Port Alberni will be hosting a women’s hockey tournament this weekend.
Tournament organizer Diane Gorges has been playing women’s hockey for almost two decades, but in that time she’s never played in a hockey tournament in Port Alberni.
“We just haven’t had a tournament here in town,” she explained. “This year, there was ice time available so I jumped at the chance.”
The first annual Alberni Valley Martini Classic will take place from Friday, May 3 to Sunday, May 5 at the Alberni Valley Multiplex. All games will be played in the Weyerhaeuser Arena. There will be one team from Port Alberni playing in the tournament, as well as several other teams from across Vancouver Island.
The response so far, said Gorges, has been an “amazing” one.
“We were quite worried—because we started planning late—that we wouldn’t get enough interest,” said Gorges. “Instead, we filled up immediately. It’s been overwhelming, and so encouraging.”
The Martini Classic is named after Port Alberni’s hockey team, the Martinis.
“Before COVID, we had seven [women’s] hockey teams in Port Alberni,” said Gorges. “After that, they kind of fell apart. We started to form a new team, and thought ‘Martinis’ had a good ring to it.”
The women’s hockey league in Port Alberni has started to build itself back up and has now grown to five teams. But Gorges is hoping for even more interest when the sport starts up again this fall.
“We’re really hoping this tournament will bring light to the fact that we have women’s teams here in town,” said Gorges. “We’re really hoping to grow the league back up.”
The Martinis will opening competition on Friday, facing the Silva Sistas at 3:45 p.m. Games will take place all day Saturday, with a skills competition and finals scheduled for Sunday morning. A full schedule is available on The Alberni Valley Martini Classic Facebook group, and results will be posted there as well. Admission is free for spectators.
“Anybody can show up and see what women’s hockey is all about in Port Alberni,” said Gorges.