The City of Victoria has agreed to provide $100,000 to support the Victoria organizing committee that hopes to lure Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada to the Island on Jan. 20.
Council voted unanimously to provide the cash, and sweetened the pot by increasing its in-kind contribution to $100,000. The Victoria Hockey Legacy Society, which is bidding for the event, had only requested $60,000 in in-kind support.
“This is an opportunity for a nationally televised and observed sporting event that would take place in a unique circumstance down on Ship Point,” said Mayor Marianne Alto, noting it’s a rare opportunity for national exposure that also provides a unique experience for residents.
“I think you could argue that there’s a lot of tourism benefit, a lot of residential, local activity and experiential benefit, and certainly a lot of opportunity for us to be seen as something that is unusual for Victoria — a hockey capital,” Alto said.
Coun. Chris Coleman noted the broadcast typically draws 10 million viewers on one day in January.
“Our contribution would never be able to buy that sort of recognition,” he said, adding the event will highlight mental health, with a profile of the Archie Courtnall Centre, and there is a large First Nations component.
Coun. Matt Dell suggested increasing the in-kind component, which would include things like parking, stages, staffing and logistics support, to show the city’s support. “This would be in the spirit of just being flexible and offering that we are here to support the event in any way possible,” he said.
The 14-hour national show, broadcast annually on Sportsnet, would feature all seven Canadian NHL teams in action, with events at Ship Point that could include concerts and kids’ games on a synthetic ice surface.
The budget to host the event is $850,000, with Destination Greater Victoria and the province contributing $100,000 each and corporate sponsors covering the rest.
The broadcast would include segments on Island hockey history and live feeds from a Victoria Royals Western Hockey League game that day at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.
This year’s Hockey Day in Canada took place in Owen Sound, Ont., and in 2022, it was in Scarborough, Ont. In January of 2020, it was in Yellowknife.
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