The Pacific Junior Hockey League’s Winter Classic will be a fixture at Minoru Arenas until at least 2022.
The showcase event, which got underway Friday morning, will feature all 11 PJHL teams playing twice at Minoru. Games run from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m. each of the three days. Richmond will take on Grandview on Friday and Langley on Sunday in the Classic finale. Both games start at 7 p.m.
“When we first came up with the concept, obviously getting the facility is one thing and making it cost effective,” explained Sockeyes co-owner Doug Paterson. “The City of Richmond, through Will Kump, has been extraordinarily good to us. We took it the first year and (Richmond) came back to us and said why not take it for another five. So we will have it for six years. This is year two and we will have it for four more years.”
Being the official Winter Classic home also means all the league’s trophies are permanently on display in the upstairs reception area in Minoru’s stadium rink. That area will host a beer and wine garden over the Winter Classic. The event is also ideal for higher tier junior teams, along with university programs to scout potential talent all in the same building.
“It allows our league to show a great product and anytime you can do that at home makes it even better,” added Paterson. "This year we got Grandview. That’s always a good rivalry game for us.”
The entire 2018 PJHL Winter Classic schedule is:
Friday, Jan. 5: 10 a.m. Surrey vs. Delta; 1 p.m. Abbotsford vs. Ridge Meadows; 4 p.m. Port Moody vs. Mission City; 7 p.m. Grandview vs. Richmond.
Saturday, Jan. 6: 10 a.m. Delta vs. North Vancouver; 1 p.m. Langley vs. Aldergrove; 4 p.m. Ridge Meadows vs. Surrey; 7 p.m. Mission City vs. Grandview.
Sunday, Jan. 7: 1 p.m. North Vancouver vs. Port Moody; 4 p.m. Aldergrove vs. Abbotsford; 7 p.m. Richmond vs. Langley.
The Sockeyes are riding an 11-game win streak into the Winter Classic and currently sit second in the Tom Shaw Conference.
