Post by Montreal Canadiens on Jan 4, 2023 11:13:25 GMT -6
Remembering the World Juniors
It was Boxing Day 2003, when 16 Waterloo Wolves Peewee Boys and their families boarded a plane in Toronto and set off for Stockholm Sweden to play in the Malarocupen Tournament.
The trip started off rocky as a few players equipment had been lost in travel including my sons. All but my sons arrived in time for the first game (he would borrow equipment for that game from an American player in the division higher) . We then purchased equipment from a small hockey store some 45 minutes by car outside Stockholm. We tried to purchase equipment in Stockholm but the same skates he wore cost $1200 CDN there. The store owner who we will be greatly indebted to set him up for $500 CDN ( about 2700 Kronor back then) from head to toe including 2 new sticks!
The boys dropped the first two games of the tournament before bouncing back. They started laying the body and the European kids were not use to it. After all we had had body contact for few years and this was their first year of it. We went on to win the tournament! You would think that was the highlight of the trip, but NO !
We would take the overnight ferry from Stockholm to Helsinki, Finland. There we were to play 3 exhibition games against 3 club teams. That turned out to be 6 games as each club team had 40 plus players and everyone wanted to play the Canadians.
January 3, 2004 our entire entourage (70 + people) had tickets to attend Canada vs Czech Republic World Junior Semi Final Game. 16 boys dressed in Team Canada shirts (many of us adults too) would watch Canada roll over the Czech squad 7-1. The Canadian squad would be led by 2 goals from Jeff Carter that night with Brent Burns and the young phenom we all heard about but never saw play until then Sidney Crosby each getting two assists. The 16-year-old Crosby spent the majority of his time on the powerplay! Dion Phaneuf would lay a nasty elbow on a Czech kid and receive a match penalty midway through the second but that didn’t slow us down.
What we didn’t realize was our ticket package also included tickets to the American/Finland Semi Final. We all headed back to our hotel as we had to exit the arena between games, most of the wives stayed back at the hotel with the younger kids while we took the boys and older siblings back for the other semi final. We had a large number of extra tickets so we decided to see if we could scalp them as the host country was playing. Hey we were happy to get enough for couple beers for them!
As I stood outside the Helsinki Ice Arena a shorter woman with Team Canada toque approached me. She said she and her husband were looking for tickets. Through conversation it turned out to be Dion Phaneuf ‘s mother. She asked me what I wanted for 2 tickets (our tickets were literally 10 rows from the ice). I asked her if Dion would be coming, and she said they were meeting him in first period. Would he sign my son’s jersey? I didn’t want anything for the tickets , after all she was Canadian ! She said all make sure he does! Halfway through the first period she left, and Dion came down and sat with us and signed jerseys hats, etc.
Something special happened after that, he left and returned with the rest of the junior squad. There are boys sat with Fleury, Carter, Getzlaf, Burns, Sid the Kid ( he looked so young) , Stewart , Dawes etc. . In fact the only player who wouldn’t come down was Mike Richards, he is such a dick!! Watching Fleury, Burns and Crosby interact with our boys was special. You could tell they were just kids too! They sat laughed, joked and talked hockey and their future with us the whole game and interacted with the kids and our families.
That year the World Juniors didn’t end up quite like we wanted. Fleury would bounce a clearing pass off Coburn into our own net and the Americans won their first World Jr ‘s. Maybe we were responsible!
You think winning an overseas tournament would be highlight of your trip! NO !
That year 20 young men representing their country gave 16 young hockey players and their families memories that would last an entire lifetime!!
It was Boxing Day 2003, when 16 Waterloo Wolves Peewee Boys and their families boarded a plane in Toronto and set off for Stockholm Sweden to play in the Malarocupen Tournament.
The trip started off rocky as a few players equipment had been lost in travel including my sons. All but my sons arrived in time for the first game (he would borrow equipment for that game from an American player in the division higher) . We then purchased equipment from a small hockey store some 45 minutes by car outside Stockholm. We tried to purchase equipment in Stockholm but the same skates he wore cost $1200 CDN there. The store owner who we will be greatly indebted to set him up for $500 CDN ( about 2700 Kronor back then) from head to toe including 2 new sticks!
The boys dropped the first two games of the tournament before bouncing back. They started laying the body and the European kids were not use to it. After all we had had body contact for few years and this was their first year of it. We went on to win the tournament! You would think that was the highlight of the trip, but NO !
We would take the overnight ferry from Stockholm to Helsinki, Finland. There we were to play 3 exhibition games against 3 club teams. That turned out to be 6 games as each club team had 40 plus players and everyone wanted to play the Canadians.
January 3, 2004 our entire entourage (70 + people) had tickets to attend Canada vs Czech Republic World Junior Semi Final Game. 16 boys dressed in Team Canada shirts (many of us adults too) would watch Canada roll over the Czech squad 7-1. The Canadian squad would be led by 2 goals from Jeff Carter that night with Brent Burns and the young phenom we all heard about but never saw play until then Sidney Crosby each getting two assists. The 16-year-old Crosby spent the majority of his time on the powerplay! Dion Phaneuf would lay a nasty elbow on a Czech kid and receive a match penalty midway through the second but that didn’t slow us down.
What we didn’t realize was our ticket package also included tickets to the American/Finland Semi Final. We all headed back to our hotel as we had to exit the arena between games, most of the wives stayed back at the hotel with the younger kids while we took the boys and older siblings back for the other semi final. We had a large number of extra tickets so we decided to see if we could scalp them as the host country was playing. Hey we were happy to get enough for couple beers for them!
As I stood outside the Helsinki Ice Arena a shorter woman with Team Canada toque approached me. She said she and her husband were looking for tickets. Through conversation it turned out to be Dion Phaneuf ‘s mother. She asked me what I wanted for 2 tickets (our tickets were literally 10 rows from the ice). I asked her if Dion would be coming, and she said they were meeting him in first period. Would he sign my son’s jersey? I didn’t want anything for the tickets , after all she was Canadian ! She said all make sure he does! Halfway through the first period she left, and Dion came down and sat with us and signed jerseys hats, etc.
Something special happened after that, he left and returned with the rest of the junior squad. There are boys sat with Fleury, Carter, Getzlaf, Burns, Sid the Kid ( he looked so young) , Stewart , Dawes etc. . In fact the only player who wouldn’t come down was Mike Richards, he is such a dick!! Watching Fleury, Burns and Crosby interact with our boys was special. You could tell they were just kids too! They sat laughed, joked and talked hockey and their future with us the whole game and interacted with the kids and our families.
That year the World Juniors didn’t end up quite like we wanted. Fleury would bounce a clearing pass off Coburn into our own net and the Americans won their first World Jr ‘s. Maybe we were responsible!
You think winning an overseas tournament would be highlight of your trip! NO !
That year 20 young men representing their country gave 16 young hockey players and their families memories that would last an entire lifetime!!
