Here's a big honour for a local hockey team!
The North Bay Police Association PeeWee Trappers of the West Ferris Minor Hockey Association have been selected as the house league hockey team representing Northern Ontario in the "Canada 150 Hockey on the Hill" tournament.
The Hockey On The Hill contest required teams to submit a 30-second video and 250-word essay, explaining why they should be chosen to represent their region on Parliament Hill.
For the contest, the country was divided into 16 regions, and only one team was chosen from each region. Over 300 submissions were received, and for Northern Ontario, the winning team was the North Bay Police Association PeeWee Trappers.
The video can be seen below.
"This is huge for North Bay hockey and a once in a lifetime opportunity for the boys.," spokesman Gil Pharand told BayToday.
Their prize package includes round-trip travel to and from Ottawa for players and team officials, accommodations, a minimum of three tournament games with at least one game on the Canada 150 rink on Parliament Hill and a commemorative set of Canada 150-OIHF jerseys.
"The team is very excited to represent Northern Ontario, and to enjoy this once in a lifetime experience, playing on Parliament Hill with teams from across the country," added Pharand.
The North Bay Police Association team is made up of Ethan Daigle, Noah Desrosiers, Connor Filiatrault, Carter Fletcher, Carson Gagne, Tristan Gilbert, Cedric Laperle, Ryan O'Donnell, Owen Pharand, Hunter Pizzale, Noah Sabourin, Makai Vaillancourt, James Wlodarczyk, coaches Marc Pizzale, Al Filiatrault, Adrien Laperle, Gil Pharand, trainer Patrick Gilbert and manager Paul Daigle.
The tournament runs from December 27-31.
The next step for the team will be looking into sponsorship opportunities, to assist in enhancing the overall experience of the boys, travel and accommodations for families and meals.
Hockey On The Hill - NBPA from Patrick Gilbert on Vimeo.
A GoFundMe page has been set up at www.gofundme.com/
