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Canadian Blind Hockey Showcase Games Taking Place During the 2024 World Para Ice Hockey Championships in Calgary This Weekend

Two games featuring top players from the Canadian & US National Blind Hockey Teams will showcase the Para sport with the goal of furthering international growth.

(Calgary, AB) Canadian Blind Hockey is partnering with Hockey Canada to host two Blind Hockey showcase games during the 2024 World Para Ice Hockey Championship in Calgary this weekend. The games take place between 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm on both Saturday, May 4 and Sunday, May 5 at Winsport Arena on Joan Snyder Rink B.

The Calgary community is invited out to witness some of the best that the Para sport of Blind Hockey has to offer as both games are free and open to the public and will be broadcast live on the Canadian Blind Hockey YouTube channel.

“Hockey Canada is thrilled to partner with Canadian Blind Hockey to showcase the Para sport of Blind Hockey during the 2024 World Para Hockey Championship in Calgary,” said Dean McIntosh, Senior Vice-President of Revenue, Fan Experience and Community Impact for Hockey Canada. “As the competing Para hockey teams begin their quest to become world champions this weekend, we are excited to work with Canadian Blind Hockey to further the growth of Blind Hockey with the two games featuring top Canadian and American players at WinSport Arena at Canada Olympic Park.”

The Para sport of Blind Hockey is played by athletes who are blind or visually impaired using an adapted puck that is larger than a traditional puck and makes noise. There are 15 members of the Canadian National Blind Hockey Team, 7 members of Team USA, as well as a dozen top prospects competing in this weekend’s showcase which will produce some of the fastest and most exciting hockey ever played.

Blind Hockey is played recreationally in 13 cities across Canada as well as the USA, Finland, Sweden, Russia, and England, however currently only Canada and the USA have national team programs. The goal of the event is to showcase the sport to the top six Para hockey nations in the world that do not currently have Blind Hockey teams – Czechia, China, South Korea, Italy, Japan and Slovakia – in order to encourage international growth leading to a Four-Nations Cup in 2026, a World Championships in 2028 and creating a pathway to the Winter Paralympic Games.

“Blind Hockey is new exciting Para sport that has grown all across the United States over the last decade and is now really starting to take off other countries as well” explains Matt Morrow, Executive Director of Canadian Blind Hockey. “We are thankful to Hockey Canada for providing this platform to showcase the game at one of the top international hockey events for athletes with a disability at the World Para Ice Hockey Championship in Calgary. Canadian Blind Hockey is looking forward to meeting with leaders from around the world as we look to grow international competition leading to the creation of our own World Championships for Blind Hockey, and paving the pathway to become the first team sport for athletes with visual impairments at the Winter Paralympic Games.”

2024 World Para Ice Hockey Championships: Blind Hockey Showcase Schedule

Game # 1: Saturday, May 4

4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

Game # 2 – Sunday, May 5

4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

Winsport Arena

Canada Olympic Rd SW

Calgary, AB, Canada

Joan Snyder Rink B

Both games will be broadcast live on the Canadian Blind Hockey YouTube channel.

Canadian Blind Hockey is a charity that runs life changing Blind Hockey programming coast-to-coast for children, youth and adults who are blind or partially sighted. Our programs and events are made possible thanks to our generous donors and sponsors the CNIB Foundation, AMI, The Daniel Family Foundation, Electra Health, and Manion.

For more information, and to arrange interviews please contact Canadian Blind Hockey’s Marketing and Communications Manager Mel Carrey melcarrey@blindicehockey.com

 

Player Number Classification Hometown Conrad Eder 67 B3 Ottawa, ON, Canada Adriann Ekstrom 43 B3 Saskatoon, SK, Canada Jonathan Gallant 96 B3 Summerside, PEI, Canada Drew Garza 64 B3 Evanston, IL, USA Dante Giammarioli 71 B3 Edmonton, AB, Canada Tristan Lindberg 27 B3 Edmonton, AB, Canada Kiefer Jones 86 B3 Calgary, AB, Canada Adam Kugler-Sprayson 34 B3 Saskatoon, SK, Canada Sietske Morgan 23 B3 Hyattsville, MD, USA Luke Miller 11 B3 Elmhurst, IL, USA Liam O'Callahan 6 B3 Edmonton, AB, Canada Ian Rankin 10 B3 Windsor, ON, Canada Curtis Ruttle 37 B3 Calgary, AB, Canada Blake Schneider 39 B3 Red Deer, AB, Canada Dan Schramm 4 B3 Vail, CO, USA Kelly Serbu 22 B3 Cole Harbor, NS, Canada Jonathan Trzop 63 B3 Moncton, NB, Canada Jason Willer 76 B3 Regina, SK, Canada Jason Yuha 91 B3 Rosalind, AB, Canada Nikolas Bullick 8 B2 London, ON, Canada Mark DeMontis 9 B2 Weston, ON, Canada Lucas Desrochers 89 B2 Vancouver, BC, Canada Bruno Hache 35 B2 Montreal, QC, Canada Sean Heaslip 51 B2 Vancouver, BC, Canada Brandon Joy 7 B2 Conception Bay South, NL, Canada Dirk Morgan 21 B2 Hyattsville, MD, USA Amanda Provan 13 B2 Sudbury, ON, Canada Josh Schneider 81 B2 N. Haledon, NJ, USA Adam Young 73 B2 Kent, WA, USA Goalies Cory Gaskin 29 B1 Red Deer, AB, Canada Doug Goist 41 B1 Alexandria, VA, USA Oliver Pye 31 B1 Halifax, NS, Canada Gary Steeves 1 B1 Vancouver, BC, Canada Coaches Joey Ali Surrey, BC, Canada Ken Babey Calgary, AB, Canada Joe Babey Calgary, AB, Canada James Bullick London, ON, Canada Philip Giammarioli Edmonton, AB, Canada Luca DeMontis Toronto, ON, Canada Canadian Blind Hockey Staff Matt Morrow Executive Director Luca DeMontis Program Manager Mel Carrey Marketing and Communications Manager + EA