Cranbrook, B.C. – “It was a fun experience and definitely will remember it for the rest of my life.”
ICE 2001-born forward Peyton Krebs is back in Cranbrook following his stint with Canada Red at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Fort St. John and Dawson Creek, B.C.
The 16-year-old Okotoks, Alberta native was part of a squad that made it to the gold medal game, falling short to the United States on November 11 by a score of 6-4. Krebs said the outcome isn’t what he was hoping for but admits the experience was second-to-none.
“I think any time you can represent your country at any level I think it’s a pretty special feeling and I definitely enjoyed it; embraced every moment of it.”
Before the tournament started Krebs was named the captain of Canada Red but he insists the honour didn’t cause him to put extra pressure on himself.
“I think the biggest thing for me was to be myself; have fun. I think when I did that, I was most successful.”
It was a shaky start to the tournament for Canada Red, who dropped two of their first three games – which included loses to Finland and Russia. The team was able to work out the kinks and rattle off two consecutive wins en route to an appearance in the finals.
The Americans would jump out to a 5-0 lead in the first 22-minutes in the gold medal game and hang on for a two-goal victory.
“It was a great atmosphere, the coaching staff, all our trainers did everything in their power and unfortunately we had a tough first period and we couldn’t pull it out,” said Krebs, describing the gold medal game.
Krebs finished the tournament with one goal and six points in five games – which included four assists in a 4-3 victory over Canada Black. Krebs finished second on Canada Red in team scoring and 13th overall.
Krebs said witnessing the talent at the tournament is a large motivator for him moving forward.
“I think playing against the best players in the world at my age really opens my eyes to how much skill there is and there’s always someone better than you,” explained Krebs. “That just motivates me to come back [to Cranbrook] and work just as hard as I was or even harder.”
