Article Courtesy of Leith Dunick of Thunder Bay's Source: www.tbsource.com
Money and the lack of a large enough venue were at the heart of why Lakehead University was denied the opportunity to host the Canadian Interuniversity Sport men's hockey championship in 2007 and 2008 said a senior CIS official. The Thunder Bay school was informed on Thursday they had lost the events to the University of Moncton.
Marg McGregor, CEO of the CIS, said both bids were extremely competitive, but that the New Brunswick school's financial incentive and ability to provide complete television coverage of the tournament likely tipped the scale in its favour.
"Moncton's financial guarantee to Canadian Interuniversity Sport exceeded the minimum guarantee while Lakehead met the minimum," said McGregor from her Ottawa office Friday morning. "There was a gap between the two. Not tens of thousands or whatever, but Lakehead was at the minimum and Moncton was above the minimum."
In its proposal, which the school made public prior to its presentation in Ottawa on Monday, Lakehead's bid committee promised the national governing body $110,000 a year for the two-year event. Originally the school had promised $150,000.
McGregor said she hoped the team applies to host the University Cup the next time it is up grabs, adding next time around they should know what they are up against, at least in terms of what the CIS is looking for in a championship host. "These days it's a valued property and meeting the minimum (isn't enough), you need to go above and beyond the minimum. That would be my advice," McGregor said when pressed to say what the organization could do better next time around.
LU president Fred Gilbert acknowledged the $40,000 drop was likely the deciding factor, but supported the team's board of directors for its decision. "The problem I think they had, when you put together a business plan, there's a certain amount of risk involved that it was prudent to go in with a lower guarantee. Yeah, at the end of the day, I think that probably made a big difference but hindsight is easy. I think there will be a learning (curve) from this and we'll go forward as I indicated next time armed and hopefully with a better venue," a disappointed Gilbert said.
Ah, yes, Fort William Gardens. Built before Elvis Presley was a household name, the CIS couldn't overcome the 3,500-seat difference in capacity between the Thunder Bay rink and the Moncton Coliseum, which regularly fills its 7,200 seats for Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Despite the fact LU athletic director Tom Warden downplayed concerns about Fort William Gardens' capacity prior to leaving to present the bid last week and McGregor's statement that the caliber of the facilities in both cities was not the issue, McGregor said arena size did play a major role in the outcome of the voting. "Had Lakehead enhanced their facilities, it could (have had) an impact. It could also (have had) an impact (because) a bigger facility has the ability to generate more sales which has the ability to increase your guarantee," the CIS's top boss explained.
Reached in Toronto, Warden said he hoped the venue was no longer an issue should the team take a stab at the 2009 and 2010 hockey championship. "At that point hopefully our community and our city has decided that the construction of a new community multiplex is a good and relevant idea and the two things can merge," said Warden.
According to Thunder Bay Mayor Lynn Peterson, a new rink is not on the horizon, despite the fact Fort William Gardens has about a decade or so of useful life left in it. Peterson said she realizes it is something that will need to be addressed and put in place for future councils' consideration. "It's all going to require community discussion because there's a whole raf