What To Watch For This Winter In Canada
Hockey season is heating up across Canada, and we’ve circled a couple key dates for the 2021-22 season.
Here is our ‘Canadian Tournaments to Watch’ list for the coming months. Miss anything? Be sure to tell us about it at the bottom of the page. 👇
November
Rocky Mt. Classic Calgary – Nov. 10-14 – Calgary, Alberta
The ninth annual Rocky Mountain Classic U15 AAA Invitational serves as a huge kick-off event for western Canada. Notable past participants include NHL first-round picks Peyton Krebs (No. 17 overall in 2019 by Vegas), Sam Steel (No. 30 overall in 2016 by Anaheim) and Bowen Byram (No. 4 overall in 2019 by Colorado), as well as top 2022 prospect Matthew Savoie.
Blueline Tournament – Nov. 12-14 – Kitchener, Ontario
You know it’s good when there’s a 50th anniversary attached to this year’s event. The Kitchener Jr. Rangers will be welcoming some top teams to their neck of the woods for an early season battle at the U12, U13, U14, U15, U16, and U18 AAA levels.
International Silver Stick Final – Nov. 25-28 – Whitby, Ontario
It will be a little different than most years, with Silver Stick championships being decided separately between the United States and Canada due to border-crossing concerns. That said, some of the best teams in Canada will be fighting for those gorgeous trophies at the U10, U12, U14 and U16 levels in Whitby on the last weekend of November.
December
The Canadiens Cup – Dec. 3-5 – Toronto, Ontario
Sponsored by Sports Illustrated, the Canadiens Cup Tyler Cragg Memorial will bring together the 2007 through 2012 birth-years for AAA and Elite levels of play. Prospects By Sports Illustrated HD Live Streams will be available for all the contests, with pre and post-game interviews and a SportsCenter-like tournament wrap-up hyping things up for the participants.
Toronto Marlboros Holiday Classic Tournament – Dec. 27-30 – Toronto, Ontario
The 28th annual Toronto Marlboros Holiday Classic routinely brings top Canadian teams together, while most years also allowing a select group of American squads in on the holiday fun, too. In 2019, the Minor Midget final was an All-Michigan battle between Detroit HoneyBaked and Detroit Compuware; we’ll see if the American teams are able to head north to try to maintain their standing in the prestigious holiday invitational.
January
John Reid Memorial U15 AAA Hockey Tournament – Jan. 13-16 – St. Albert, Alberta
The 42nd edition of the John Reid Memorial U15 AAA Hockey Tournament guarantees impressive hockey to kick off the calendar year out west. The event, which would traditionally bring western U.S. teams into the fold to battle with western Canada clubs, welcomes hundreds of scouts each year. You can understand why when you look at the alumni list, which features names like Jonathan Toews, Jarome Iginla, Matthew Barzal, Tyson Barrie and Colton Parayko.
International Silver Stick Final – Jan. 14-16 – Sarnia
A few months after crowning half of the Silver Stick champions, the U11, U13, U15 and U18 teams get a stab at adding some hardware in the Sarnia edition of the iconic tournament. In case you weren’t aware, the Silver Stick tournaments have been happening for 64 years now, and the winners’ names get displayed in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
February
Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament – Feb. 9-20 – Quebec
When you visit the website, you are presented with a big, bold statement that says, “The most prestigious minor hockey tournament in the world!” I don’t think anybody can argue with it. The tournament is second-to-none, with teams across the globe flocking to Quebec with only a two-game guarantee just for the opportunity to compete against the best in the world. The tournament directors recently announced that the 62nd edition of the February tournament is open for out-of-towners who are vaccinated – depending on how the season plays out (and the rest of the world’s health dynamics as it relates to COVID). This might be the first massive youth hockey event with worldwide competition in more than two years. We can’t wait.
What did we miss? Fill out the form below and let us know what big events you’ve circled on the calendar for the upcoming season!
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