City backs Gens’ push for Cup
Councillors approve motion supporting team's bid to host 100th edition of Memorial Cup; city has not yet made any financial commitments
In 2015, the Oshawa Generals were successful in their trip to Quebec, hoisting the Memorial Cup. Three years later in 2018, the Gens hope to host the 100th edition of the tournament, and play in it as the host. The city says it will support the team’s bid but has not yet committed to any funds towards the initiative.
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
Keeping a tight grip on the municipal pocket books, Oshawa city council has approved, in principle, its support for the Oshawa Generals’ bid to host the 2018 Memorial Cup. However, it kept any financial commitments out of the picture.
In a motion approved on Aug. 24 in a special meeting at city hall, council notes that they wish to “continue to support the Oshawa Generals and assist where possible with the club’s bid to host the 2018 Memorial Cup”
For that reason, council “supports in principle, without any financial commitments at this time, the Oshawa Generals Hockey club’s bid for the 100th anniversity Memorial Cup in 2018.”
According to a letter from Generals staff attached to the motion, a proposed partnership to host the tournament would see the OHL hockey club take the risk by providing the CHL’s bid guarantee (a monetary guarantee the CHL will receive for hosting the tournament here) while the city would cover the expenses related to hosting the tournament.
These include the installation of temporary seating within the GM Centre to push capacity to approximately 6,500, along with the installation of on-ice projection technology. The city would also be on the hook for transportation and accommodation costs for visiting teams, staffing costs, technical requirements and any permit or road closure costs.
“We really need to know what it’s going to cost,” says Mayor John Henry.
“Our staff are now working to find out the costs for the last year and the year before in Quebec City.”
For Gens owner Rocco Tullio, he’s pleased that council has shown its support for the bid. A letter of intent must be submitted by tomorrow (Sept. 1) for those teams planning to bid on the tournament.
“Obviously we’re excited. We can’t do this without the city as a great partner,” he says.
“It’s a first step. There’s still a lot of heavy lifting left to go but, at least, having council’s endorsement in principle goes a long way for us to be able to submit our bid.”
According to Tullio, the final bid, due to the CHL in November, is going to highlight not just how far the organization has come in recent years, but also what they are now capable of.
“We’ve turned this ship around. Eight years ago, this team was in total disarray. There was feuding, there was lawsuits, we came in and we cleaned up everything. We’ve righted the ship, it’s financially never been better,” he says.
“All those things, to me, demonstrate that we deserve this more than anybody else in the Canadian Hockey League.”
And it’s not just the administation who deserve it, he says – it’s the fans.
“That’s the most important for me, they deserve it more than anything. They are so loyal and so honest and for me, they deserve it.”