The annual contest announced Sunday that the town of Pense — located 42 kilometres east of Moose Jaw on the Trans-Canada Highway — has been named one of the four finalists for the honour of Hockeyville, which includes an NHL exhibition game and $250,000 for arena improvements.
The contest began on Jan. 1 with the nomination and rally phase, which encouraged supporters to post stories to the Hockeyville website explaining why their community deserved the honour. Judging then took place from Feb. 10 to Aug. 1, with 80 per cent of the final score coming from nomination stories and 20 per cent from ‘rally points’ earned from posting to social media and other activities.
The plight of Pense Memorial Rink won over the judges: after the community’s original arena burned down in 1989, the community rebuilt the Memorial in its place. The now 30-year-old arena is in need of major repair to the brine pipe system that keeps the artificial ice in place through the winter months, with a loss of that system likely taking down the whole facility for a season, if not more.
Joining Pense in the final four are the communities of Twillingate, N.L., Saint Felicien, Que. and Tyne Valley, P.E.I.
The good news is that by being nominated to the final four, Pense has already won $25,000 for arena upgrades.
The next step is all up to you.
The final winner will be determined by a public vote, with voting opening on Friday, Aug. 14 at 9 a.m. ET at www.krafthockeyville.ca and concluding on Saturday, Aug. 15 at 6 p.m. ET. The winner will be announced the evening of Aug. 15.
For more information, be sure to check out www.krafthockeyville.ca.
