Canes’ Cup bid falls short
KELOWNA ROCKETS AWARDED 2020 MEMORIAL CUP
It wasn’t the news the Lethbridge Hurricanes were hoping to hear.
The Hurricanes’ bid to host the 2020 Memorial Cup came up short as the Western Hockey League announced Wednesday the Kelowna Rockets will host the 102nd edition of the Canadian Hockey League championship, May 22 to 31, 2020.
The Kamloops Blazers were also in running.
Despite the disappointing decision, Hurricanes general manager Peter Anholt tipped his hat to Hurricanes Memorial Cup committee which made its presentation in Calgary on behalf of the franchise looking to host the event for the first time.
“I’m really proud of our committee,” said Anholt. “I think we put forth a legitimate bid in so many different ways and I still think there are a lot of people around our league who believe that we are a legitimate bid. We had the money in place and we know that our building is ready to go and our team is ready to go. But ultimately it comes down to a vote and when it comes down to a vote, that’s the way it is. I don’t think we would’ve done anything differently.
“That being said, when it’s all said and done and you look at the big picture it just shows how far we’ve come in a few years and that we are able to, in a sense, run with the big dogs and not to be intimidated in any way, shape or form.
“It says a lot about what our board has done, but more importantly it says a lot about what our players have done and our coaches have done.”
In making the announcement, WHL commissioner Ron Robison noted a Hurricanes franchise that has made some giant leaps over the past few years.
“In the last four years they’ve turned their hockey program around completely, led by the leadership of Peter Anholt," he said. "They are a communityowned organization, which is difficult in many ways to mount a bid of this nature, but you have to give them a lot of credit. They’ve made great strides. They’ve got an outstanding game night presentation now and they’re exciting fans in that community and I think they have a really good future.”
Robison said all three teams put in strong bids.
“We’re very fortunate in the Western Hockey League, we have some great communities and great fan bases. Our facilities are second to none. I think it just comes down to a few things that made the difference and part of that is the reputation of the City of Kelowna and the confidence in the organization.
“When it comes down to it, when you’re hosting a Memorial Cup as a host team you have to be sure that team is capable of putting together a championship-calibre team and I think the confidence in Bruce (Hamilton, owner, president and general manager of the Rockets) and his leadership on the hockey side was a key consideration.”
The announcement marks the second time the Rockets have hosted the event. The last time was in 2004 when they beat the Gatineau Olympiques to win the CHL title.
Anholt said there is no explanation for the other clubs on why their bids fell short.
“It’s a vote, it’s announced and that’s it. There’s nothing like that and nobody expects that,” he said. “You lost and you feel like you’ve been kicked in the stomach and yet you’re proud of what you’ve accomplished and proud of how our organization has continued to evolve. So we’ll debrief and when it’s all said and done and go through a lot of the things we did and a lot of the things we can do better and a lot of things that will be different. We’ll be ready for the next goround.”
As for Robison’s comments about the difficulty of a community-owned team making a Cup bid, Anholt wasn’t about to read too much into it.
“Ron knows that we put on as good of a game night production is anybody and he knows that our organization is strong and sound,” said Anholt. “He knows our building is as good as there is and that our players love to play here. That has nothing to do with it and I think it was taken out of context.”
The last time the Memorial Cup was hosted in B.C. was in 2007 when the Vancouver Giants won the event.