The puck is dropped on the 2024 Telus Cup on Membertou First Nation in Cape Breton.
What many of the teenaged players in the national Under-18 hockey championship might not know is how long it took for the event to happen.
“I know, it’s hard to believe it’s finally here. It’s been a long time coming,” said Paul Carroll, general manager of the Membertou Sport & Wellness Centre and a member of the tournament host committee.
It was nearly five years ago – all the way back in July 2019 – when it was first announced that Membertou would host the Telus Cup.
It was initially intended for 2021, but then came the COVID-19 pandemic.
Membertou’s hosting rights were then put off to 2022, but that spring the tournament was hosted in Alberta instead amid concerns about the Omicron wave in the Maritimes – with the promise that Membertou would get its turn to host in a future year.
That chance has finally come.
“It’s great, …