Halifax Mayor Mike Savage says he wants to see the 2023 World Juniors, hosted jointly in his city as well as in Moncton, N.B., to go ahead in wake of the sweeping resignations at Hockey Canada.
On Tuesday, Hockey Canada announced the resignation of its CEO Scott Smith and its entire board of directors after months of pressure following controversy regarding the organization’s handling of alleged sexual assaults.
Last week, Savage and Moncton Mayor Dawn Arnold released a statement saying they were “deeply concerned about Hockey Canada’s lack of judgement and professionalism” in the wake of the scandal, and that they were looking forward to “meaningful changes within Hockey Canada prior to the World Junior Championship taking place in our cities.”
“We haven’t pulled out (of hosting the tournament),” Savage said in an interview on Tuesday. “We don’t intend to pull out. We wanted to see meaningful change. We’ve seen meaningful change.”
Savage said he wanted to see how the organization would change going forward, “but for now, that change has been made.”
“And I think I think that’s good news for Hockey Canada, for hockey players,” he added. “And I think it’s good news for Halifax and Moncton to host the world juniors this winter.”
During a special Halifax regional council meeting on Tuesday evening, councillors expressed support for the tournament taking place, but said it also served as an opportunity to highlight the changes needed.
“Hockey Canada has done a disservice, not only to the athletes they represent but to all Canadians for the generations of men they have coddled from responsibility,” said Coun. Lisa Blackburn, District 14.
“As we discuss the World Juniors we also have to remember that our concerns are with Hockey Canada and not the IIHF or the numerous businesses that will benefit from holding this event.”
She said council should take a stronger stance on what Hockey Canada has “chosen to do and not do,” and suggested a code of conduct for events.
“I don’t want anybody to misinterpret this discussion today as (we’re) being ok with how Hockey Canada has performed. I know it was a major announcement made today — the whole board is gone, the (CEO) is gone — but I think it’s going to take a lot more than that to regain the trust of Canadians and hockey fans from coast to coast.”
Denise Schofield, Deputy Chief Administrative Officer – Citizen Services, told councillors during the meeting that ticket sales have been strong, and the IIHF is fully committed to having the tournament in Canada “because of the short timeline.”
The 2023 World Juniors were originally supposed to be hosted by Novosibirsk and Omsk in Russia, but the country lost its hosting rights in February due to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Schofield said the Nova Scotia and New Brunswick governments, as well as the municipal governments of Halifax and Moncton, are discussing how to ensure the event is safe and “can be seen as a step in the healing process.”
Deputy Mayor Pam Lovelace echoed the sentiment that holding the tournament was important, as was sharing a message of respect, diversity and safety.
“I think punishing young people and their families is not the right message that we want to send,” Lovelace said.
“At the same time what is the message? What is the message we want to send?”
Hockey associations respond
Mayor Arnold was unavailable for comment, but a spokesperson for the City of Moncton told Global News on Tuesday that there would be discussions between the mayors and the premiers of both their provinces over the coming days.
Both Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston and New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs previously said they would consider cutting ties with the tournament if Hockey Canada didn’t take stronger action.
On Tuesday afternoon, they released a joint statement saying: “The leadership change at Hockey Canada is an important step toward accountability and meaningful change. There are still investigations underway, and clearly there is more to be done, but we are pleased to see these changes and hope it signals they will address the ongoing issues within the organization.”
Hockey New Brunswick said in a statement that the resignations represented “a positive move towards addressing the challenges the organization faces.”
Hockey Nova Scotia released a statement saying it “supports the changes announced today by the Hockey Canada Board of Directors. We believe this is an important first step toward meaningful change.”
It also said it would be making time for discussions on this topic during its upcoming Hockey Nova Scotia Fall Road Show meetings planned across the province.
A new board of directors for Hockey Canada will be elected on Dec. 17, just nine days before the world juniors are set to start on Dec. 26.
Comments