Get ready for a very unique hockey tournament. It’s so unique that you may never see it again after this go around.
Hockey Canada announced on Wednesday the creation of a one-time hockey tournament to replace the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge which was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Enter the Capital City Challenge.
The event will take place in Ottawa at TD Place Arena, home of the OHL’s Ottawa 67s, from Nov 26-Dec 1. This tournament will feature four teams in playing in a preliminary round, a semifinal round and the medal games.
An Event With a Twist
Here’s where the twist comes in. Three of the teams will be national men’s U-17 teams. The other team is Canada’s National Women’s Team.
That’s right. You will get to see the likes of Marie-Philip Poulin and Natalie Spooner play against the best of Canada’s U-17 prospects.
The opening games of the tournament will take place on Nov 26 with two games.
- Canada’s centralization roster vs. Team Canada White at 12 P.M. eastern.
- Team Canada Black vs. Team Canada Red at 7 P.M. eastern.
On top of the Capital City Challenge replacing the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, this event will give the National Women’s Team an opportunity to compete as part of its centralization schedule.
“This is a unique opportunity for our 2005-born men’s players, who will step on the ice with Hockey Canada for the first time after only being able to connect virtually over the past few months,” said Scott Salmond, senior vice-president of hockey operations with Hockey Canada. “We look forward to gathering in Ottawa as we begin to put our off-ice work into practice, and the Capital City Challenge provides an opportunity to introduce our under-17 athletes to the Program of Excellence while supporting Canada’s National Women’s Team in its preparations for the Olympics.”
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“We are once again presented with an opportunity to face competition that will test us and challenge our team in different ways,” said Gina Kingsbury, director of hockey operations with Hockey Canada. “In addition to our games against the United States, Finland and Junior A clubs, playing under-17 teams in this short-term competition gives us another layer of preparation and evaluation for our players and coaching staff.”
Anyone interested in going can purchase full event tickets for $80 plus applicable fees. Single-game tickets can be purchased for as low as $5. Tickets will go on sale Thursday Nov 4 at 10 A.M. eastern.
