Canada takes the GOLD!
For many hockey players, representing their country is a dream come true. This year, the 2024 CCM Nations Cup brought that dream to life for 266 teams. Hosted in Detroit, the event welcomed 133 American teams and 133 Canadian teams.
Unlike typical tournaments, the Nations Cup doesn’t crown a single champion. Instead, teams face off in round-robin matchups against cross-border rivals to earn seeding for Championship Sunday.
For our part in the 2013 Matthews division, we started strong in the Morning with big 5-0 win against Grand Rapids. The afternoon game gave us a little trouble, as we faced the strong team from Traverse City, who proved to be a little stronger than us that day.
For that night, some bonding and lots of mini sticks.
The bonding must have been influential, as Saturday brought us a couple of 4-0 wins. First against PSM and then we snacked on Little Caesars. This brought us to 3 and 1 for the weekend and we took second seed of ten.
Saturday night was special, as we were celebrating a couple of birthdays, and that's always a reason for a party. The boys may have stayed out in the halls a little later that evening, as the nature of this tournament meant that every team played for their country on Sunday, and so perhaps a little less pressure on curfew. As for the adults, there may have been Taquitos and Tequila involved in the adult celebrations that night. Some may not even fully remember.
On Sunday we drew the only team that had bested us in the round robin, and again, we were stymied. However, we contributed, and in the end, Canada bested the USA to take the GOLD, with a 31-24 point win.
The energy was unmatched, with players and parents alike contributing to the electric atmosphere. A tournament to remember forever for the boys!