Avid hockey fans and players rejoice every year when Garneau holds its annual school-wide Floor Hockey Tournament. This year was no exception, as students from grades nine through twelve assembled teams to participate in games that ran after school from Monday to Wednesday of this week.
The tournament’s primary goal was to provide students an opportunity to get active and let loose in the middle of a busy semester. As they say, if you work hard, you’ve got to play harder, and organizers of the event agree whole-heartedly. Veterans of the tournament and new comers alike enjoyed showing off their skills and heart for the game, especially amidst the cold and unpredictable weather outside. In the tournament, games took up half the gymnasium and were played three against three. Typically a tournament that warrants the participation of six to seven teams, there were only five this year. However, competition did not get any easier and the fun did not lessen even with the smaller turn out.
Hockey enthusiast grade eleven student Rashad Brugmann started playing in the Garneau floor hockey tournament in grade nine when some senior students recruited him to join their team. Since then, he has returned every year, and has been enjoying every exhilarating win and tough loss. Like many of the participants, it’s not winning the title of MGCI’s Floor Hockey Champion that makes the tournament fun; it’s spending time with his team and playing a good old game of puck with opponents who, through a mutual respect for the sport, he inadvertently become friends with.
The floor hockey tournament, like many other sports tournaments that happen throughout the year, is one of many traditions at MGCI. In particular, this year’s was co-ordinated by athletic convenor Kaleem Ullah and staff advisor/hockey buff Mr. van Bemmel. Mr. Fredelos and Mr. Graham also helped out a great deal, acting as referees to enforce order and ensure safety during games.
Stay tuned for sign ups next year- whether you’re in it to win it, to have some fun with your friends, or just to learn how to play this sport, the annual floor hockey tournament at Garneau is definitely one tradition you want to be a part of.
