By Patrick Burles (Lethbridge News Now)

Lethbridge to bid for 2020 Memorial Cup

Jun 15, 2018 | 7:38 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB. – The Lethbridge Hurricanes are taking steps to host the 2020 Memorial Cup.

In a media release from the hockey club Thursday, June 14, they announced that they intend to bid on the 102nd edition of the tournament.

They will be going up against three other WHL clubs for the opportunity – those being the Kamloops Blazers, Kelowna Rockets, and Victoria Royals.

“We feel that we are at a point in our progression as an organization that this is something that we could do and succeed at,” said Hurricanes Board of Directors President Doug Paisley in the release. “This would be a great opportunity for our community and think that something of this magnitude would benefit our city and our fans.

“We have confidence in our city, facility and our team, and feel we’re in a good position to be competitive,” he added.

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Hurricanes general manager Peter Anholt also spoke to the media following the announcement, explaining that they decided to throw their hat into the ring after attending the 2018 Memorial Cup hosted by Regina last month.

“I think we’re right in the mix,” said Anholt. “I think we’re growing with our franchise, just like every franchise is. And I think that when you look at the other three organizations – they’re strong organizations, they’ve got great history, they’ve got great cities – it’s going to be a hard contest… but I think we’re right there.

“When you look at our hockey club, I think for the most part we’re as good if not better,” he added. “So, if we can just kind of maintain that but keep enhancing our team, both for next year and the year after, I think that’s what we want to do.”

Anholt stated the next step in the process will involve the WHL and CHL visiting Lethbridge to examine the Hurricanes’ facilities, as well as those for the entire city. They will either confirm that everything is in place to host the event or tell the Hurricanes what needs to be upgraded to meet their specifications. They will then go over the team and its depth chart to gauge how competitive they should be. After that will come the bidding process.

When it comes to bringing the tournament to Lethbridge, Anholt also went over the philosophy they intend to use.

“We’re not mortgaging our future, we’re not going to run this team into the ground financially, we’re not going to do any of those kinds of things. This is a community effort, this isn’t just the Lethbridge Hurricanes. I think it’s very, very important to point out that it’s not just about our hockey club, it’s about our community and it will be one of the largest events that Lethbridge will ever hold.”

The Hurricanes – who have never hosted the Memorial Cup – have appeared in the event once in their history, falling to the host Hull Olympiques in the championship game in 1997, while the Lethbridge Broncos also made an appearance in the tournament in 1983 in Portland.