Two young athletes from St. Albert will represent Alberta in the 29th annual Brick Invitational Hockey Tournament. The international tournament is a unique opportunity for 10-year-olds to play against the best athletes in North America from this age category.
Mathieu Lajoie, 10, and Ty Meunier, nine, worked hard to be selected from the hundreds of young Albertans who tried out for the team. The try-outs were by invite only and included kids from all across the province. Team Brick's final roster has players from St. Albert, Edmonton, Calgary, Canmore, Lacombe, Cochrane, Didsbury, Slave Lake and Spruce Grove.
The Brick Tournament director, Andy Wigston, said the tournament's main goal is to provide a fun opportunity for young athletes.
"At 10 years old, you only get one shot at this tournament and these are the best kids in North America. About 175 [of past players] have gone on to the NHL so far. It's a really interesting phenomenon. They're playing against these same kids all their careers if they go through the whole thing."
Wigston recalls NHL players such as Jordan Eberle, P.K. Subban and Jonathan Toews playing in the Brick Tournament. Young Lajoie would be pleased to hear he's following in his favourite hockey player's footsteps. He said he looks up to Toews because he's hard-working and a good leader for his team.
Lajoie and Meunier said travelling for tournaments and meeting new friends are some of their favourite aspects of being on a hockey team. The two boys have been playing hockey together for years.
"They're good friends off the ice and they've known each other for quite some time. They've played with each other and against each other," Marc Meunier, Ty's father, said. "I'd describe them both as responsible, hard-working players and kids on and off the ice."
Both boys said they'd be bringing a positive attitude to the tournament. Meunier said he especially likes to "pump the boys up" in the dressing room.
"We have a theme called 'Row the Boat,' so we have a big paddle and it's like everyone needs to be working hard like when you row a boat. So, that's kind of our motto," Meunier said, crediting his coaches for this motivational technique.
Team Brick's head coach, Umberto Fiorillo, said those three words frame the team's core values alongside the symbols of an oar, boat and compass.
"The oar is the energy and that's what we say, 'You all have to row.' When you row, you're facing backwards. You have to stay in the moment, trust the process and trust your teammates. Any time you take the oar out of the water, your boat goes slower. The boat is our team [and] the compass is the people you surround yourself with," Fiorillo said.
He said hockey is a vehicle to teach life lessons, such as the emphasis of team success over individual success. He said he wants to teach these kids skills that they carry with them for life.
"At the end of the day, if that culminates into opportunities that are at a pro-hockey level, I think that's awesome. If not, they're going to be great citizens in the community with the things they're learning through hockey."
West Edmonton Mall
This year will be the first time the tournament takes place at West Edmonton Mall's (WEM) newly renovated Ice Palace. Wigston said WEM is an ideal location for hosting international guests."The new ice is awesome. The kids get to play in the sunlight so it's actually pretty cool," he said, adding there are plenty of activities and amenities at the mall for families coming to the tournament from out of town.
Wigston said there are close to a thousand people coming to Edmonton with these teams. Everything these visitors need is at the mall. He said it's a nice change from the typical back-and-forth routine families go through between rinks and hotels.
Another addition to the tournament this year will be singers from YegMusic, an artist developmental company, performing the national anthems at the beginning of each game.
The tournament will be played in a round robin format, with 14 teams competing. Games run from July 2 to 8. For the full set of details and schedules, visit www.brickhockey.pointstreaksites.com.
At the end of the games, Wigston said they throw the kids a beach party at WEM Waterpark to wrap up the event.
"That's what it's about — the camaraderie. Sure, it's really hard when they're on the ice, but once they get off the ice, they're just 10-year-old kids who want to have fun."
