Challenge Cup (ice hockey)

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The Challenge Cup International AAA Championship Showcase (colloquially known as the Challenge Cup or simply The Cup) is an international ice hockey tournament held annually in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia for ice hockey teams from around the world. Ages range from Novice Minor (age 9) to Midget Major (age 18) for both girls and boys and the tournament is traditionally held on the weekend of the Canadian holiday Victoria Day.[2]

Challenge Cup AAA International Showcase
Tournament details
Host country Canada
Venue(s)May 21–24, 2010:
  • Burnaby 8Rinks
  • Burnaby Winter Club
  • Ice Sports North Shore
  • UBC Thunderbird Arena
  • Richmond Ice Center
  • Great Pacific Forum
  • Langley Twin Rinks
 (in : host cities)
Dates1992–present
TeamsMay 21–24, 2010: 250[1]
Tournament statistics
Attendance1,250 (per game average)

Within each age level, teams are divided into three divisions: A, B, and C. During the exhibition round and round-robin play, teams play games with opponents within their own division. Upon completion of round-robin play, teams enter the elimination round. Teams play compete within their own divisions and later play teams in other divisions. Teams with the most wins are considered tournament winners. Points are distributed in the following order: three points for a regulation win, two points for an overtime win, one point for an overtime loss, and zero points for a regulation loss.[3] Ties are decided in this order: 1) Most points; 2) Team with the greatest number of wins; 3) Games against team with equal record; 4) Penalty minute differential; 5) Basic goal differential GF (goals For) – GA (goals Against); 6) Total goal differential GF–GA/GF; 7) Team with the fewest penalty minutes.[3]

History

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First held in 1992 as a relatively obscure tournament, the Challenge Cup has grown in prestige, particularly in the local community, particularly the Lower Mainland where the tournament ranks as one of the most significant events on the hockey calendar. Since its opening ceremonies on May 22, 1992, and the first finals on May 24, 1992,[4] the tournament has grown to over 250 expected teams in 2010,[5] another increase from previous years. In 2008 and 2009, the tournament hosted 186 teams, and 220 teams respectively.[6] Among the divisions with the most teams are Bantam Minor (24 teams), Pee-Wee minor (24 teams), and Atom Major (26 teams). In 2007, there were even fewer teams, at 161.[7] The opening ceremonies are always kicked off with a speech from the Challenge Cup's celebrity guest Walter Gretzky.

Walter Gretzky's appearances

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Walter Gretzky, the prestigious father of NHL superstar Wayne Gretzky, makes an annual appearance at the tournament. He is involved in the opening ceremonies each year, to give the opening speech to all teams and participants involved, followed by an autograph session held in the upper lobby. Walter also actively participates in helping some of the younger players, in making pre-game appearances to the teams.[8]

Other celebrity guest appearances

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There have not been many other celebrity guests that have made their appearances to the tournament in the past years, except Walter Gretzky, of course. In the past few years, there have been two appearances by Garry Unger in 2008, and returned again in 2009.[9] Gary played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League from 1967 until 1983. Unger holds the second longest consecutive games streak in NHL history, with 914 consecutive games played during the regular season between February 24, 1968 and December 21, 1979. Doug Jarvis holds the current record at 964 consecutive games. Unger ended up playing 1105 career NHL games, scoring 413 goals and 391 assists for 804 points, and he also registered 1075 career penalty minutes.[10]

Tournament statistics

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2010 champions

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Note that as a result of the large number of teams in the 2010 tournament, some age levels played in two different divisions. A higher numbered division does not represent a more skilled team.

