Fort Smith's 2024 Christmas Classic was an opportunity for the community's many hockey fans to come together and play the game they love SA国际影视传媒� just as it has been in previous years.
"It brings everyone together," said decorated Fort Smith hockey player Kiah Vail, who organized this year's tournament with fellow resident Bret Moore. "It gets people out gathering in one place. It's a great, social time. I think that's really what I love about it."
The Christmas Classic, which always falls between Christmas and New Year's Eve, has been a staple of the Fort Smith calendar for "a couple of decades," according to Vail, who has now organized the tournament two years in a row.
This year's tournament ran from Dec. 27 to 29 at the Fort Smith Centennial Arena. Unlike some previous years, when the tournament was limited to adults only, recent editions have been open to male and female players aged 15 and up.
The teams were drafted on Dec. 26. As in previous years, the draft was led by the goalies that signed up, which helps avoid having overly "stacked" lineups, and makes the competition "a lot more even," according to Vail. This year, eight goalies registered, which meant eight teams were assembled at the Boxing Day draft SA国际影视传媒� more than the organizers originally planned for.
"Eight goalies is a fantastic turnout," said Vail, who competed in the tournament herself. "We originally planned for six goalies, but when we got eight signed up by Dec. 20, we realized we had to redo our entire schedule.
"It was super exciting to have that much interest," she added. "I was really pleasantly surprised."
The tournament was a community effort, according to the organizers. Vail contends the event would not be possible were it not for the collaboration of the community's various hockey organizations, as well as those who volunteered to referee, time-keep and run the canteen.
"What makes the tournament like so unique is the fact that you have [Fort Smith] minor hockey chip in, you have old timers, you have rec players, you have women," she said. "I had some women in the timekeeper's box. We had Minor Hockey running the canteen, and we had oldtimers that really stepped up to ref, as well as as rec players that reffed."
"It takes the whole hockey community to run every single tournament."
While the tournament would not be possible without the volunteers who stepped up to help out, it would not have been as exciting without the fans who showed up to support the players on the ice SA国际影视传媒� and they showed up in droves, according to Vail.
"The fans were packed in for some of the games," she said. "There was lots of cheering, and there was laughter. It was good fun, for sure."
In the end, the tournament was won by Team Ethan by a score of 7-6 SA国际影视传媒� a group composed of Justin Bourque, Ryan Schaefer, Brandon Boyd, Jacob Carroll, Jaquan Blythe, Kole Laviolette, Gaylen Pischinger, Alex James, Trey Beck and goalie Ethan Walsh.
However, Vail is confident everyone who took to the ice had a good time, and sees the tournament of proof of the community's "love of the game."
Vail is currently studying environmental and conservation sciences at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, and is also a member of the institution's Pandas hockey team. While she had to return to the city soon after the Christmas Classic wrapped up in her hometown, she is hoping she will have a hand in organizing the tournament again at the end of this year SA国际影视传媒� so long as her schedule allows.
"I will plan on coming back [to organize it]," she said. "I hope I can play too. It will really depend on my own hockey schedule. It was lucky that I was able to make it up with my gear and play this year."
