Gentlemen, 2009 is well underway and we are pleased to bring you the Eighth Annual Great Canadian Classic. Just to remind you, Mike Cunningham, Phil D'Iorio, and me, André Nowakowski. (Matt Brown has officially been relegated to the E Pool, although he has now donned a life preserver and is muttering something about wanting to play if Cunny will have him back.) It is vital that you read this whole email, especially the "Deadline" information - we don't want anyone missing out.
The date this year of the tournament is Saturday, April 18, 2009. If you CANNOT play, please advise us ASAP as there is once again an extensive waiting list of guys looking to get into this year's tournament as usual.
Just to refresh your memory, on April 12, 2008, 96 skaters on 6 Canadian
teams laced up for the Seventh Annual - and you were all a part of it. As with the previous tournaments, there was some exciting hockey, culminating with Captain Bud Kelly and his Toronto squad taking their 4th Cup, most ever in the history of GCC. All of this, of course, was much to the chagrin to Captain Charlton who came as close as he could to assembling a championship squad. Now, it's time to do it again.
However, let's first note the passing of an era and the dawn of a new beginning. As you may be aware, the Seventh Annual GCC marked the last appearance for Messrs. Boswell, Carsley, Charlton, DePencier, Kelly, and Schieman in their roles as Captain. (Dramatic pause and deep breath, a little teary eyed.) They were great Captains but the time has come for the torch to be passed. This presents us with the only really relevant Question for this year: Who will the Convenors choose as the new Captains? Supplementary Question #1: Will those potential Captains, realizing the magnitude of the task, accept the role of Captain? Supplementary Question #2: Will the old Captains be able to resist meddling and putting their paw prints over this GCC somehow? These are all questions that need answering, but first, the getting there:
THE DETAILS
Here are some of the important details that you need to know about the tournament:
Date: April 18, 2009
Time: 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Location: Ice Sports Etobicoke (Martingrove and 409) (Same arena)
Format: 6 teams, two pools (90 players)
Fee: $120.00 (Same fee as last year)
Fee includes:
- 3 games guaranteed - 2 round robin, 1 playoff (the Finalists will play 4)(Note: We will keep the modified game length from last year: 3x10 minute stop time periods. Also, we are looking at further modifications which we will disclose when Cunny feels like it.)
- Hockey Jerseys and Socks (Uniforms to be provided – let us know if you may still have any of these as some tend to wander each year)
- Referees and timekeepers
- Post-Tournament Banquet incl. 2 complimentary beers
- Prizes
- Transportation from the Rink to Scallywag's in the heart of Toronto after the tournament.
THE DEADLINE
First, payment MUST be made in full by the deadline - there are no deposits this year. Your FULL tournament fee of $120.00 is due no later than Friday, February 19, 2009, two weeks from the date of this email. Second, your payment can ONLY be sent or given to André Nowakowski. You can send your cheque to André at 73 Highbourne Road, Toronto, Ontario, M5P 2J3. You may also pay via http://www.certapay.com/ – a number of you have used it in the past and it is pretty seamless. Once your full tournament fee has been received, you will be guaranteed your spot in the tournament. If your full fee is not received by by February 19, 2009, your spot will be opened up to those on the waiting list (and there are many). NO exceptions. None of this is negotiable. We will NOT chase you down for the fee - the onus is on you.
As in the past, your tournament fee is NON-REFUNDABLE.
For our records, please respond ASAP via email if you will be playing this year. If you know that you for sure will NOT be able to play this year,
please advise us ASAP.
Once the deadline has passed, we will send a confirmation email to those
who have sent us their payments.
Remember, all emails relating to the tournament will now be sent from this email address: greatcanadianclassic@gmail.com.
THE RULES
Just a few brief rules:
- Full equipment
- Non-contact
- No centre line for offsides
- General rules of hockey
THE DRAFT
There is little doubt that the Draft in each of the previous years has been a tremendous success, so we're going to stick to the Draft method for selecting teams. So remember, when you sign up for this tournament, you are signing up as a player. Once we have received all the entries, team captains will be chosen and the captains will hold a silent draft to pick the teams. This has the obvious advantage of distributing talent evenly among the teams. Hopefully the draft will once again help create competitive teams while giving you a chance to play with some buddies you know and some you don't.
THE TEAMS
The Great White North theme will continue with the same teams as always: Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, and Vancouver.
Once again, one pool will be the Wales Conference and the other will be the Campbell Conference. Tradition matters.
THE EVENING
Keeping with the old school theme, we will have a banquet again. The banquet will take place in the sports bar upstairs at the arena where we'll engage in the age-old transition game - switching from playing hockey to fuelling up with beer and food and performing comprehensive post-tournament hockey analysis. Scallywag's will be the destination for this year's post banquet festivities with the Cup.
THE CHARITY
We're very excited let you know that we will again be making a donation on behalf of the tournament to the "Let's Learn Hockey" programme run via the Ontario Minor Hockey Foundation via the Ontario Minor Hockey Association. You can find out more about this programme at http://www.hockeyfoundation.ca/ and http://www.omha.net/flash.asp?page_id=279.
In short, the programme helps out kids with financial difficulties get outfitted with hockey gear, subsidize their hockey registration for a season, and attend a one day training camp. After last year's tournament we were able to donate $1,750 to the programme. All in all, we think this is still a great fit and we hope you do as well.
THE FANS
It seems as though our fan base has increased each year. Feel free to invite significant others, kids etc. to come check out the action and make the day a family affair, at least until the sun goes down. Keep in mind, some may like to treat this as a "boys" day so advise your fans of the various antics that might be witnessed, in addition to the stellar hockey. Nonetheless, it will be great to grow that fan base.
That's it for now. We're looking forward to seeing you again on the ice at
the Eighth Annual Great Canadian Classic on April 18, 2009. Talk to you soon. The Convenors.
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