The Vancouver NE Chiefs squared off with Calgary in the regional series

Two goals separated Vancouver's Northeast Chiefs from their other meeting in the Canadian Under-18 AAA Hockey Championship.

Burnaby was defeated by the Calgary Buffaloes 2-0 in the best-of-three Pacific regional series last weekend.

Both games were played on April 6 and 7 on the Chiefs' home ice at the Scotia Barn (6501 Sprott St.).

The defense dominated the contests, each ending in one-goal deficits for Northeast Vancouver, 3-2 and 1-0, and denying them a berth in the 2024 TELUS Cup in Mezetto, NS

Chiefs goaltender Nathan Claydon made 36 saves on 40 shots between the two matches.

The 17-year-old led the BCEHL Men's U18 AAA Division with a 17-2-0-2 regular season record, including a league-high seven shutouts. He posted the second-best save percentage at .917.

Callum McSherry and Iverson Graveline scored for Northeast Vancouver in the series against Calgary.

The Chiefs claimed their second BC Elite Hockey League (BCEHL) title in three years to meet the Alberta champion Buffaloes in the regionals.

The Blue, Red and White BC defeated the Okanagan Rockets 2-0, 5-0 and 4-1 in the best-of-three finals.

The Chiefs finished the 2023-24 campaign with a record of 28-4-2-2, good enough for second in the BCEHL standings this year.

New Westminster's Lucas MacDonald led the team with 32 goals and 58 points in 34 games. Port Moody's Tyson Moss had 37 assists.

McDonald, Moss and Claydon were all named to this year's Under-18 Men's AAA All-Star Team.