The Battlefords North Stars were the first team to pick up a win at the Centennial Cup tournament.

The SJHL Champions took down the Kam River Fighting Walleye 4-1 on Thursday afternoon and are feeling very optimistic about their chances going forward.

Peguis First Nation's own Colby Bear scored the final goal in their first game to virtually seal the deal.

"It felt amazing. This tournament is huge, and there's a lot of good teams and good players in this tournament," says Bear. "To be able to find the back of the net, it's an amazing feeling."

Bear scored 13 goals this season and finished the 2022-23 campaign with 40 points. He added seven playoff points but had two multi-point games in the SJHL Finals. Bear believes he can keep this hot streak going in a place he's quite familiar with.

"I remember playing in Portage when I was in Pee-wee and Atom. As young as you can get, basically," Bear continues. "I have a lot of family and friends coming out, and I have a lot of memories whenever I come back to this rink. To be able to make new memories with my new team here is awesome."

Even though they won their first game of the tournament, Bear says they definitely didn't play their best. He says they needed to shake off some rust after not playing a game for three weeks. The 20-year-old adds they will be ready to bring their A-game tonight.

"We have to watch some video on our next opponents, eat some good food, and keep up with our routine. If we stay with our routine, we'll be good in the end."

Bear and the North Stars are back in action today at 11:30 a.m. against the Collingwood Blues.

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