The Riverview Ravens celebrate after their 3-2 win over the Memorial Marauders in Sunday afternoon’s Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament final at the Emera Centre Northside in North Sydney. The host Marauders were hoping to defend their tournament title from 2024, also against Riverview. The Ravens last won the tournament final in 2022. Photo by IAN NATHANSON/CAPE BRETON POST   Article content The Riverview Ravens dashed the Memorial Marauders’ hopes to defend their 2024 Green and Gold championship title on Sunday.  Article content Nathan Cunningham broke a 2-2 tie in the third period to help give the Ravens a 3-2 victory over the host Marauders in Sunday afternoon’s Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament final at the Emera Centre Northside in North Sydney.  Article content   Article content Dallin McDougall and Connor Daye also scored for the Ravens, who last won the high school hockey tournament final in 2022.  Article content Owen Gracie and Marcus Rendell replied for the Marauders, who broke an eight-year tournament championship drought in the 2024 tournament final — also against the Ravens.  Article content Kayden Mollons made 21 saves in net for Riverview, while Levi Hull turned away 27 of 30 shots for Memorial. Article content More to come …

Tristan Walker of the Memorial Marauders looks for a pass option as he's watched by Jude Christmas of the Sydney Academy Wildcats during Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament action at Emera Centre Northside in North Sydney on Thursday. Memorial won the game 3-1. JEREMY FRASER/CAPE BRETON POST Jeremy Fraser The Memorial Marauders kicked off their tournament title defence with a victory on Thursday night. Article content Memorial defeated the Sydney Academy Wildcats 3-1 to begin the annual Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament at Emera Centre Northside in North Sydney. Article content   Article content Owen Gracie, Colby Viva and Jasper Allain netted goals for the Marauders. Article content Jaxon MacNamara had the lone goal for the Wildcats. Memorial’s Andrew Forrest made four saves. Sydney Academy’s Ethan Lewis stopped 34 of 37 shots.   Article content The Marauders return to action on Friday when they face the Dr. J.H. Gillis Royals of Antigonish at 2 p.m., and the Sommet Cougars of Halifax at 8 p.m. Both games at Emera Centre Northside. Jackson Gerrow of the Memorial Marauders, left, gets tripped up by Jaxon Gushue of the Sydney Academy Wildcats during Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament action at Emera Centre Northside in North Sydney on Thursday. JEREMY FRASER/CAPE BRETON POST Jeremy Fraser RIVERVIEW RAVENS 5, GLACE BAY PANTHERS 2 Article content In other tournament action on Thursday, Riverview defeated Glace Bay 5-2. Article content Cohen MacIsaac had two goals and two assists while James Eddy, Alex Arsenault and Nick Lawrence also scored goals for the Ravens. Article content Stephen Mann and Brody Walker replied with goals for the Panthers. Article content Riverview’s Kayden Mollons made 21 saves. Glace Bay’s Bryden Kelly started the game and was later replaced by Brandon MacNeil. Statistics for the Panthers goaltenders were not accurately reported on the game sheet. Article content FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE: Article content – 10 a.m. – Sydney Academy vs. Garden City– 12 p.m. – Glace Bay vs. Auburn Drive– 1 p.m. – Riverview vs. J.L. IIsley– 2 p.m. – Memorial vs. Dr. J.H. Gillis– 3 p.m. – Sydney Academy vs. Sommet– 4 p.m. – Auburn Drive vs. Garden City– 6 p.m. – J.L. IIsley vs. Dr. J.H. Gillis– 8 p.m. – Memorial vs. Sommet  

