Burnaby, B.C. – A team from Fairbanks, Alaska will travel more than 2,200 kilometers to compete in the 2024 Pat Quinn Classic.
The team is no stranger to long journeys as the Hockey Club Fairbanks often makes a six-hour drive to Anchorage for tournaments.
“Most of the players on the team have not travelled out of state for hockey before, so there is a definite excitement to travel and face new teams,” says Head Coach Scott Sikorski. He spoke with several coaches who have attended the Pat Quinn Classic previously and says they “rated it a top-notch tournament.” The team will also spend a few days for some games in Seattle.
Hockey Club Fairbanks is one of nine teams in the Integrated U15 Flight 2 division. “My expectations for the tournament are to hopefully have some very heated and tight competitive games, and to give our team a chance to challenge themselves against different opponents from other parts of the hockey world,” says Sikorski. “At the higher end of hockey in Alaska, the same kids end up playing each other year over year, tournament after tournament, so the exposure to new challenges adds a different level of excitement.”
The team from the far north is looking forward to facing off against Canadian teams. “I don’t feel we are doing anything different to prepare for the Canadian style of game,” says Sikorski. In previous games that he has coached against Canadian teams, he says “they always seem to play an honest, hard-working and gritty style of game – something that I’d love to try to have my team from Fairbanks built around.” He concludes that, “at the end of the day, hockey is a read and react sport. So, although the opponents and style may change slightly, it’s all based on taking in information and making quick decisions based off of that.”
The 2024 Pat Quinn Classic features 49 teams in seven divisions:
- 23 from the Lower Mainland
- 10 from the rest of B.C.
- 16 from the United States
The divisions are:
- Female U13 Elite
- Female U15 Elite
- Integrated U13 Flight 1
- Integrated U15 Flight 1
- Integrated U15 Flight 2
- Integrated U17 Flight 1
- Integrated U17 Flight 2
The tournament runs from December 27 to 31 at venues in Burnaby, Delta and Surrey.
Backgrounder – The Pat Quinn Classic
The Burnaby Minor Hockey Association began hosting the annual December Bantam hockey tournament in 1962. It is now the longest-running event of its kind in the world. The tournament became the Pat Quinn Classic in 2015, named after the legendary player, coach, general manager and team owner. Pat Quinn is internationally-recognized as one of the hockey’s greatest coaches and ambassadors. Proceeds go to the Pat Quinn Scholarship Fund. Managed by Hockey Canada, the fund supports players in post-secondary education after their hockey careers. Quinn is one of the most recognizable faces in Canadian sport and has made an enormous contribution to sport in British Columbia and Canada.
The objective of the Pat Quinn Classic is to create a top international-calibre tournament in Western Canada to showcase local teams alongside some of the strongest programs in Canada, the U.S. and around the world. Organizers worked with the Quinn family to create a unique tournament that strikes the right balance between exciting hockey, skill and leadership development and community engagement. Pat motivated players at all levels to work hard on the ice and live with passion and integrity off the ice. The vision of this tournament exemplifies his love of hockey and his unwavering commitment to give back to the community.
MEDIA CONTACT
info@patquinnclassic.com