Southern Shore Breakers win 2023 Herder Memorial Trophy
Tournament was first east-versus-west playoff since 2019
The Southern Shore Breakers could be on their way to building a senior hockey dynasty, after winning their second-straight Herder Memorial Trophy — and the first east-versus-west showdown since 2019.
The Breakers won the best-of-seven series in Mobile over the weekend, clinching the championship with authority in Game 5 on Sunday afternoon with a 6-2 win over the Deer Lake Red Wings.
The Breakers won Friday night's game 5-0, bringing them close to a series sweep, but the Red Wings managed a 3-1 win Saturday night, forcing a Game 5.
All three weekend games played out on the Breakers' home ice, at the Ken Williams Memorial Southern Shore Arena. The 2023 championship was the first time the Breakers and the Red Wings had played off for the trophy.
It was also the first time a team from western or central Newfoundland has played for the historic 87-year-old trophy since 2019, after the COVID-19 pandemic forced a pause, and the West Coast Senior Hockey League folded because of a lack of teams.
Last year, the trophy was awarded to the Southern Shore Breakers as the winners of the Avalon East Senior Hockey League, the only Senior-A league in the province in competition at the time.
The Avalon league has six teams, playing out of Outer Cove, Conception Bay South, Clarenville, Harbour Grace, St. John's and Mobile.
The western league has three teams in Port aux Basques, Deer Lake and Corner Brook.
The Herder Memorial Trophy was first presented in 1935 by Ralph Herder of the Evening Telegram in honour of his family, who founded the newspaper in 1879.