Setting the stage for the OC Classic

So I am at 36,000 feet flying cross country on Virgin America for our first ever event in California taking place at The Rinks Huntington Beach this coming weekend. I am due to arrive into LAX around 8:05pm, and it couldn’t come soon enough. I will be meeting up with 2 key cogs of our company, National Tournament Directors John Gelement and George Brown, and the 3 of us will head down to HB. Ron B. will be flying directly into Irvine in the morning. To say that I am excited for this weekend would be a gross understatement. I believe that it is long overdue, and I cannot wait to get things set up and for the action to get underway. I want to thank Shayne Arsenault for giving us this opportunity, and look forward to working closely with Shayne, Ron, and Dan moving forward. We have a full slate of games, and a ton of surprises in store for the weekend! Alkali, Tour, Labeda, and our newest sponsor Rink Rat will be in the house so make sure you spend some time visiting with them, and checking out all of the new products they will have on display.

It has been a great last couple weeks, starting with our attendance at Give Blood Play Hockey. One of the first things I did when we confirmed our date for the OC Classic was to reach out to the folks at GBPH to see if we could get involved as a sponsor. I had been following that event for years, heard so many positive things about it, and figured this would be a great opportunity for us to get involved with an event that benefits such a wonderful cause. I have to say that I was thoroughly impressed with all the people who worked so incredibly hard to put on the event. Whether it was tournament staff, volunteers, or rink personnel, it was FIRST CLASS in every way, and I had a blast hanging out in Vendor Village, talking to many people I already know, and to many people I was meeting for the first time. We will continue to support that event, and look forward to being part of it again in 2015!

In many of my conversations with people from this market, they all seemed genuinely excited in finally getting the opportunity to compete in a TORHS 2Hot4Ice event, which is great to hear. I think it goes without saying that the feeling is mutual. With this event being in November, we had our battles with ice schedules, but I would like to express my gratitude for the teams competing who are doing everything they can to take part in this event. In addition, I would be remised not to mention Dave Inouye and Jose Mondragon, who have brought their entire programs down from Northern California. We really appreciate their commitment to this event!

Since this is our first visit out here, I think it would help to go over some basics about our events so that you are familiar when you walk in the door. We run (2) 15-minute running time periods. Stop time for the last 2 minutes in a 1-goal game. Any round robin game that ends in a tie will go directly to a 3-man shootout to decide the winner, with the winning team receiving 2 points and the losing team receiving 1 point. In a playoff or championship game, we will run a 5-minute sudden death period where teams will play 3 on 3. If the score remains tied, we will run a 5-minute sudden death period where the teams will play 2 on 2. If the score is still remained tied, we will run a 4-man shootout. Our standings tiebreakers are head-to-head, followed by goal differential, followed by goals against.  

Our main goal in running a successful event is to ensure that each and every team competing this weekend has an enjoyable experience. We know that not every team will have the opportunity to walk away with hardware, and that is why we try to create an atmosphere on and off the rink that whether you win or lose, you walk out having enjoyed your time with us. That is our #1 goal! We look forward to meeting those of you we have not yet met. Please don’t be shy, please come up and introduce yourselves. If you have not already, please ask all of your players, parents, and coaches to like us on Facebook(@torhs2hot4ice) and Instagram(@torhs2h4i). We will be constantly updating both pages throughout the event.

That’s it for now…. I have to respond to some emails, and might have some time to catch a flick before I land.

I would personally like to wish all teams competing this weekend best of luck. If you are travelling, please travel safely. Looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow.

Cheers!