LLOYDMINSTER, Alberta – The Edmonton Jr. Oilers have won their first Esso Cup in their ninth tournament appearance, defeating the Saskatoon Stars 7-3 on Saturday afternoon at Canada’s U18 Women’s National Club Championship.

Evie Hanson (Calgary, AB) recorded one goal and two assists for the Jr. Oilers. Ciara Lang (Sherwood Park, AB), tallied two points (1-1—2), including the game-winning goal and was named Player of the Game for Edmonton. Ella Dunham-Fox (Edmonton, AB) registered the win for the Jr. Oilers, with her goaltending partner Taya Christie (Medicine Hat, AB) playing the last 20 minutes in net for Edmonton.

“It feels awesome right now, we are so happy. It's unreal, we could not have done it with a better group,” said Daniella Martonara (Edmonton, AB). “We wanted to win this tournament for our captain, Layla, who got injured and could not participate. She is a great captain. After the intense and emotional game against Lloydminster last night, we had to reset. It was a quick turnaround, but it feels great that we got it done.”

The Jr. Oilers came out strong with a 3-0 lead in the first period. Paige Smith (Gibbons, AB), who was named the Most Valuable Player of the event, opened the scoring, followed by Lang and Keira Grant (Medicine Hat, AB). The Stars responded with back-to-back goals from Halle Duchene (Saskatoon, SK)—who was named the Top Forward of the tournament—and Ayla Anderson (Warman, SK), who also registered two points. The Jr. Oilers came back even stronger after Anderson’s goal early in the second period, notching four consecutive goals to make it 7-2 after 40 minutes.

“It has been an amazing season for us. We brought in some very good people to fit in the culture that we had,” said Jr. Oilers head coach Joel Lenius (Edmonton, AB). We’ve been through a lot of adversity on and off the ice as well, especially with our captain going down with an injury. Seeing how tight the group is and how much they stuck together as a family; it is pretty impressive. They really earned this as a group.”

North York Storm defeats host Lloydminster Steelers 4-1 to win bronze

Earlier in the day, the North York Storm captured bronze in a 4-1 victory over the hosts, Lloydminster Steelers, marking the second medal for the Ontario champions after taking home silver in 2024.

“It was a big game for us. Our goalie played very well, she had an incredible tournament,” said North York forward Demi Lazarou (Orillia, ON), who registered a hat trick in the bronze medal game. “It was definitely tough [playing seven games in seven days], but it was a matter of not getting too high, not getting too low. We had a younger group of girls this year, but we had the same core group. It is pretty insane to go back home with back-to-back medals in two years.”

Lauren Kruzel (Mississauga, ON) opened the scoring midway through the first period. Lazarou scored shorthanded for her first of three goals and the game-winner for North York. Lily Paisley (Mount Albert, ON) registered two assists in the win and was named the Most Sportsmanlike Player of the tournament.

Sadee Reinders (Leduc, AB) was the lone scorer for the Steelers. Jamie Sanford (Toronto, ON) made 35 saves for North York and earned the Storm’s Player of the Game honours. Steelers goalie Harlee Houle (Spruce Grove, AB) was named the Top Goaltender for the tournament.

For more information on Hockey Canada and the 2025 Esso Cup, please visit Hockey Canada.ca, and follow along through social media on Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.