Larry Creighton misses a penalty shot in the last seconds of a game during the George Taylor Wine Capital Hockey Tournament at the Oliver Arena last week.
Photo by Trevor Nichols
Seventy old-timers took to the ice in Oliver last weekend for the annual George Taylor Wine Capital Hockey Tournament.
The old-timers tournament, named in honour of the man many credit for making old-timers hockey in Oliver possible, saw six teams, split into two divisions based on age, battle it out over three days.
Organizer Kyle Fossett from Oliver Parks and Recreation said attendance was up from last year’s 58 players, with participants coming from as far away as Alberta and Minnesota.
On March 18 Teams 5 and 6 from the Grant Wheeler Division squared off. The players were all 67 and older, and many were in their 80s. As they skated circles around the rink’s perimeter during warm-ups, a few wobbled wrist shots and the goaltenders, while others stretched.
In the stands, Mo Johnson, Bill Moore and George Odovichuc were in good spirits. The “rivals” from Team 4 came up from Alberta for the tournament, and they kept up a near-constant ribbing of their friends on the ice.
“Don’t hurt yourself Larry,” Moore called out with a cackle, eliciting a sarcastic smirk from Larry Creighton as he skated by.
Creighton and his teammates on Team 6 were clad in orange jerseys bearing the moniker Deadeye2. Moore explained that the name comes from the fact that one of their players only has one eye.
“He’s still a pretty good hockey player considering he’s only got one eye, though,” he said.
Odovichuc explained how the friends travel to old-timers tournaments across BC and Alberta. It’s a good way to keep in decent shape, he said, and it’s also a lot of fun to hang out with all the other old-timers.
“We’re here to eat and drink—and not necessarily in that order,” he said with a laugh.
“That’s right, some serious BS,” Moore chimed in.
The game began. It was a fairly slow-paced contest, and every time a player hit the ice a ripple of mocking concern pulsed through the stands.
“Whoh-ooh-ooh,” Moore laughed as his pal Bob Bonham took a spill.
“Hey number 17, can I get your autograph?” he called.
Early in the third period Team 5 broke out in a lead, and as Bernie Thomas scored his third goal someone stood up and whipped his hat onto the ice. The crowd laughed.
“Hey Bob, give me my hat back,” he yelled, seconds later.
After the game—ultimately won by Team 5—the players lingered in their dressing rooms downing Budweisers.
Mike Ratusniak from Chilliwack, the 86-year-old member of Team Deadeye, is the oldest player at this year’s tournament. He sat in the dressing room, still half in his gear, sipping a beer.
He said that he always makes sure to stash a beer in his bag, because they only give them one at the end of the game. His contract, he joked, is that he gets two cold beers if he plays well, and two warm beers if he plays poorly.
He was nursing a bum leg (unknown to his teammates) which was slowing him down a bit, but he said he just takes it easy, and only skates as long as he wants before heading off the ice.
Ratusniak said for him, the tournament is more about the off-ice shenanigans than it is about the hockey.
“They treat us perfectly here. I think it’s like a family reunion, and some places you go, you don’t get that.”
By Trevor Nichols
