A number of ice hockey teams from Taiwan are headed to Hong Kong this week for a tournament, among them a team playing in a children’s division who are hoping to appear in the final on Saturday.
Canadian Cullen Revel is coach of the Taipei All Stars, who were to play their first game in the Squirts division, for players aged 10 and under, early this morning at the Mega Ice Hockey 5’s, which boasts a record breaking 100-plus teams from 14 countries and cities, and has grown into the largest ice hockey event in Asia.
The tournament began on Monday and runs until May 10 with youth and adult divisions at Hong Kong’s largest rink, the Mega Ice in Kowloon.
Photo courtesy of Geoff Le Cren
“We hope to be very competitive in every game,” Cullen said, adding that the team is confident they have the capacity to reach Saturday’s final.
“It is a team sport. We have to be able to attack when it is time to attack and defend at the right time as a team. That is the most important aspect,” said Cullen, 32.
Team manager Geoff le Cren shared the sentiment.
“I have been around [ice] hockey long enough to know not to predict a result. Anyone could win, but we have good players and training, so we should do well,” Le Cren said.
Le Cren is a distributor for Bauer sports equipment and has attended the Mega 5’s event a number of times.
“It’s huge,” he said of the annual event. “Being in my line of work, I have to go.”
Apart from the All Stars, other teams from Taiwan include the national under-10 side, who were due to play their first game yesterday in the same five-team group.
They are to meet two Sunshine Zero Fire Dragon sides and the HK Selects between this morning and Saturday’s final, which is due to start at 9pm.
The Silver Monsters from Taipei are also to play today in the Bantam division, while the Taiwan under-12 side are to play this evening in the Peewee division. They both also have finals scheduled for Saturday.
Results are updated on the tournament Web site at cms.megaice.com.hk:2014/Hockey5/#/schedules.
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