Regina kids visit Stanley Cup at Memorial Cup fan fest

Hundreds of students from several Regina schools took a break from regular classes to get a lesson in hockey history.

On Wednesday, the next generation of hockey fans swarmed around the Stanley Cup to take pictures on its stop at the Memorial Cup Fan Fest.

“It’s really cool that we get to see all the cups and that lots of old players like Wayne Gretzky have held them before,” said Corson Dosenberger after searching out the names of his other favourite players.

Student Jacob Nyiri agreed the thrill of seeing the Stanley Cup in-person, is knowing who hoisted it before.

“I like looking at all the trophies and the history of the NHL, I’ve seen lots of players that have been engraved their names on all the trophies,” Nyiri said.

The fan event also featured glass cases full of hockey memorabilia form the Hockey Hall of Fame and the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame.

Even hockey fans like Kennedy Reynoldson, who follows both the WHL and the NHL, said she learned a few things.

“I’ve learned that hockey has been here for a long time and I get to see a lot of history,” she said.

Standing nearby was Philip Pritchard, the vice-president and curator for the Hockey Hall of Fame, who holds the designation of the official keeper of the Stanley Cup.

He said it was really special to bring the Stanley Cup to the 100th Memorial Cup celebration.

“The Stanley Cup is also 125 years old this year, so to have the two together it’s pretty special because (they’re) probably two of the biggest trophies in sport,” Pritchard said.

“They have the most history, they’ve got the most passion behind them and as you can see by all the kids here — not only the kids, but the teachers too.”

He assured anyone asking that the trophy is the real deal, noting many can’t fathom the Stanley Cup is 125 years old and sitting right in front of them.

“I think people are enamored that it’s grown up with Canada. What started off as a small game in the Ontario-Quebec area has grown to 80 countries plus,” Pritchard said.

He added if the trophy itself could talk, it would have a lot of stories to tell.