NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat Cubs forward Mason Osinski gets stopped on a second period breakaway by La Crete goaltender Ethan Fetcher in the Jr. B Provincial Final on Sunday in Lloydminster. The Cubs lost 7-2 to the Lumber Barons, earning provincial silver.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
The Medicine Hat Cubs tallied 36 wins in the 2025-26 season, capturing the franchise’s first HJHL championship and making their first appearance in the Jr. B Provincial finals.
It’s a pile of victories and celebrations that can’t be taken away after falling just one win short of provincial glory, head coach Trent Derzaph says.
“We came here and ultimately we’re the second best in Alberta, I’m proud of the boys for that,” Derzaph said. “Did we want to be the best? Absolutely. Do I believe that we have the best in there? 100 per cent I do. We just didn’t get some bounces today and (had)tough luck.”
The Cubs fell 7-2 to the La Crete Lumber Barons Sunday afternoon in the Jr. B Provincial Championship hosted in Lloydminster.
La Crete scored three straight goals to open the game before Cubs captain Kyle Woolridge scored a pair to end the first period, bringing Medicine Hat within one after 20 minutes.
The Barons scored twice in the second for a three-goal lead and added two more in the third period to secure the gold after winning the North West Junior Hockey League. Sunday was the Barons’ second Provincial finals appearance in the last three years, losing to the Okotoks Bisons in the 2024 finals.
Sunday’s provincial final loss is the final junior game for the Cubs’ overagers, Woolridge, Keynan Cairns, Austin Derzaph and Ethan Burgeson.
General manager Randy Wong is proud of how those players finished their time with the program.
“I’m proud of those overage guys for leaving the program in a pretty good position for the guys that return next year, Wong said. “There’s a good culture in that room and that’s something that we’re going to carry forward and that’s something the alumni and the older guys, the graduating guys, they all should be proud of that.”
Medicine Hat was the first team to punch their ticket to Sunday’s final, winning their first three games of the tournament before losing 10-1 Saturday to the Vermilion Tigers in the final round-robin game. Leaving with a silver medal is a hard pill to swallow, Derzaph says, but they leave the season with lifelong memories.
“That group in the room has done something special, it’s something I don’t think any Cubs team has ever done in the past, coming to gold,” Derzaph said. “It’s hard on the guys, it’s hard on myself right now to not be walking away with the gold. But at the end of the day, this silver medal is a big accomplishment for the club and for those guys, they’ve got friends for life in there. Partners for life, brothers with a silver medal. They’ve got stories that’ll go on forever.”
Wong says the championship season has already paid off, receiving interest from players in Saskatchewan and southern Alberta about donning the orange and black next season. Getting to the provincial finals will also provide a lesson of experience, Wong says, that will stay with returning players as they look to make it back to the tournament next season.
“If we get to this point next year, they know what it takes and they all did a tremendous job this week, they were focused and they wanted to win this thing bad,” Wong said. “So kudos to them for taking this tournament serious, knowing that what’s at stake. So the returning players will certainly build from it, but the organization, we’ll learn some things too and what we can do if should we get a chance to come here next year.”
The Cubs had fans in the stands in Lloydminster, a continuation of the support that has followed them for years and has been exemplified in their championship season. Derzaph says they received support from the Medicine Hat Tigers and felt the support from around the city.
Wong, emotional after a long season and week in Lloydminster, says he gets goosebumps thinking of the backing they’ve received throughout playoffs and provincials.
“We’ve got a base here that just really loves the program and I’ve gotten texts from alumni (Sunday) before the game, wishing us luck,” Wong said. “We had guys pulling for us, and it’s real gut-wrenching to lose. But I’m really proud of what we’ve done here.”
