Latest news with #icehockey
CBC
a day ago
- General
- CBC
Some think all users should feel Windsor's ice shortage crisis — not just curling
While Jim Morrison admits he's a curler himself, the Ward 10 city councillor thinks the sport shouldn't be temporarily put on the shelf for an entire season because of an ice rink shortage in Windsor. Morrison says his heart sank when he read the report heading to council next Monday. In it, municipal staff outline a plan that would see curling booted off one of the two ice pads at the Capri Pizzeria Recreation complex in the city's south end. The recommendation follows extensive damage to one ice pad at the WFCU Centre from a late April solar panel fire on the facility's roof. That rink will be closed for at least 10 months, meaning less ice for all user groups — including the likes of Riverside Minor Hockey Association and Riverside Skating Club. A trickle down effect of users and rinks would see the curling ice at Capri reconverted back to use for skating sports. It was just last year curlers were ousted from their longtime home at Roseland Golf Club. "It's a shock," said Morrison, to Windsor Morning host Amy Dodge on Tuesday. "They've gone through a whole bunch of changes and uncertainties and everything else. I'm certainly very sympathetic … it's the only place we can curl." Morrison says there has to be an answer for the curlers. "My recommendation is going to be to have a small reduction. Everybody's going to have to feel a little bit of pain here to reduce all those other groups by a little bit of ice time." According to Morrison, "It looks like to me we could run everything but with some reductions — and whether that means a longer season — we could make it up by adding a few weeks to the season or there might be few less games … maybe the games would be a little shorter." He refers to curling as one of "those fragile sports" for the Windsor-area, unsure about its long-term future should the rocks and brooms get put on the sidelines for an entire season. "We're not the hotbed of curling. We've seen reductions in the numbers over the years. A lot of people are seniors … if we take that away for a year … we'll lose a bunch. It could be a really a tough spot for curling in general." Morrison estimates there are around 300 curlers in the city with about 200 of them registered. Makeshift alternative? Terry Fink is part of a committee that's been looking to save the sport in the city for the past few years. His group is considering all of its options to save curling for the next season and not skip an entire year for the sport. One possible alternative, he says, is an idea they've heard about from their regional and national curling organization counterparts. "We understand … that there is a possibility of a carpet to be rolled out on a cement floor and hooked up to a compressor and you can have curling ice within four to five days — but you need a facility," he said. WATCH | Windsor curlers could be left homeless due to minor hockey plan: Windsor curlers could be left homeless due to minor hockey plan 1 day ago Duration 2:50 Fink says local curlers were taken off guard by the extent of the issues at the WFCU Centre and how it could trickle down to other user groups at different arenas. "Everybody felt blindsided." "No consultation before the council report was put on the agenda," he said. Fink says more than just one option should have been established before bringing it to council for a decision. "It is a crisis for everybody so we started to gather on Saturday afternoon," he said. "We were shocked, dumfounded. It felt like somebody punched you in the stomach or the nose … we didn't see it coming."
CTV News
2 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
WFCU Centre update
Since a morning fire at the WFCU Centre in late April, the city says damage assessment has been ongoing. 'Losing an ice pad is devastating to our inventory,' acknowledged Michael Chantler, commissioner of city services. 'As we kind of peel back the layers, we are discovering exactly what has happened to the building and as a result of what has happened so far, it looks like we're going to lose at least the season coming up.' A lot of water was poured on the fire. Initially, the thought was the roof wasn't breached. However, it was, and a lot of water made its way inside. The two community rinks next to the AM800 rink were also damaged but not as significantly. 'All of the insulation was soaked, so there's significant water damage. There may have been extensive damage to the air handlers as well, so we're working on the air handlers in that area as well,' Chantler said to CTV News. Remediation is being scheduled on both rinks, perhaps on a rotating basis to avoid too much interruption. As for the AM800 rink, windows are covered with no access to the rink as the investigation continues. 'You can't get up and just fix the roof like a traditional roof, so we are actually going to fix the roof from the inside working up,' said Chantler. The plan is to investigate damage from both sides of the roof to determine the overall damage, and that is expected to take time. 'The actual roof structure itself, and there's multiple layers to the membranes that protect it, but it's been completely destroyed in some areas,' said Chantler. The initial damage was estimated to be about a million dollars, but city officials expect that number to climb significantly. 'There are a number of people that have to get in there and do their investigations to find cause, to find what equipment was involved. They're all entitled to have a certain period of time to be in there to do that and so that is the stage we're in right now,' Chantler said.