Memorial Marauders captain Jackson Devoe keeps a close eye on the play during Cape Breton High School Hockey League action at Miners Forum in Glace Bay earlier this season. Devoe and the Marauders will host the Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament this week in North Sydney. JEREMY FRASER/CAPE BRETON POST Jeremy Fraser   Article content Jackson Devoe has fond memories of the Memorial Marauders winning the Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament last November. Article content The Marauders snapped an eight-year tournament championship drought when Sam Gracie scored the overtime winner to lead the Sydney Mines-based club to a 1-0 overtime win over the Riverview Ravens in the championship game. “It was surreal,” said Devoe of the Marauders’ first Green and Gold title since 2016. Article content “It was the talk of the town there for a little bit. It was an unbelievable moment. When you’re on the ice in a 1-0 game like that, it was nerve-racking, but also very exciting.” Article content It was Devoe’s first tournament title victory as a member of the Marauders, but the Alder Point product hopes it won’t be his last, especially this week. Article content Memorial will host the annual Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament this week, beginning on Thursday night at Emera Centre Northside in North Sydney. Article content The four-day high school hockey event will feature nine teams over three divisions, including a club from Winnipeg known as the Garden City Gophers. Article content Memorial will be in Division 1, along with the Sydney Academy Wildcats and Sommet Cougars of Halifax. Article content Meanwhile, Division 2 will include the Glace Bay Panthers, Auburn Drive Eagles of Westphal, and Dr. J.H. Gillis Royals of Antigonish. Division 3 will feature the Riverview Ravens, J.L. IIsley Judges of Halifax, and Garden City. Devoe, the captain of this year’s Marauders team, acknowledged the stiff competition the team will face in the tournament. Article content “We’re focused and we’re prepared,” said the 16-year-old Devoe. Article content “We have high expectations going into this year’s tournament. We’re not taking anyone lightly. We know how tight the games can get and the competition we’re facing, every team will look to come out on top, but I think we set the bar high and we’re going to look to repeat.” Memorial Marauders players, from left, Owen Giorno, Eric Power and Noah Tremblett celebrate after a goal during Cape Breton High School Hockey League action earlier this season at Miners Forum in Glace Bay. The Marauders will host the annual Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament this week at Emera Centre Northside in North Sydney. JEREMY FRASER/CAPE BRETON POST Jeremy Fraser TALK OF THE TOWN Article content Having been established in 2003, the tournament honours the memory of Mae Kibyuk, an avid Memorial Marauders fan who died earlier in the same year at age 72. Article content Since that time, the tournament has continued to be a draw for hockey supporters across Northside communities and beyond. Article content “It’s always the talk of the town,” said Devoe, a Grade 11 student. “We tend to have a good crowd for our games, the community really gets behind us, and the competition on the ice is usually really good. We know the importance of the tournament, not only for the school but our community as well.” This season, the Marauders sit in third place in the four-team Cape Breton High School Hockey League with a 2-2-0-0 record. The club is four points behind Riverview for second place in the league. Article content Marauders head coach Jacob Jessome said his team is the youngest in the league but is building an identity and recreating the high expectations set by former head coach Marc Lyle, who Jessome replaced as bench boss for this season. Article content “We want to take it day-by-day but the boys have set the standard high in the room,” said Jessome, who, prior to taking over from Lyle, was an assistant coach with the club for three seasons.   Article content “The boys can’t wait to hit the ice. We look forward to enjoying each game and taking it all in as a team. We want to give our community a reason to cheer and be successful as a team to get the chance to play games on Sunday.” Memorial Marauders defenceman Jackson Devoe, middle, celebrates after a goal during Cape Breton High School Hockey League action at Miners Forum in Glace Bay earlier this season. Devoe was part of the Marauders team that won the Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Hockey Tournament last November in North Sydney. JEREMY FRASER/CAPE BRETON POST Jeremy Fraser   Article content SCORING PUNCH A team that wasn’t expected to have trouble scoring goals at the start of the season, Memorial recently added to its scoring punch with the addition of forwards Jasper Allain and Owen Gracie.   