In 1952, on the frozen Imjin River in Korea, the Royal 22eme Regiment (R22eR) and the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI) got together and played hockey, thus introducing the sport to Koreans and bringing a part of home to a foreign land.
On Saturday, 5th November, 2016, the tradition of these two teams was re-enacted at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa in a game sponsored by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea and the Canadian Army where the R22eR again battled the PPCLI for hockey supremacy. It was a well contested, albeit short, match with the PPCLI squeaking by for a 1-0 win in front of a enthusiastic crowd of military, families, and dignitaries.
As part of the official party, the Minister for Veterans Affairs, Kent Hehr, and his Excellency, the Ambassador for the Republic of Korea, Daeshik Jo, dropped the puck for the ceremonial face-off prior to the start of the game. The game got off to a late start due to the ice not being available because the prior team was not yet off (I believe the Ottawa Senators were practicing for a game latter that night) and some last minute rearranging of the red carpet on the ice prior to the ceremonial puck drop. That took up valuable time that was subtracted from playing time (blame the Canadian Tire Centre for that) which only left two periods of hockey: one about 10 minutes and one about 8 minutes, each straight time. As was stated earlier, it was a short game, well played and skated, and one goal scored (PPCLI) so that there was a decision as there was no time for overtime.
After the game, everyone met at the Brew Pub on the third level to celebrate/lament the game. His Excellency, Daeshik Jo addressed the gathering as did MGen Juneau, Deputy Commander of the Army, and then a toasts were offered by BGen Dawe and LGen (ret’d) Evraire. The MVPs for the game were Max Heitsma(?) for the PPCLI and the goaltender for the R22eR, J.F. Hort(?)[sorry about the names but they are not clear on the recording of the speeches Feel free to email me a correction if you have it].
To see all the pictures, CLICK HERE
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