Age Level Winner (Team Name) Locale Runner Up (Team Name) Locale Final score
Midget Major Okanagan Coyote Selects   British Columbia New Western Bruins   Canada 5-2
Midget Minor Information Not Available N/A Information Not Available N/A N/A
Bantam Major Vancouver Millionaires   British Columbia Pursuit of Excellence   British Columbia 2-1 OT
Bantam Minor Calgary Jr. Flames (Division 1) and Red Deer Rustlers (Division 2)   Alberta Saskatoon Junior Blades (Division 1) and Southern Alberta Selects (Division 2)   Saskatchewan and   Alberta 4-3 OT (Division 1) and 3-0 (Division 2)
Peewee Major Information Not Available N/A Information Not Available N/A N/A
Peewee Minor Vancouver Selects   British Columbia Vancouver Millionaires   British Columbia 4-3 OT
Atom Major Can West Vipers (Division 1) and Colorado Thunderbirds (Division 2)   British Columbia and   Colorado Vancouver Selects (Division 1) and Steveston Sharks (Division 2)   British Columbia 6-2 (Division 1) and 2-1 OT (Division 2)
Atom Minor Information Not Available N/A Information Not Available N/A N/A
Novice Major BC Bears(Division 1) and Wolverine X-MEN (Division 2)   British Columbia and   Alberta Edmonton Jr. Oilers (Division 1) and Colorado Thunderbirds (Division 2)   Alberta and   Colorado 6-4 (Division 1) and 9-0 (Division 2)
Novice Minor Kelowna All-Stars   British Columbia BC Bears   British Columbia 2-1
Midget Girls Calgary Rocky Mountain Fury   Alberta Fraser Valley Phantoms   British Columbia 6-3
Bantam Girls Pacific Storm   British Columbia Island Stars   British Columbia 4-2
Peewee Girls West Coast Flyers   British Columbia BC Rockets   British Columbia 2-0

2010 scoring leaders

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Age Level Player Name Team Name Points Goals Assists
Midget Major   Madison Dias   Okanagan Coyote Selects 12 3 9
Midget Minor Information Not Available N/A N/A N/A N/A
Bantam Major   Adam Erne   Vancouver Millionaires 15 8 7
Bantam Minor   Tyler Coulter   Central Alberta Rage 13 7 6
Peewee Major   Tyler Welsh   Ice Dogs 14 9 5
Peewee Minor   Kyle Uy   Vancouver Junior Giants 8 6 2
Atom Major   Brendon Marfleat   Young Guns 12 6 6
Atom Minor   Cam Lamberton   Pacific Titans 9 8 1
Novice Major   Dylan Wilson   Tri-City Penguins 12 6 6
Novice Minor   Ozzy Wiesblatt   Kelowna All-Stars 11 7 4
Peewee Girls   Meghan Kraus and Elizabeth "Libby" Riedl   Vancouver Island Stars and Westcoast Flyers 4 (Both) 1 3
Bantam Girls   Rachel Piitz   Calgary Rocky Mountain Storm 7 6 1
Midget Girls   S. Laurin   Calgary Rocky Mountain Fury 9 6 3

2009 champions

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Age Level Winner (Team Name) Locale Runner Up (Team Name) Locale Final score
Midget Major U18 Alberta Wolverines   Alberta U18 Peace Country Selects   British Columbia 6-0
Midget Minor Western Alberta Wolverines   Alberta South Surrey Junior Eagles   British Columbia 6-5 OT
Bantam Major Western 94 Sabers   Canada West Coast Wings   United States 4-1
Bantam Minor Alberta Predators   Alberta Vancouver Selects   British Columbia 3-0
Peewee Major Vancouver Selects   British Columbia BC Bruins   British Columbia 5-1
Peewee Minor Calgary Jr. Dinos   Alberta Seattle Starz   Washington 3-2 2OT
Atom Major Vancouver Selects   British Columbia Alberta Wolverines   Alberta 2-0
Atom Minor Prince George Ice Sharks   British Columbia Vancouver Selects   British Columbia 2-1
Novice Major Edge Mountaneers   British Columbia Young Guns   Alberta 5-4 OT
Novice Minor Vancouver Bulldogs   British Columbia Can West Vipers   British Columbia 8-3
Midget Girls Pursuit Of Excellence   British Columbia Fraser Valley Falcons   British Columbia 2-1 OT
Bantam Girls Pacific Storm   British Columbia Island Heat   British Columbia 3-0
Peewee Girls BC Rockets   British Columbia NAA PeeWee Girls AAA   Alberta 3-2 OT

