56 teams for SHI tourney
Peterborough hosts 56 teams, 900 special needs hockey players for international tournament March 15
Special Hockey International (SHI) may end up stronger for a difficult set of circumstances that threatened to derail next month’s 2017 SHI Tournament in Peterborough.
When Peterborough Huskies founders Dave and Cathie Tuck were charged with fraud in November SHI removed Dave Tuck as president. The Tucks were chief organizers of the tournament which they promoted would bring 80 teams from across North America and Europe to Peterborough from March 15 to 18. At the time only a handful of teams had registered and Hockey Canada sanctioning had not been obtained.
Peterborough’s hockey community banded together to create a new committee of 14 to run the tournament. Hockey Canada sanctioning was secured and tournament chairman David Smith reports all systems are go for what he expects to be an exciting and memorable event for 56 teams and 900 special needs hockey players registered to participate.
There will be a group from Sala, Sweden, four teams from two organizations in the United Kingdom, four organizations from the United States and all the rest from Ontario. The Electric City Maroon and White, who rose from the ashes of the Huskies, and Jack McGee Kawartha Komets will also participate and are on the new committee.
“We’re in really good shape,” Smith said. “At our last meeting, the comment was made by a couple of people, who were there before I came on board, that they couldn’t believe we’re in as good a shape as we are now. They never thought we’d be able to pull it off.”
The whole ordeal, Smith said, has caused SHI officials to take a hard look at how they operate.
“Although it was a difficult situation the whole organization was put in, I think it has really become a positive for Special Hockey in general,” Smith said.
“They looked at a lot of their policies and procedures and are making an effort to be more organized and to be a much better organization as a result of this. They’ve taken a negative that could really have destroyed the whole association and they’ve made it better.
“Locally, the Electric City Maroon and White and Kawartha Komets played their very first game against each other. How can you not take that as a positive that the two groups who represent special needs players are now working together in a way they never would have in the past.”
Events will kick off with opening ceremonies at 5 p.m. March 15 at the Memorial Centre. It will involve the introduction of teams, speeches by dignitaries, entertainment, a fun skills competition for SHI players and an exhibition game for coaches involving NHL alumni.
Games will be played March 16 to 18 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Evinrude Centre, Kinsmen Civic Centre and each team is guaranteed one game at the PMC. The City of Peterborough sponsoring the cost of ice rentals. Each team is guaranteed four games.
Organizers are working with the Peterborough Petes to accommodate as many SHI teams as possible at the March 26 Petes game against the Hamilton Bulldogs.
On March 17 at 6 p.m. the SHI annual general meeting will be held at the Evinrude Centre multipurpose room. The public is invited to attend to learn about special needs hockey.
The tournament concludes March 18 with a banquet and dance at the Loomex hangar at the Peterborough airport. There will be a pasta dinner catered by Hendow Fine Foods and Bar None DJ Service will run the dance. All tournament participants will receive a medallion, wrist band, swag bag and free admission to the banquet.
Smith said the new committee scaled events back in order to remain fiscally responsible. The budget is between $95,000 to $100,000. CN has donated $7,000 and 40 local businesses covered the $15,000 cost for medallions. Tournament registration, sponsors and banquet ticket sales should cover the costs, said Smith.
“Everything is being done on a shoestring budget but we’ve been able to put everything together,” he said. “In the end it’s going to be a very good event for everyone involved.”
Smith’s biggest disappointment is that the federal government, in a 150th anniversary year, declined a sponsorship request.
“As an international sporting event you’d like to be able to have a larger promotion of Canada,” Smith said.
All the local hotels are booked and some teams will be staying from Bowmanville to Lindsay to Burleigh Falls and areas between.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s this tournament or any other tournament, we can only put 40 to 42 teams tops in Peterborough with the hotels we have. We really do have to rely on outlying centres,” Smith said. “The challenge for this group is busing. There are a lot of people who have mobility challenges.”
Smith said Coach Canada is handling most of the busing.
TVO will be filming some of the tournament for a documentary on accessible sports. TVO KIds will interview participants 10 and under for vignettes to appear on Treehouse TV, Smith said.
There are about 70 volunteers signed up but Smith said they could use more particularly to set up and take down the banquet. Anyone interested in volunteering can email volunteers@shipeterborough2017.com.