It was a ‘whirlwind,’ Armstrong recalls of 2001 tournament
Colby Armstrong was a member of the winning team when the Memorial Cup was previously held in Regina. But as much as he cherishes memories of celebrating alongside his Red Deer Rebels teammates on May 27, 2001, Armstrong savours recollections of the event as a whole.
“I just remember that the city was awesome,” recalls Armstrong, 35. “I’m from Saskatoon, so it was good to go back to Saskatchewan for me. Everyone was kind of close and could come down to Regina, so my family could be thereto enjoy it.
“All the families hung out and took part in the festivities. Not only were we there (as a team) just doing our thing, but the families and the brothers and sisters of the guys were all part of the whole weekend’s festivities. It was like a giant family.
“Regina did an awesome job. Everyone loved the week there and everything that took place. I just remember that, above all.
“Winning it was awesome, obviously, but I think I just remember how much of a good time the parents and the brothers and sisters and the billet families had, taking part in the whole event. There were all the little extra things that they were able to do and it was awesome.”
At the 2001 Memorial Cup, the Rebels and the QMJHL’s Val d’Or Foreurs both finished the round robin portion with 2-1r ecords. Red Deer got the nod for top spot and a bye to the final by virtue of having defeated Val d’Or 4-3 in overtime.
Those two teams went into OT again in the final, with Red Deer winning 6-5 on a goal by Doug Lynch.
“Looking back on it, it’s like a whirlwind,” Armstrong reflects. “Any game we played, we were able to play any style. If you wanted to fight, we had guys who could crunch you or hang in there. If you wanted to play a 6-5 game, we could beat you 6-5, too.”
Just ask Val d’Or.