Markham Waxers To Host 2014 TELUS Cup Central Regional Championship
Tuesday, October 22, 2013 - Submitted by Scott Greguol - MidgetAAACanada.com Ontario Media Director
Althought he 2013-2014 Ontario Minor Hockey Associations has yet to begin, the Markham Waxers AAA midgets are jumping for joy. The team achieved a major victory when it was announced their bid to host the 2014 Central Canadian Midget AAA Championships was successful. "We're ecstatic to say the least," an elated Waxers head coach Phil Kestin said. The competition to be held from March 31 to April 6 at Markham Centennial Arena serves as a springboard with the winner advancing to play in the national Telus Cup championship. Kestin said they began to assemble a plan this past April. When the Aug. 30 deadline came up to submit a proposal, the Waxers made their bid official. "I thought we would have the best chance as no other midget team in Canada has tallied more wins than us in the last two years." he said. "And we haven't hosted a championship in a long time. Also, the Ontario Minor Hockey Association and Hockey Canada wanted to put an emphasis on promoting hockey to our ethnic minorities. What a better place than Markham." Other factors that were put into consideration included the number of accommodations for out of town participants and officials, a large enough venue and accessibility. In winning the bid, Kestin was quick to note it was a total team effort. "A lot of people put in a ton of work to put that bid together," he said. That included supporting letters from Mayor Frank Scarpitti and Waxers minor hockey president George Schnarr. The last time Markham hosted an event like this was in 2003 when they had the Ontario Hockey Federation AAA peewee championships. During that year, the Waxers fielded a team with the like of current National Hockey League players Steven Stamkos and Michael DelZotto. The last OMHA team to make it to the National Championships was the 2000 Richmond Hill Stars. "We've had many really good players go through our midget AAA program over the years, I think this year's team will do all those guys proud and put on a great showing come next April." he said. For more on the Waxers and their hosting of the 2014 Central Canadian Midget AAA Championships, go to www.facebook.com/2014OHFs.