Article content Advertisement 3 Allain and Gracie both started the season with the Sydney Mitsubishi Rush of the Nova Scotia Under-18 Major Hockey League before electing to return to the high school ranks for the 2025-26 season. Article content In three games, Allain is tied for second in team scoring with three goals and six points, while Gracie recently played his first game since rejoining the team and has one goal to date. Both are expected to be key contributors to the Marauders’ success this year. Article content Jackson Gerrow leads the club with three goals and eight points in four games, while a pair of defencemen in Eric Power and Devoe round out the club’s top four in scoring. Power has two goals and six points in four games, while Devoe has a goal and five points in four games. Article content The club will also have league first-team all-star Levi Hull between the pipes again this season. Hull was stellar in the crease last season and was a big part of the team’s success. “We’re off to a very promising and competitive start,” said Jessome, noting the team graduated 12 players from last year’s tournament championship-winning club. Article content “We’re still learning to play a full 50 minutes as a team and looking forward to that opportunity this weekend. We have to take it shift-by-shift and continue to learn how to close out games and focus on what we can control.” Article content Memorial will open the tournament on Thursday when they take on Sydney Academy at 8 p.m., at Emera Centre Northside. Article content The Marauders will continue the round robin on Friday at 2 p.m., against J.H. Gillis and 8 p.m., against Sommet. The club will conclude the preliminary round of the event on Saturday at 8 p.m., against J.L. IIsley. Article content As the defending champions, Devoe said there is some pressure.   Article content “We will definitely try to turn that pressure into a positive,” he said. “We’re going to need to keep games tight and make sure that our defence is there. I think everything can fall in place for us if we work shift-to-shift and focus on the little things in our game.” The tournament semifinal games will be played on Sunday at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. The championship game is scheduled for later in the day at 2 p.m. Article content Mae Kibyuk Memorial Green and Gold Tournament– Dates: Thursday to Sunday– Location: Emera Centre Northside, North Sydney, and Cape Breton County Recreation Centre, Coxheath– Hosted by: Memorial High School, Sydney Mines Article content Teams:– Division 1: Memorial Marauders, Sydney Academy Wildcats and Sommet Cougars– Division 2: Glace Bay Panthers, Dr. J.H. Gillis Royals and Auburn Drive Eagles– Division 3: Riverview Ravens, J.L. IIsley Judges and Garden City Gophers Article content Thursday:– 6 p.m. – Riverview vs. Glace Bay– 7:30 p.m. – Opening Ceremony– 8 p.m. – Memorial vs. Sydney Academy   Article content Friday:– 10 a.m. – Sydney Academy vs. Garden City– 12 p.m. – Glace Bay vs. Auburn Drive– 1 p.m. – Riverview vs. J.L. IIsley *– 2 p.m. – Memorial vs. J.H. Gillis– 3 p.m. – Sydney Academy vs. Sommet *– 4 p.m. – Garden City vs. Auburn Drive– 6 p.m. – J.H. Gillis vs. J.L. IIsley– 8 p.m. – Memorial vs. Sommet Saturday:– 8 a.m. – Riverview vs. Garden City– 10 a.m. – Sydney Academy vs. Auburn Drive– 10 a.m. – Glace Bay vs. J.H. Gillis *– 12 p.m. – Riverview vs. Sommet– 2 p.m. – J.L. IIsley vs. Garden City– 4 p.m. – Glace Bay vs. Sommet– 6 p.m. – Auburn Drive vs. J.H. Gillis– 8 p.m. – Memorial vs. J.L. IIsley Article content Sunday:– 8 a.m. – First Place vs. Wild Card – Semifinal– 10 a.m. – Second Place vs. Third Place – Semifinal– 2 p.m. – Championship Game – Semifinal Winners– 3:30 p.m. – Closing Ceremony Article content * Games to be played at Cape Breton County Recreation Centre in Coxheath—————————————————————-LAST 10 GREEN AND GOLD CHAMPIONS:– 2024 – Memorial– 2023 – Glace Bay– 2022 – Riverview– 2021 – Dartmouth– 2019 – Glace Bay– 2018 – Riverview– 2017 – Riverview– 2016 – Memorial– 2015 – Riverview– 2014 – J.L. IIsleyNote: No tournament was played in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.