West Nipissing students swap books for sticks in ball hockey tournament

In Sturgeon Falls this week, several students took part in a school board-wide ball hockey shinny game, celebrating our love of road hockey.

Celebrating their love of hockey, dozens of students in West Nipissing competed in a friendly ball hockey tournament Feb. 12 while taking in men’s and women’s hockey at the Olympics.

The hockey day in Sturgeon Falls for students at École élémentaire catholique La Résurrection allowed them to show their passion for the sport.

“This is something new,” said Grade 7 Student Bentley Carmichael.

“We never had this before.”

The idea to hold a school board-wide ball hockey day came from Jamie Pigeau, the school’s child and youth worker who loved playing hockey growing up.

Pigeau said he remembers his grandfather, Wayne, who always had a stick in his hands playing on the road with a young Jamie.

“This is for him and this is for the kids,” he said.

When Pigeau was in high school, students would play in a ball hockey tournament and he wanted to bring that back.

“It’s in our blood. If it’s summer, we’re playing road hockey,” he laughed while wearing a Jaromir Jagr mullet wig and an old Jofa helmet.

“If it’s winter ... you’re at the rink watching your kids practise. It’s Canadian.”

Closed the road

The school got permission to close Third Street and build two makeshift road hockey rinks and two more in the school parking lot.

Six schools sent 17 teams from West Nipissing school boards to the all-day tournament. The two winning teams (one from the Grades 4-6 division and the other from the Grades 7-8 division) received championship banners to hang in their school, as a form of bragging rights.

“A lot of my classmates are on my team. So that’s awesome that I get to have a better bond with them,” said Grade 8 student Kylie Durie, who’s also a hockey player herself.

In between games, everyone huddled inside the school’s gym, chowing down on popcorn, pizza and drinks while watching the men’s and women’s Canadian teams at the Olympics in Italy.

Loud roars for every goal

The Canadian women defeated Finland 5-0, while the men disposed of Czechia by the same score.

There were loud roars inside the school for every Team Canada goal.

“We’re having so much fun just watching our favourite hockey players on TV and then going to play right after,” Durie said.

Pigeau would like to see this become a regular celebration of the sport. Next year, he’s hoping schools from North Bay will send teams to participate.

“We’re bringing in the community and all the schools,” teacher Braydon Horner said.

“So, this was something that we really wanted to do and it was perfect for our carnival week.”

Pigeau said hockey is Canada’s sport and always brings out a sense of national pride.

“We get to skip school and get to play hockey,” said Carmichael.

“What’s a better way to spend your day in school?”