Taber scores the winning goal in Hockeyville contest

Westwind Weekly News Photo by Meg Noguchi. CELEBRATIONS: Hundreds of Taberites showed up at the arena on Saturday for a celebration and an official announcement by Sportsnet.

By Cal Braid
Southern Alberta Newspapers
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

In a brilliant reversal of fortune, Taber’s arena woes turned into triumph when Kraft Hockeyville announced that the town was this year’s winner of its grand prize – the opportunity to host a preseason NHL game, $250,000 in facility upgrades and $10,000 worth of youth hockey equipment.

 Over the weekend, the Town reveled in the news after it broke. Hundreds of Taberites showed up at the arena on Saturday for a celebration and an official announcement by Sportsnet.

 Taber Communications Manager Meghan Brennan gauged the good vibes and described it this way: “The people keep asking what the feeling is like to win Kraft Hockeyville, and I imagine this is what it feels like when an NHL team has lifted the Stanley Cup.”

 On Saturday, the gathering at the arena was pure energy. The Town was required to do a broadcast party because Sportsnet announced it live and the on-site capacity of 700 was filled to roughly half to three quarters of that – most of whom were kids.

 “Everybody was wearing jerseys, and Taber Minor Hockey came out to help, and they were giving out free jerseys. Tank 77 was doing a history of hockey display, and we just put on the hockey games and had a really good time,” Brennan said.

 “The energy did not stop. From three o’clock, we had a line out the door waiting for people to get in. That’s how excited Taberites were. And there were people from all over southern Alberta ready to hear that announcement. I have never felt energy in a room quite like that before. It was extraordinary.”

 Brennan thanked “every single person in every single province” that voted for Taber among the 13 finalists who were all worthy.

 “We also take the time to honour Tumbler Ridge. They were an incredible competitor and were very kind to our community,” she said. “Their story was equally important and worthy. And you know, I can say with all confidence that if Tumbler Ridge had come out on top over Taber, Taberites would have celebrated equally with them.”

 Looking forward, the “opportunity to host a preseason NHL game” was peculiar wording for an item in the prize package, and Brennan explained what it means. The NHL has legal requirements around the surface and facility its players must use, but the game is slated for fall 2027 with no date, time, teams, or other details yet.

 “When they say opportunity to host, they mean inside of your town,” she explained. “That’s why they always say ‘opportunity to host’ because some host communities in the past haven’t been big enough or didn’t have the facilities to host an NHL team. So you know, we do not know yet whether it will be in Taber or a nearby community.”

 She asked for the public’s patience as the Town works it out with the league, however Taber will do everything in its power to accommodate the NHL at that time.

 “We’re super hopeful that we can host them here, and we’re ready to host them if they say yes, but that’ll be up to the NHL to ultimately decide,” she said.