The Havre Ice Hawk Squirt team capped a successful season in the best possible way with a state championship.
Havre captured the Montana Amateur Hockey Association Squirt title on March 6 with a 6-5 win over Salmon, Idaho in the championship game of the tournament.
Captain Danny Roe scored all six goals for the Ice Hawks in the finale, including the game winner with 14 seconds remaining.
The Ice Hawks opened tournament play with 5-2 win over the Bozeman Stingers as Roe picked up a hat trick and Levi Wavrick and Kolton Brough added a goal apiece.
In the second game of the tournament, Roe scored six goals in a 6-4 win over Salmon. The Ice Hawks continued to roll with a 4-2 win over Gallatin Valley Freeze. Brough and Roe scored two goals each. Later in the day, Roe picked up all three of Havre's goals in a 3-2 win over Great Falls.
The tournament win was the high point of an already solid season as the Ice Hawks finished with a 12-8-3 record.
Havre opened the season on Nov. 13-14 in tough way, dropping a pair of road games to Billings, 4-1 and 6-1. Brough scored both of Havre's goals in the games.
Havre bounced back on Nov. 20 to score its first win of the season with a split. After dropping the first game 2-1, the Ice Hawks scored a 4-1 win as Nate Welch and Brough scored two goals each.
After a short break, Havre returned to the ice on Dec. 4-5 with a pair of home games against Salmon, Idaho. The Ice Hawks picked up wins of 5-3 and 7-3. Roe scored four times and Jon Reece Stoner added a goal in the opening win. In the second game, Brough scored five goals and Jaydon Conder and Levi Wavrick added a goal each to pace Havre.
Havre continued its dominance over Salmon with a pair of road wins on Dec. 18-19. The Ice Hawks opened with a dominant 10-1 win. Roe scored four goals, Brough added two and Wavrick, Conder, Zach Hellegaard and Ned Malone added a goal each. In the second game, Roe score five goals and Timmy Welch had two to lead Havre.
Following a lengthy Christmas break, Havre returned to the ice on Jan. 15-16 with a pair of games against Great Falls. Havre opened with a 4-1 win as Roe picked up a hat trick and Stoner chipped in with a goal in the win. A day later, Havre skated to a 5-5 tie as Roe had four goals and Conder had another.
On Jan. 22, Havre rolled to a sweep over the Helena Bighorns with wins of 7-2 and 11-7. Roe had five goals, while Wavrick and Thurman Holdsclaw scored a goal each to lead Havre in the first game. In the second game, Roe had six goals, Brough added two and Wavrick, Stoner and Nate Welch chipped in with a goal each.
The Ice Hawks' winning streak came to an end on Jan. 30 as they were edged by Great Falls 4-3. Brough, Stoner and Wavrick picked up Havre's scores.
On Feb. 12-13, Havre hosted Helena for a pair of games. The two teams skated to a 3-3 tie in the opening game as Roe had two goals and Brough added another for the Ice Hawks. In the second game, Havre got back on the winning track with a 6-1 as Roe scored three goals, Nate Welch added two scores and Brough chipped in with another.
A week later, the Ice Hawks traveled to a very tough tournament in Billings, finishing 1-2-1. Havre opened with a tough 9-2 loss to Billings Apex as Roe and Malone were the only players to find the net. A day later, the Ice Hawks then skated to a 3-3 tie against Billings MRI and then followed it up with a 3-1 win over Helena with Roe scoring all of Havre's goals. The Ice Hawks finished sixth in the tourney with a 7-2 loss to Billings Water Specialty.
Havre continued to have its problems with Billings, dropping a pair of home games 5-4 and 6-4. Roe had three goals and Brough added another in the first loss. In the second loss, Roe scored all four of the Ice Hawks' goals.
In their final games before the state tournament, Havre scored a pair of wins over Shaunavon, Sasketchewan. In the opening game, Stoner, Cody Miller and Timmy Welch scored goals in a 3-2 win. In the second win, Roe had two goals and Ethan Hettinger and Nate Welch each added scores.
