Friday, January 07, 2005
Stephenville, N.L. ~ Hockey Day in Canada 2006
Hockey Day in Canada heads to Stephenville, N.L.
BY SIGNA BUTLER CBC SPORTS ONLINE
"Hello Canada and hockey fans from the United States and Newfoundland."
The late Foster Hewitt's famous phrase will come to life on Jan. 7, 2006, when the town of Stephenville, N.L., plays host to CBC's Hockey Day in Canada.
Stephenville, a community of 8,000 people on the west coast of Newfoundland, is the official host location for CBC's sixth-annual event.
Hockey Day has become somewhat of an unofficial holiday for Canadian hockey fans.
This year's 13.5-hour broadcast showcases our game at the grassroots level, highlighting how hockey defines both the parent-child and adult-child relationship.
Stephenville won't be the only Canadian community bustling with action. Hockey Day will also carry remote video feeds from Florenceville, N.B., Parry Sound, Ont., Winkler, Man., Calgary, Alta., and Burnaby, B.C.
Former Toronto Maple Leaf forward Wendell Clark will join hosts Ron MacLean, Don Cherry and Dick Irvin in Stephenville for all the festivities, which begin at noon ET.
There is also the traditional NHL all-Canadian tripleheader starting with Ottawa at Montreal at 2 p.m. ET, followed by Toronto at Edmonton at 7 p.m. ET and Calgary at Vancouver at 10 p.m. ET.
Stephenville was chosen host for Hockey Day for its long history with minor, high school, junior B and senior league hockey. Because of its location on the west coast of Newfoundland, Stephenville has natural hockey rivals in the neighbouring communities of Deer Lake, Corner Brook and Port-aux-Basques.
Newfoundland has produced some of the NHL's top, up-and-coming stars such as Michael Ryder of the Montreal Canadiens (Bonavista), Jason King of the Vancouver Canucks (Corner Brook), Dan Cleary of the Detroit Red Wings (Carbonear), Brad Brown of the Toronto Maple Leafs (Baie Verte) and Darren Langdon of the New Jersey Devils (Deer Lake).
The voice of Hockey Night in Canada, Bob Cole, is from St. John's and resides in Topsail, N.L.
The announcement about Hockey Day brings some positive news to Stephenville, which has experienced some tough times in recent months.
In late September, the town declared a state of emergency when heavy rains caused two rivers to spill over their banks, forcing hundreds of residents from their homes. A total of 151 millimetres of rain fell over two days.
More than 150 families were left homeless by the Sept. 28 floods. Insurance companies are not covering claims and the provincial emergency measures organization has limits on the financial aid it can provide.
On Dec. 15, the Abitibi-Consolidated paper mill, which employs 300 people in Stephenville, announced it is permanently closing its operations.
Premier Danny Williams has promised an economic recovery package for those affected by the closure.
The government had been preparing for this fallout since Abitibi-Consolidated announced it would close the newsprint mill in the fall. However, Williams said the province doesn’t have a fully developed economic recovery plan in place because the focus had been on saving the mill.
Previous host locations for Hockey Day in Canada include Shaunavon, Sask. (2004); Iqaluit, Nunavut (2003); Windsor, N.S. (2002); Red Deer, Alta. (2001); and Toronto (2000).
BY SIGNA BUTLER CBC SPORTS ONLINE
"Hello Canada and hockey fans from the United States and Newfoundland."
The late Foster Hewitt's famous phrase will come to life on Jan. 7, 2006, when the town of Stephenville, N.L., plays host to CBC's Hockey Day in Canada.
Stephenville, a community of 8,000 people on the west coast of Newfoundland, is the official host location for CBC's sixth-annual event.
Hockey Day has become somewhat of an unofficial holiday for Canadian hockey fans.
This year's 13.5-hour broadcast showcases our game at the grassroots level, highlighting how hockey defines both the parent-child and adult-child relationship.
Stephenville won't be the only Canadian community bustling with action. Hockey Day will also carry remote video feeds from Florenceville, N.B., Parry Sound, Ont., Winkler, Man., Calgary, Alta., and Burnaby, B.C.
Former Toronto Maple Leaf forward Wendell Clark will join hosts Ron MacLean, Don Cherry and Dick Irvin in Stephenville for all the festivities, which begin at noon ET.
There is also the traditional NHL all-Canadian tripleheader starting with Ottawa at Montreal at 2 p.m. ET, followed by Toronto at Edmonton at 7 p.m. ET and Calgary at Vancouver at 10 p.m. ET.
Stephenville was chosen host for Hockey Day for its long history with minor, high school, junior B and senior league hockey. Because of its location on the west coast of Newfoundland, Stephenville has natural hockey rivals in the neighbouring communities of Deer Lake, Corner Brook and Port-aux-Basques.
Newfoundland has produced some of the NHL's top, up-and-coming stars such as Michael Ryder of the Montreal Canadiens (Bonavista), Jason King of the Vancouver Canucks (Corner Brook), Dan Cleary of the Detroit Red Wings (Carbonear), Brad Brown of the Toronto Maple Leafs (Baie Verte) and Darren Langdon of the New Jersey Devils (Deer Lake).
The voice of Hockey Night in Canada, Bob Cole, is from St. John's and resides in Topsail, N.L.
The announcement about Hockey Day brings some positive news to Stephenville, which has experienced some tough times in recent months.
In late September, the town declared a state of emergency when heavy rains caused two rivers to spill over their banks, forcing hundreds of residents from their homes. A total of 151 millimetres of rain fell over two days.
More than 150 families were left homeless by the Sept. 28 floods. Insurance companies are not covering claims and the provincial emergency measures organization has limits on the financial aid it can provide.
On Dec. 15, the Abitibi-Consolidated paper mill, which employs 300 people in Stephenville, announced it is permanently closing its operations.
Premier Danny Williams has promised an economic recovery package for those affected by the closure.
The government had been preparing for this fallout since Abitibi-Consolidated announced it would close the newsprint mill in the fall. However, Williams said the province doesn’t have a fully developed economic recovery plan in place because the focus had been on saving the mill.
Previous host locations for Hockey Day in Canada include Shaunavon, Sask. (2004); Iqaluit, Nunavut (2003); Windsor, N.S. (2002); Red Deer, Alta. (2001); and Toronto (2000).
