Kids and adults, male and females alike all gathered in and around Churchill Square to play a little street hockey on the weekend.
The nationwide CBC Play On! The Official Canadian Street Hockey Tournament started off in Edmonton with tournament play on Saturday that continued with the playoffs and finals yesterday. Groups were broken down into age categories.
The streets were closed around the square and City Hall, giving the chance for big and little kids to play on downtown streets and never have to yell “Car!”
“How often do you get to play with City Hall right behind you?” said Play On! events organizer Vern Gerhart. “(The kids) feel like it’s got a major league feel to it.”
While yesterday started cloudy with a bit of rain, Gerhart said it added to the allure of the outside element.
“You know what, (bad weather) is part of outside events but everyone is here and everyone is enjoying themselves,” he said, adding even though hockey is known for rough stuff, their event had a no-tolerance policy and when it came to fighting there was an immediate suspension.
More than 1,000 people, aged four to 47, and 170 teams came out for the two-day tournament.
