The Sundre Red Angus Rustlers had few problems wrangling up another Canadian Adult Recreational Hockey Association World Cup first place - this year in the 70+ age division.
The team, comprised of players from across the province and the United States, won all four games through the tournament, which was held March 5-10 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
“We went in it with the goal to win it and we did,” said 76 year-old Alf Cadman of Olds, who plays left-wing on the team.
The world-renowned CARHA Hockey World Cup is organized every four years in a select Canadian city, and is an event that attracts participants from all across Canada, the United States, and Europe, each sharing a passion for the sport of hockey.
It's been labelled the Olympics of rec hockey and since its inception it has grown to be the largest international adult rec hockey tournament in the world.
One hundred and twenty teams battled it out on the ice for the title of cup champions in divisions that included age categories from 19 all the way to 70+.
The local oldtimers hockey team, which hit the ice 35 years ago in Sundre, has evolved over the years to include players from across the province and the United States.
The Sundre Red Angus Rustler iced its first team in the CARHA Hockey World Cup in 1996, competing at that time in the 55+ division.
The team's name appears five times on the cup now, having won their divisions since they started icing teams.
“Out of who we started with, I'm the only original guy left,” said Cadman.
Skill on the team runs the gamut all the way up to former NHL experience, Cadman said.
Lethbridge born John MacMillan, who played with the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs, came up from the States this year to play with the Sundre Red Angus Rustler.
Several of the team members, who hail locally from Red Deer, Olds and Didsbury, play in a Calgary 55+ rec hockey league two to three times a week.
Their passion for hockey isn't the only reason why many of them, Cadman included, continue to play the game, he said.
“To stay alive,” Cadman responded when asked. “It's the exercise, the comradeship - it's a bond with the guys.”
And they have no plans on letting up.
The World Cup tournament is a competitive highlight for many of the players.
Organizers kicked off the tournament with a true Olympic feel as 1,500 athletes paraded from the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, up Queen to Elgin and arrive at the Roberta Bondar Pavilion for entertainment and fireworks.
Teams were given Budweiser CARHA Hockey World cup jerseys that identified each team according to the country they represented.
Each country banded together waving their countries' flags proudly as the people of Sault Ste. Marie lined the streets cheering and encouraging the players onward.
“A lot of the guys would hate to miss it, as well as their wives,” he said.
This year, the Sundre Red Angus Rustler was missing a few tried and true members, one who suffered a heart attack shortly before the tournament. Unfortunately, he's still in intensive care in an Edmonton hospital, said Cadman.
“And of course each time you go back, some people have passed away,” he said.
After making the tournament all five times over the last 20 years, Cadman said some people have recognized the team's longevity.
“The Latvia team said that's sort of a record,” he said.
And they invited the team to come to Latvia to play.
Cadman calls it a pipedream but added the team members love to travel, but doubted the World Cup would move from Canada.
Accompanied by their wives and significant others, team members say the World Cup also offers participants an opportunity to indulge in cultural activities organized through the tournament.
