’You can’t get any more Canadian than this’
Hockey fans huddled for warmth on frozen bleachers at Lanspeary Park Saturday for a first-of-its-kind outdoor hockey series in Windsor. Six Provincial Junior Hockey teams from the Bill Stobbs Division made the trip to Windsor with their winter classic jerseys for three games in the Outdoor Shinny Series, a new PJHL creation.
“A lot of kids probably grew up playing shinny hockey, and, like our son, a fair number of them ended up playing here,” said Keith Rajsigl, whose son Austin plays for the Wallaceburg Lakers. Austin represents the third generation of hockey players in his family to put a stick on the Lanspeary Park ice, Rajsigl said.
Many fans who didn’t snag a seat circled the boards on foot, blankets draped over their shoulders and hot beverages in hand to combat below-freezing temperatures. Some wrapped their heads in scarves, leaving only their eyes exposed to watch the game. “You can’t get any more Canadian than this,” Rajsigl said. “It brings more exposure to the league and to the kids. To play some outdoor shinny hockey, I think it’s great for them.” John Hatch said his son, Michael, 20, who plays for Amherstburg, hadn’t been to Lanspeary Park since he was five years old.
“I think every team should play an outdoor game next year,” John Hatch said. “It’s pretty cool.” Hundreds of fans of all six Junior C teams — the Petrolia Flyers, Lakeshore Canadiens, Amhersburg Integrity Admirals, Wheatley Omstead Sharks, Wallaceburg Lakers and Blenheim Blades — were ready to watch the games, no matter how cold it got. “We all think they should do it every year,” said Syndey Meloche, an Amherstburg resident. “It’s a little cold, but it’s awesome. It gets everyone out.”