Voting begins Friday at 7 a.m. and ends Saturday at 3 p.m., with the successful neighborhood introduced Saturday throughout Hockey Evening in Canada
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The city of Cochrane is asking on Albertans’ sporting spirit to assist convey residence the title of Kraft Hockeyville’s 2024 grand prize winner.
Cochrane is going through off towards three different finalists — Wolseley, Sask., Elliot Lake, Ont. and Enderby, B.C. — for the shot at $250,000 in skating rink upgrades and the chance to host a pre-season NHL sport.
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Amid the rising anticipation for choice day, the city made a remaining push for votes with a neighborhood rally Thursday night on the Cochrane Area.
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The celebration featured a mascot dance-off, poster making, glitter tattoos, skating, and a Yelnats Cup Event U18 hockey sport between the Calgary Raiders and the Edmonton KC 707.
Cochrane Mayor Jeff Genung mentioned the city is honoured to be one of many high 4 finalists throughout the nation within the competitors, particularly in mild of a particular milestone for the Cochrane Area, or “the previous barn,” as it’s affectionately identified.
“Hockey is a large a part of our neighborhood, and to have the ability to have a good time the sector’s fiftieth birthday this yr with some upgrades. That’s why we need to win.”
In response to the city’s web site, as of 2023, Cochrane boasts a inhabitants of about 35,800 residents.
Voting begins Friday at 7 a.m. and ends Saturday at 3 p.m., with the successful neighborhood introduced Saturday throughout Hockey Evening in Canada.
“Cochrane is tremendous excited to be within the operating; we’ve obtained a rally taking place this afternoon, and we’re actually attempting to encourage all of Alberta to be behind Cochrane and convey the cup again to our province.”
The province final gained Kraft Hockeyville in 2014, when the city of Sylvan Lake claimed the prize.
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“It’s been such a fantastic, optimistic marketing campaign to rally round. It’s been so superior to see companies — indicators of their retailer home windows — and children making indicators to help their teammates,” Genung mentioned.
He added that for the previous 10 days, because the city came upon they had been thought of fierce competitors, promoters have been working tirelessly to unfold the message to vote.
“We’ve been blasting social media in every single place; we’ve been on the native radio station right here — all people’s form of doing their half.
“I’m on the mid-size metropolis mayor’s caucus — there’s 25 communities throughout Alberta — and I’ve been telling all of the mayors to get entangled of their neighborhood to get them to vote for us,” Genung mentioned.
“There’s no losers; it’s simply been a fantastic expertise, and I want the opposite communities properly, however clearly we’re going for the win,” Genung mentioned.
‘One thing as neat as hockey is our shared ardour’
CEO Erin Wagner of SLS Recreation Park Society lauds Cochrane as Canada’s high hockey neighborhood.
“We’ve obtained over 6,500 athletes skating on our ice each week, and with a inhabitants of just about 40,000, the demand on our ice is unmatched,” she mentioned.
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Wagner added that whereas the city entered Hockeyville 2024 with the purpose of successful, it nonetheless needs all the opposite communities success.
“It is a feel-good story, and at a time like this worldwide the place it’s really easy to search out variations and tear one another down, that is actually about having the ability to come collectively round a standard trigger and put Cochrane on the nationwide stage — how cool is that? One thing as neat as hockey is our shared ardour.”
The three finalists will obtain $25,000 for area upgrades every, and all 4 finalists will obtain $10,000 in new hockey tools for youth locally.
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