Tournament attracts old-timers back to the ice

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The third annual Lawrence Weenie Cup was held March 27 to 29 in North Battleford, hosting 16 teams made up of players 35 years and older. For the first time, four of those squads were for those 40-and-older.

"Partly due to the demographics, a lot of older hockey players are still active and now we're seeing them with a (continued) passion for hockey," said Milt Tootoosis, the tournament's co-ordinator and Lawrence Weenie's son.

The tournament is proudly named after Weenie, an accomplished citizen and sports administrator. Besides serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force for six years and as chief of Poundmaker First Nation between 1984-88, Weenie was inducted into the Saskatchewan First Nations Sports Hall of Fame in 1997 in the builders category.

Known as the "Voice of Indian Sports" with the Missinipi Broadcasting Corporation, Weenie was instrumental in obtaining the Saskatchewan Indian Summer Games for Poundmaker in 1995. Another highlight of his career was getting the opportunity to work the public address system during a Junior A hockey game for the Lebret Eagles at Saskatchewan Place.

"A lot of the current players were participants of the (the annual All Native Hockey Tournament hosted by the Battlefords Indian and Metis Friendship Centre) so we thought that as old-timers let's get something going to coincide and compliment the senior tournament," Tootoosis said. "He just loved being around the guys and other sportsmen."

The championship saw an exciting match, as the Onion Lake Border Chiefs squared off against the Ile-a-la-Crosse Chiefs. It was Onion Lake that grabbed a 4-1 lead after the first period but a spirited comeback by Ile-a-la-Crosse tied the contest at five before a shootout decided the affair in Chiefs' favor.

Certainly in a tournament where participants can qualify at 35, it would seem those with the younger legs would have an advantage. Yet, named as the MVP for the second straight year was Moe Apesis, 43, for the Chiefs. Louis Gardiner, 45 and also from the Ile-a-la-Crosse team, was named the most valuable player. The oldest player in the tournament was Vic Checkosis from Little Pine First Nation. He was 63.

"One of the features of this tournament is to play in front of a crowd and to have a flashback of their talents," Tootoosis said as the old-timers skated in front of an audience exceeding 1,000.

The continued success of the old-timers tournament, combined with the ever-popular senior tournament, means tournament organizers are already planning for next year. The 2004 tournament will mark the fourth year for the memorial tournament, and will coincide with the end to the spiritual period of grieving. But that won't mean the end of the tournament, Tootoosis said.

"Whether we change the name, we'll contact the Elders and cultural experts," Tootoosis said. "But the growth and the popularity of the tournament has established itself as a prestigious year-end tournament for the 35-and-older."