Weyburn local Tyler Penny recently helped his team, the Notre Dame Hounds Triple A midget hockey team, win the Mac World Invitational Tournament, a success for the Hounds for the first time in roughly 25 years.

The Mac World Invitational Tournament is composed of teams chosen by scouts, with teams coming from all around the world to compete in the tournament. The tournament was held in Calgary, starting with a round robin to determine who would qualify for the quarter-finals.

"It felt really good being there," stated Penny, "especially since it's my first year playing with the Notre Dame Hounds."

While this is Tyler's first year for the Notre Dame Hounds, he has played for two years on the Notre Dame Argos, and it is his final year for Triple A Midget hockey as he will be graduating from Grade 12 this year.

He plays right wing, and in the tournament earned six goals and six assists in the seven games that the team played.

He found the tournament challenging, as in the whole round robin they played against really good teams. Then in the quarter-finals, the Hounds faced off against Beardy's BlackHawks, a team that currently holds first place in their own league.

Succeeding in the quarter-finals, the Hounds moved on to defeat Red Deer in the semi-finals 4-1, then played against Russia in the Penngrowth Saddledome, home of the Calgary Flames, for the finals, a game that was televised nationally on Global.

"Russia was a really skilled team, it was tough to play against them," Penny commented. "Especially since the odds were against us before the start of the game; everyone thought that we would not have a chance."

"We took an early lead of 4-1, but then Russia got back in the game and tied it back up." Penny reflected on the winning goal, "I remember driving hard to the net, it was the last five minutes left in the third, and witnessing the goal made by my teammate."

"It was a dream come true to play on the same ice as the Calgary Flames do, I even got to see a couple of the Flames practice on the ice before the game," stated Penny.

"The most memorable moment was winning the final in the Saddledome, and that still has not sunk in that we did win." Penny also mentioned that for the Hounds, it was a history-making tournament.

"Our coach, Dale Derkatch, was on the team when they won 25 years ago, and he still holds the record for most points in the tournament of 36 points in six games." Penny commented, "It was the first time that a person won the tournament as both a player and a coach."

"It was also the first time that both the men's and women's teams from the same place won the tournament, as the Notre Dame Hounds Triple A girls' midget team also won first place in the Mac Invitational Tournament."

Tyler Penny did mention Kaley Herman, who is another Weyburn resident, was playing as goalie for the Notre Dame Hounds girls' team during the tournament. "I used to play with her on the Bantam team here in Weyburn, she is an excellent goaltender."

Besides helping his team win the first place in the tournament, Penny also received several awards for his playing. He received two player-of-the-game awards during the round robin portion of the tournament, as well as the Second Team All-star position as right-wing from the tournament, and the Best Plus/Minus trophy for the tournament.

Tyler is not certain where he will be playing next year for hockey, but did mention that he has been practicing with the Weyburn Red Wings, and has had some inquiries from the NCAA in the States.