CORNWALL, Ontario – Hundreds of fans can immerse themselves in 100 years of Canadiana at the Long Sault Arena this weekend as the Hockey Canada Century Tour makes in South Stormont.
As part of the South Stormont Minor Hockey Association’s popular atom tournament, the century tour will park its massive interactive display at the Long Sault Arena for the entire three-day event.
The tour includes a 54-foot expandable trailer, which transforms into a 20,000 square foot museum on wheels that includes nearly every tidbit of national hockey exploits from world junior gold medals to a synthetic sheet of ice.
Brad Maloney, president of the South Stormont association, said the popularity of the tour speaks for itself.
“We actually moved our atom tournament to this weekend to have them both take place at the same time,” he said. “It’s a really acting as a drawing card to the local community.
“When the other teams heard that it would be here, they jumped on this.”
Maloney said he expects about 400 players, in addition to coaching staffs and parents, to congregate in Long Sault this weekend for the 23-team tourney.
Hockey Canada’s 100th anniversary tour was launched last year and has made stops all over the country with its interactive display.
Fans visiting the century tour have been immersed in the excitement, history and energy that is Canadian hockey, including a state-of-the-art interactive timeline of milestone hockey moments and artifacts, on-ice experiences on a one-third scale synthetic ice rink as well as programs and activities specifically developed for kids, families and newcomers to the game.
The display is open for public viewing Friday from 4-8 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.