The women’s hockey team will head to “La Belle Province” in early January to play exhibition games in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) test run for a national women’s hockey tournament.
Six teams, along with the Ooks, will descend on Quebec City to compete over four days. The CCAA has not had a national hockey championship since discontinuing the men’s championship in 2001.
This is the second iteration of the tournament, building on the CCAA’s test series in Nova Scotia with the Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) last year.
“I think to be a national sport … it showcases the female game,” NAIT women’s hockey head coach Brendan Jensen said about his expectations ahead of the tournament. “I expect the competition to be fairly good throughout all of the schools. And as a team and as a staff, we’re really looking forward to showcasing ourselves out there.”
NAIT won’t be the only ones representing the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) at the tournament. The Lakeland Rustlers and Olds College Broncos are also joining the Ooks in Quebec City, with the remaining teams coming from across Quebec and the Maritimes. 10 total teams will compete.
The Ooks will play Quebec Student Sports Network (RSEQ) collegiate teams Trois-Rivières Diablos, Thetford Filons and Rimouski Pionnières. Depending on their record, the Ooks could play up to three more games with a chance to win a medal.
While the tournament is relatively new, Jensen believes there are a few prerequisites that must be in place before the league moves forward with a national championship, including sustainability.
“You know, a willingness to show that the three conferences (ACAA, ACAC and RSEQ) would make it a Class-B national championship, are willing to host events and put on well-run events,” he explained.
“So having that and having a great student athlete experience … and make it sustainable. Also, there has to be parity.”
Jensen seems optimistic the teams and schools involved are taking proper steps to make the tournament a mainstay on future schedules.
“We’re not the decision makers to do that. But I think then, we’re pushing the ante, and we’re trying to showcase ourselves that the sport deserves a national championship at this level,” said Jensen. “I’m very hopeful for it, it might not be following this tournament, but in a couple of years, hopefully … it becomes a national governing sport at the CCAA level, which would be tremendous.”
The action will take place at Centre Caztel in Sainte-Marie-de-Beauce, Que., with the Ooks taking on Trois-Rivières on Jan. 9.
Feature photo via NAIT Ooks
