Strathmore Minor Hockey to host annual U7/U9 tournament
By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Strathmore Minor Hockey is hosting their annual U7/U9 tournament throughout the Family Day weekend with 500 athletes anticipated to be participating.
Kendra Toovey, tournament coordinator for Strathmore Minor Hockey, explained teams will be coming into Strathmore from across central and southern Alberta.
“We will be running five U9 divisions, and a junior and a senior U7 division. Within that, we are also including the Wheatland Wranglers … so we have a couple of all-female team divisions as well for U9,” she said. “It used to be just a single day tournament, but we expanded it because we had so much interest in teams attending. It is also a fundraising opportunity for Strathmore Minor Hockey and a great way for people to come and visit our community.”
With approximately 500 athletes scheduled to participate, this is the largest event of the year for the organization in terms of sheer numbers of participants.
Two other tournaments are hosted by Strathmore Minor Hockey throughout a given year – one being in November for the U13s, and one in January for the U11s.
“This is definitely one of our biggest fundraisers of the year, as all of our tournaments are fundraisers for Strathmore Minor Hockey. We are a volunteer board and volunteer-run organization and are a very dedicated group of people who love the game of hockey,” said Toovey. “We will be hosting a raffle table, we have lots of great donations from the hockey families, as well as the community businesses, and we really try to support local and we have to buy prizes for the raffle. We will also be hosting a triple threat draw and a 50/50.”
Toovey explained all of the funds raised over the course of the tournament go back to the association to help with various costs.
Between the three tournaments hosted by Strathmore Minor Hockey, the overall goal is to raise approximately $20,000 on an annual basis to support operations and the athletes.
For many of the participants, this provincial tournament represents their first opportunity to compete and experience an event of this magnitude.
“When they get out on the ice and really showcase their skills, they get very, very excited about it and they have a chance to win an MVP or a Heart and Hustle award during the games,” explained Toovey. “And then of course, everybody gets a medal at the end just to recognize their participation and keep that memory alive.”
Games will be taking place at both the Strathmore Family Centre and the Standard Arena in order to help manage numbers and play as many teams as possible over the course of the event.