The Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) has announced the cities that will host new championship weekends, some of the biggest hockey events in its history.
The OMHA championships will take place over three weekends, including March 25-27, April 1-3 and April 8-10. The tournament will include more than 375 teams playing in over 850 games in five locations across the province, including Barrie, Kingston, Oakville, Whitby, and Windsor.
By the end of the event, 41 champions will be crowned as part of the new OMHA championships
Barrie Minor Hockey Association (BMHA) general manager Steve Fontaine said due to the size of the organizations, they are often chosen to host major OMHA events.
“We have approximately 140 teams between our house league and rep league, making us one of the largest organizations in the province,” Fontaine told BarrieToday on Monday, shortly after the news was announced. “For this championship multi-weekend event, we will be using the majority of our city's facilities.”
Barrie will be hosting the championship weekends in April and officials are expecting around 70 teams per weekend.
After two years of restrictions and limits for events, the OMHA championship weekends will happen after the Ontario government's March 14 zero-capacity limits are lifted for indoor public settings.
“I think it’s good for everybody involved. From the players and their families to the city and local businesses and hotels who are going to try to recover some losses,” Fontaine said. “From an organizational standpoint, it's going to be nice to fully celebrate this major event as the players seek the coveted Red Hat.”
Since the 1940s, hundreds of thousands of players have played for the coveted Red Hats, which are the red baseball caps that go to the championship-winning OMHA teams.
There have been many famous winners of the Red Hat, including Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Travis Dermott and Newmarket native Quinton Byfield, who was the second-overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft.
“The Red Hat is worn by the OMHA champions and really shows what you and your teammates accomplished,” Fontaine said. “It has been worn by many who have gone on to have great pro careers and is a very symbolic representation of the success an Ontario hockey player has.”
The BMHA will have teams representing U10, U11, U13, U15, U16 and U18.
OMHA executive director Ian Taylor said with players, parents and volunteers having endured so much during the pandemic, the organization believes this is a great way to get people excited about the game again.
“We have been planning this for months and believe this is a great way to give them something special to look forward to and to ensure all our participants can be involved in more meaningful hockey right up to March and beyond,” Taylor said.
Leading up to the OMHA championship weekends, starting this year there will be important new league championships in each area. League playoffs will now turn into regional qualifying showdowns to see who moves on to compete for Red Hats.
Parents can pack their rinks to show their hometown support and to cheer on the teams who will be punching their ticket to the OMHA championships.
The OMHA says this new playoff format has been designed with players, coaches and parents in mind and not only extends the length of playing meaningful hockey, it minimizes travel for hockey families. It removes the elimination-style series used in the past, and keeps more teams playing during the year for a longer period of time.
For more information, visit www.omha.net.
