goalie was up for the challenge. He continued to make the saves and then pounce on the rebounds, avoiding any further goals.

Bowe was the hero that ended up sending the puck out of the Kanucks' zone to about centre ice. Having an opening, he then picked it up from red line and carried into Castle Rock's zone.

The play ended with a lucky bounce off Bowe's shin pad that resulted in him going to his backhand and roofing the puck top shelf.

Bowe, who was one of the leading scorers in 'B' division, said Saturday's winning goal was the nicest.

"It was one of the greatest goals this season," he said. "We were just trying to kill a penalty, keep it deep in their zone and not lose the puck."

Bowe said he was thinking of his six-week old son, Tyson, throughout the game, who was in attendance for the final.

"It feels good to win, I did it for my son Tyson," he said. "He watches all the games. It means a lot."