Get them while they’re young appears to the philosophy behind the Thunder Bay North Stars latest ticket drive.
The Superior International Junior Hockey League’s all-time winning team is set to host the provincial championship Dudley Hewitt Cup next spring, and looking to the city’s youth to help build momentum in the stands.
On Wednesday players Tyler Osborne, Quinn Rempel, Brennen Dubchak and Travis Tilley were at St. Thomas Aquinas School, handing out tickets to next Friday’s contest, when the Stars will host the second-year Duluth Clydesdales at Fort William Gardens.
It’s all about building a fan base, said Osborne, a stay-at-home defenceman from St. Louis who spent the 2008-09 season with the Guelph Storm of the Ontario Hockey League, winding up with the Stars for his final year of junior in 2011-12.
“We’re just trying to get the word around,” Osborne said. “We’re hosting the Dudley Hewitt Cup this year and we’re just trying to get as many people as possible to come. Hockey’s a fun sport and everyone should get involved,” Osborne said.
“We just thought we’d come around the school today and have fun with it, getting these tickets out.”
The Stars, in their 11th SIJHL season, have enjoyed a loyal, but relatively small, fan base, since entering the league in 2001.
Crowds hover between 250 and 500 fans a night at the Gardens, with attendance increasing as the postseason nears.
“We always want more. We always get a decent amount, but we want the stands full whenever the Dudley comes around,” said Osborne, who has a goal and three assists in 11 appearances with the Stars since being acquired from the Soo Eagles earlier this season.
Rob Monty, co-chairman of the Dudley Hewitt Cup, said anything to draw attention to the tournament, which has been dedicated to late local hockey legend Gary Cook, a tireless fighter for amateur hockey in Thunder Bay for most of his life.
“We’re bringing that back,” Monty said. “We’re trying to get out to the public and point out the fact that it’s a great game, that junior hockey is great and people are missing out on it. A lot of our players have moved on to play for Lakehead, and there’s a couple of players playing NHL hockey, Robert Bortuzzo and Carter Hutton, that have moved on from the North Stars.
“We just want people to come see the game and see what they’re missing.”
