The Gaels Men’s Hockey team looks to get off to a hot start this pre-season at the Lou Jeffries Arena in Gananoque this Saturday, Sept. 9 against the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) Paladins.
The decision to host the pre-season opener in Gananoque stems from the obligation to honour Lou Jefferies, a lifelong minor hockey devotee. Jeffries dedicated over half his life to developing minor hockey in Gananoque, going so far as to bring Gananoque its very own Junior B team, the Gananoque Islanders.
Over his 50 years serving the community, Jeffries held the positions of coach, general manager, Gananoque Minor Hockey Association (GMHA) league executive and Junior B Gananoque Islanders president. During these years, he had a positive influence on Queen’s Men’s Hockey Head Coach Brett Gibson.
Jeffries’ impact on Gibson was so profound that the Gaels travel to the Lou Jeffries Arena annually for their exhibition game, which pays homage to Lou Jeffries and raises money for scholarships in the Gananoque hockey community.
The sentiment of funding a scholarship in Jeffries’ name comes from his desire to help kids develop into student-athletes who can take their talents to the next level in collegiate sports.
The Gaels and Paladins have a 136-year-old rivalry which has never disappointed in providing fans with a fast-paced game. Most recently, the Gaels defeated the Paladins in a close 2-1 battle, which went to overtime. That game decided the victor of the Carr-Harris Cup, introduced to celebrate the oldest rivalry in the history of U SPORTS hockey.
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brett gibson, Lou Jefferies, Men's hockey, RMC
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