Associated Press
3 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Wild re-sign veteran wing Marcus Johansson to 1-year, $800,000 contract to avoid free agency
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild re-signed right wing Marcus Johansson on Monday to a one-year, $800,000 contract that keeps the 15-year veteran from becoming a free agent. Johansson had 11 goals and 23 assists in 72 games for the Wild during the 2024-25 regular season, bouncing between the second and third lines. He was sixth on the team in points. The 34-year-old, who was acquired by the Wild from Washington a few days before the NHL trade deadline in 2023, played the 2024-25 season on a $2 million salary cap charge. Johansson had four goals and four assists in nine games for Sweden last month at the ice hockey world championships to help his native country's team win the bronze medal. He has 185 goals and 332 assists over 983 career regular-season games with seven teams in the NHL. ___ AP NHL:
Russia Today
3 days ago
- General
- Russia Today
Russia banned from ice hockey in 2026 Olympics
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has made the decision to ban Russian ice hockey teams from the upcoming Winter Olympics in Italy, the president of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), Luc Tardif, told TASS on Monday. Last week, sports broadcaster ESPN reported that the IOC had confirmed that Russian teams will remain barred from the 2026 Winter Games. 'For the Olympics – it's an IOC decision,' Tardif replied when asked by a TASS correspondent whether the committee's ruling regarding Russia's hockey team was final. In February, the IIHF ruled to extend its sanctions and ban both Russian and Belarusian teams from participating in the federation's 2025-2026 championship season. The IIHF, like many other international sports organizations, banned athletes from both nations at the IOC's behest following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. The committee later allowed certain Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under a neutral flag, provided they pass a vetting process to determine that they have not supported the Ukraine conflict. 'The IOC Executive Board recommendation from March 2023 with regard to teams of athletes with a Russian passport remains in place,' ESPN wrote last week, citing the IOC. 'It is based on the fact that, by definition, a group of Individual Neutral Athletes cannot be considered a team.' Last week, the Russian Olympic Committee announced it intends to challenge the national hockey team's ban. Moscow has repeatedly branded the IOC sanctions a perversion of the Olympic Charter, which is supposed to keep the Games free of political interference. The 2026 Winter Olympics will be held in February, in the cities of Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo.
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
City to consider turfing curling season amid shortage of ice rinks
A new report to Windsor City Council could derail the upcoming season for the region's curling community. The report aims to address a shortage of ice space following a fire at the WFCU Centre. Staff are recommending Rink A at the Capri Pizzeria Recreation Complex, which is used for curling, be converted to a typical skating rink. The news was much to the surprise of Terry Fink, the chairman of a group looking to save curling in Windsor. 'We've sort of been hit, blindsided, by the report and, because we feel it's incomplete, there needs to be consultation, and we think that that has been absent a lot,' Fink told CTV News. 060125_curling arena windsor fink Terry Fink, the chairman of a group looking to save curling in Windsor, June 1, 2025 (Robert Lothian/CTV News Windsor) Curling was already displaced last year after the council elected to move the sport from Roseland Golf and Curling Club because the aging rink was slated for demolition. 'It was council by resolution that said, you know, come to South Windsor Arena and, curling will be bigger and better than it was at Roseland,' Fink said. Following a fire on April 28, the roof above the AM800 rink has been compromised and added work is needed to investigate subsequent water damage at the WFCU's other two community rinks. As a result the AM800 rink, which is primarily used as the home of the Riverside Minor Hockey Association, could be closed for an entire year, a staff report states. The report highlights by eliminating the curling season at Capri, the city could accommodate the loss of prime ice time, which are high use times on weekends and weeknights, at the WFCU Centre. At Capri's Rink A, curling used 14 of the possible 53 hours of prime ice time available. 'So a lot of the curlers are retirees, and so they're curling during the day when you and other people are at work, and all the children are at school,' Fink explained. Fink added the sport does have a strong contingent of adult players who are on the ice after work hours. 'Going into this, we all knew what the hours of curling were going to be and it was not an issue, so I don't understand,' Fink added. The report has also received criticism from Fred Francis, Ward 1 City Councillor, who feels the proposal is 'disappointing.' Coun. Fred Francis An undated photo of Windsor's Ward 1 Coun. Fred Francis. (Sanjay Maru/CTV News Windsor) 'Council's being put in a tough spot, asking essentially to choose between hockey and curling, and that's bad policy,' Francis told AM800 CKLW. Francis previously advocated for a continued curling presence at Roseland and wonders if the predicament could revive that dream. Regardless, he added the city needs better plans to increase its rink capacity and avoid future shortcomings. Francis warned by displacing curlers for the year, the city risks never seeing the sport return. 'I think if the city gets out of the curling game right now, I don't think we'll ever get into it,' Francis said. Since moving from Roseland, Fink noted they've added about 60 curlers, but he echoed that a one-year hiatus could kill interest in curling. 'As something ends, we'll find something else to do, and it may be very difficult and challenging to bring the volume of curlers back after your year of not curling,' he added. Before a decision is made, Fink said he wants council to explore further opportunities and consider how they would support curling if it does disappear for a year. - with files from AM800's Dustin Coffman