2009 scoring leaders

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Age Level Player Name Team Name Points Goals Assists
Midget Major   Madison Dias   Okanagan Desert Dogs 13 6 8
Midget Minor Information Not Available N/A N/A N/A N/A
Bantam Major   Anthony Olguin   Pikes Peak Miners 13 9 4
Bantam Minor   Morgan Klimchuk   Calgary Jr. Flames 15 8 7
Peewee Major   Tanner MacMaster   Calgary Jr. Flames 21 7 14
Peewee Minor   Mathew Barzal   Valley Eagles 17 9 8
Atom Major   Jake Kryski   98 Vancouver Selects 14 9 5
Atom Minor   Ocean Wiesblatt Cougar Selects 18 7 11
Novice Major   Bradley Braich   Abbotsford Bulldogs 18 12 6
Novice Minor   Henrik Rybinski   Vancouver Bulldogs 20 7 13

Skills competition

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Winners are chosen and based on four categories. These events seem to serve at least two purposes: the first is to establish bragging rights between athletes for possessing a particular skill needed to succeed in the game, and the second is to increase revenue for those that sponsor the event.[11] Skills contests are often held during an All-star break, but in this tournament, they are held as a part of a mid-tournament break, usually during the second day of competition, and usually the players get the entire afternoon off.[12][13]

Fastest skater

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Players skate two laps, one forward and one backward. A pivot is made between center ice and the blue line after finishing one lap. The player with the fastest recorded time wins.

Hardest shot

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The speed of the player's shot (players take two shots) on net is recorded with a radar gun. The shot must hit the net to count. The fastest shot wins. If there is a radar gun malfunction, or if a radar gun is unavailable, a Most Accurate Shot competition will take place in lieu of the Hardest Shot. Players will be required to hit indicated targets in a limited amount of time.

Best puck handler

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Players will skate with a puck through an indicated route, most likely marked with cones. Players must complete the entire course with the puck, and having not lost any control whatsoever during their routine. The player with the fastest recorded time wins.

Showdown

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A player is required to take three breakaways in less than thirty seconds. Distances to the goal will vary between age groups. Saves and goals are recorded for each shooter and goalie. The goalie with the most saves wins, and the shooter with the most goals scored in the fastest recorded time wins. If necessary, goalies will perform a series of timed movement exercises to determine which goalie advances to the final round if their saves count is equal after the Round-Robin series.

Notes

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  1. ^ "Challenge Cup (Design, Hosting, Online Registration & Administration tools by esportsdesk.com)". www.challengecup.com.
  2. ^ "Home". challengecup.com.
  3. ^ a b Rules challengecup.com [dead link]
  4. ^ "Banff Hockey Academy - This is mediaontap.com". Archived from the original on May 17, 2006. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  5. ^ "Challenge Cup (Design, Hosting, Online Registration & Administration tools by esportsdesk.com)". www.challengecup.com.
  6. ^ "Challenge Cup (Design, Hosting, Online Registration & Administration tools by esportsdesk.com)". www.challengecup.com.
  7. ^ "Challenge Cup (Design, Hosting, Online Registration & Administration tools by esportsdesk.com)". www.challengecup.com.
  8. ^ "Challenge Cup (Design, Hosting, Online Registration & Administration tools by esportsdesk.com)". www.challengecup.com.
  9. ^ "Challenge Cup (Design, Hosting, Online Registration & Administration tools by esportsdesk.com)". www.challengecup.com.
  10. ^ Garry Unger
  11. ^ Skills competitions
  12. ^ "Challenge Cup (Design, Hosting, Online Registration & Administration tools by esportsdesk.com)". www.challengecup.com.
  13. ^ "Challenge Cup (Design, Hosting, Online Registration & Administration tools by esportsdesk.com)". www.challengecup.com.

References

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Preceded by
2010 Challenge Cup
2011 Challenge Cup
19th Annual
Succeeded by
2012 Challenge Cup