Caribous Upend Gryphins In Allan Cup Opener

by Mike Marasco

Sunday marked the opening of the 2026 Allan Cup Challenge tournament in Conception Bay South, Newfoundland. In the first game of the tournament, the defending champion Wentworth Gryphins took on the Clarenville Ford Caribous in a rematch of last year's championship. This time around, it was the Caribous who skated away with the win by a score of 4-2.

Clarenville did all the scoring in the first period, notching a pair of goals in the opening six minutes of play. Liam Leonard got the Caribous on the board first with an unassisted marker at 3:21, followed by Joel Bishop scoring just over two and a half minutes later to push the lead to 2-0.

The Gryphins would cut into the deficit just 22 seconds into the second period, with the frame's only goal coming from Ryan Foss.

Action picked up in the third as Clarenville struck early once again. Adam Dawe restored the two-goal lead at the 48-second mark, and exactly six minutes later Cameron White pulled the Gryphins back within one. The end-to-end action continued as both teams pushed desperately for the next goal in what had become a tight, crucial contest.

That next goal came with 43 seconds remaining in regulation, as Jordan Escott scored an unassisted marker for the Caribous to seal the 4-2 final.

AJ Whiffen made 30 saves in the Clarenville net to earn the win, while Matt Camilleri took the loss for Wentworth, stopping 35 of 39 shots he faced.

The Gryphins return to action for their second preliminary game of the tournament against a familiar foe in the Stoney Creek Tigers. Puck drop is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Eastern.

Scoring
1st Period
Caribous – Liam Leonard (1), unassisted | 3:21
Caribous – Joel Bishop (1), Adam Dawe, Liam Leonard | 5:54

2nd Period
Gryphins – Ryan Foss (1), Michael Lomas, Reid Yochim | 0:22

3rd Period
Caribous – Adam Dawe (1), Kevin Reid, Joel Bishop | 0:48
Gryphins – Cameron White (1), Mark Corbett, Matt MacLeod | 6:48
Caribous – Jordan Escott (1), unassisted |19:17

Upcoming Schedule
Pre-lims (Eastern Time)
Sunday, April 19
GM 2 - Stoney Creek vs Conception Bay – 5:30pm

Monday, April 20
GM 3 - Wentworth vs Stoney Creek – 1:30pm
GM 4 - Conception Bay vs Minto – 6:00pm

Tuesday, April 21
GM 5 - Minto vs Clarenville – 6:00pm

Playoffs (Eastern Time)
Wednesday, April 22
GM 6 - 5th Place vs 4th Place – 1:30pm
GM 7 – 1st Place ve 2nd Place – 6:00pm

Thursday, April 23
GM 8 – Winer GM 6 vs 3rd Place – 6:00pm

Friday, April 24
GM 9 – Winner GM 8 vs Loser Gm 7 – 6:00pm

Saturday, April 25
GM 10 – Winner GM9 vs Winner GM 7 – 3:00pm

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For more information contact Allan Cup Hockey Commissioner Rick Richardson at 905-328-4727 or email: rickystar911@outlook.com