An argument inside a packed Winnipeg arena forced hockey players to duck for cover under the benches while spectators made a break for the exits following reports that someone pulled out a gun, which turned out to be a replica.

Video of the incident posted to Facebook shows dozens of people screaming as they fled the Jonathan Toews Sportsplex at the Dakota Community Centre on Sunday evening.

Winnipeg police say they were called to the arena after a dispute erupted between two small groups of people attending the Southeast Tribal Days hockey tournament. Officers arrested three men without incident and later confirmed the weapon was a replica “BB/pellet gun.”

Const. Rob Carver told reporters that “there may have been some longstanding issue” between the two groups.

Noah Houle was 10 minutes into playing a championship game when the conflict started in the stands. He says coaches called everyone off the ice after when the fight broke out.

“I looked at the crowd. Everyone was leaving. I had to duck under the bench,” said Houle.

His father Joe was watching from the stands behind the benches. He pushed open a door that was packed shut with snow to usher a group of players away from the building.

“All the kids followed me. I met up with my son and got to my vehicle,” he said. “I tried to leave but the parking lot was jam-packed.”

Witness Jamie Mousseau said in a Facebook post that the fight broke out on the second floor where families, children, and elders were watching the game. He says he helped an elder women with a stroller find shelter in a locker room, where he was able to lock the door.

“I (sic) seen mothers crying yelling for their kids, dads panicking running around for their kids. I went upstairs and our warriors had the men pinned down till the cops showed up,” he wrote.

Tabetha Linklater, who attended the tournament, started streaming the incident on Facebook from the parking lot. She rushed into the building to find her daughter after she heard the alleged gunman was restrained by bystanders. Her video has been viewed over 31,000 times.

“This is crazy,” she said in her Facebook video, wiping away tears. “We have people just terrified and scared, kids. I think everything is okay. I don’t think anybody was hurt.”

Gun at dakota arena Posted by Tabetha Linklater on Sunday, February 12, 2017

Staff and security personnel intervened to separate the parties at the arena, and security was able to detain the three suspects until police arrived.

All three men have been charged with three counts of assault.

Ryan Matthew Boulanger, 28, of Bloodvein, Man., and Jeremy Peltier, 29, of Winnipeg face additional charges which include possession of a weapon. Nathan Scott, 23, of Winnipeg, is accused of failing to comply with a probation order. The men remain in custody.

Neither the three victims nor security personnel sustained any injuries.

With a report from CTV Winnipeg’s Emad Agahi