The Yukon Peewee North Stars, a team made up of female players from Whitehorse, Watson Lake, Haines Junction, and Carmacks, took to Calgary to compete in the Canadian Tire Wickenheiser World Female Hockey Festival (Wickfest) over the weekend.

The North Stars competed in the Peewee Tier 3-A division, winning all five of their games and taking the gold medal.

Since the team is made up of players from different communities in the Yukon, Wickfest was their first opportunity to play together.

“We had weekly ice time, but never had a full team practice,” said coach Pat Tobler.

“This was their first opportunity to play together this year and they did outstanding. The girls gelled as a team on the trip. They hung out together and had a blast. They came together on the ice, all worked hard and contributed.”

Tobler said all of the games were close and competitive coming down to the wire. All of the girls’ games were decided by one goal, except for their first game, when they defeated the Surrey Falcons C1 4-2. The North Stars got a hat-trick from Taylor Bierlmeier, with Emery Twardochleb rounding out the scoring.

In their second game, the North Stars one-upped the Lethbridge Peewee Cyclones 5-4.

The North Stars got on the scoreboard first with a goal by Brooke Tobler. Bierlmeier tallied the other four goals, her last one coming with 1:29 remaining in the third to seal the win.

Next up for the North Stars was a rematch of their first game against the Falcons C1, which they won 4-3, getting a goal from Callie Quaile and three more from Bierlmeier, who again scored late in the third to put the North Stars ahead.

In the final game of the round robin, the North Stars took to the rink against the Yellowknife Peewee Wolfpack. The team won 4-3, with goals from Brooke Tobler and yet another hat-trick from Bierlmeier.

The North Stars faced the Cyclones in the final, another game that went down to the wire.

“The girls played hard, but the other team got a jump on us early scoring first,” said Tobler. “We tied the game just past the midway mark of the second and completed the comeback late in the third and managed to hang on to a 3-2 win.”

Bierlmeier evened the scoring at one with 7:08 remaining in the second period. Livia Mortimer scored the go-ahead goal with 6:49 left in the third and Bierlmeier added the insurance marker 16 seconds later.

It is the third year the Yukon North Stars have competed in a tournament. Tobler says it gives girls the opportunity to play with other girls.

“Right now we don’t have enough girls in the Yukon to play together consistently, so they are typically on coed teams,” said Tobler. “But the girls enjoy playing together as girls. The past couple of years we have been looking to give them that opportunity.”

Wickfest, which is hosted by Olympic hockey player Haley Wickenheiser, is a celebration of female hockey.

“It’s a really neat thing because it is a girls festival,” said Tobler. “The girls got to meet some professional female hockey players like Marie-Philip Poulin and Wickenheiser.

They also got to watch a professional female hockey game, when the Calgary Inferno played Les Canadiennes of Montreal.

“It was an eye-opening experience for the girls,” said Tobler. “They got to see their role models and they were in awe of that level of hockey.”

Tobler believes that female hockey is growing in the Yukon, and wants the girls to continue to have the opportunity to play together.

Bierlmeier led the tournament in points and goals, tallying 13 points, all goals.

Twardochleb came in second in points with eight and led the tournament in assists with seven. North Stars goalie Kennedy O’Brien had the second-best goals-against average at 3:00.

The North Stars may go to another peewee tournament in the spring.

It is the second Wickfest medal coming back to the Yukon. The Whitehorse Female Mustangs got silver last weekend.