The 49th Annual Classic Committee would like to introduce you to some of the components of the edition of Dieppe’s High School Hockey Classic to be held Thursday November 21st to Sunday November 24th 2024.
The tournament is held at the Dieppe UNIplex and the Arthur-J.-LeBlanc Complex. Dieppe and the nearby municipalities have a population of 158,000 and is situated at the Hub of the Canadian Maritimes. The local population is split on a 60 / 40 basis between English and French making the trip here and the tournament itself a cultural experience for many. Dieppe City Council, together with our other sponsors is to be congratulated for their leadership. Each year, they encourage a more refined and expansive effort resulting in a well-organized and highly competitive tournament.
Our tournament originally started out in the mid 1970’s as an all New Brunswick affair. Later, it expanded to include the best teams from Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. During the ensuing years, the tournament continued to draw teams from further away and included representatives from Manitoba, Newfounland and Labrador, Ontario and Quebec competing against the Maritime teams. Since 1990 when the Classic became a sixteen team international event, we have hosted teams from Czechoslovakia, Slovakia, Sweden, the United States, Switzerland, Hungary, England and 7 of the 10 Canadian Provinces. In the 2001 edition of the tournament, a 6-team women’s division was added. In 2003, it was expanded to 16 female teams. The 49th edition of the tournament will see 32 teams participating. We are inviting AAA & AA high school teams as classified by New Brunswick Department of Education. We expect to have two divisions, Division I and Division II, in both male and female.
Next season’s tournament promises to be every bit as exciting and successful, with several teams already having expressed interest. If you are interested in applying for a spot in the 49th edition, please let us know as soon as possible. The limited spots that are available for teams from outside the province of New Brunswick are already beginning to fill for next year’s Tournament.
Keep reading to see exactly what we offer…
WHAT WE OFFER…
Accommodations:
For all visiting teams we have reserved accommodation at our host hotels (Coastal Inn is our major corporate sponsor and we have a few other selected hotels.). You contact the tournament chairman as soon as possible for the number of rooms that you require for your team (players and coaches). There are many events going on during this November weekend such as the Christmas Parade and the Christmas Craft Show. The hotels are generally situated near Champlain Place Shopping Mall, the biggest shopping centre east of Montreal and hence offer easy access to stores, cinemas and restaurants to both coaches and players.
SPECIAL NOTE: The hotels that we have selected are the best in Dieppe and the local area. We want to make this an enjoyable experience.
Meals:
For all participating teams, there is an AWARDS BANQUET on Saturday afternoon at the Mathieu-Martin School, situated at 511 Champlain Street in Dieppe.
Transportation:
For teams flying to Dieppe, we will help you get the best prices for your local transportation.
Activities:
Your stay in Dieppe will be filled with activities associated with the Tournament. Thursday night is Opening Ceremonies. Our DNA SWAG SKILLS COMPETITION is on Thursday. The AWARDS BANQUET will be Saturday afternoon where there will be food for all the players and four coaches per team.
Other activities such as visits to schools or nearby universities, sightseeing or practice time (at the team’s expense) etc., can also be arranged upon request.
Games:
Most games are played at the Dieppe UNIplex and the Arthur-J.-LeBlanc Complex. Each team is guaranteed 3 games in the round robin portion of the tournament. Each tournament game consists of three (3) periods of 16 minutes of stop time. Prior to the start of the game, you will have a five (5) minutes warm-up on fresh ice. After the 2nd period and at the end of the game, the ice will be cleaned. The Tournament Championship Finals are played Sunday afternoon at the Dieppe UNIplex. Expect good competition and disciplined hockey.
Souvenirs/Awards:
Tournament awards include trophies, plaques, banners, $500.00 bursaries to deserving student athletes, medals, hockey equipment and more, to MVP’s, All-stars, and Tournament Champions etc. Each player on the winning teams will receive a Classic Hoody.
WHAT WE ASK…
Registration Fee:
There is a $1200 for female and $1300 for male (higher officials cost) registration fee/deposit for all teams, payable when your team’s participation in the Tournament is accepted. Of this fee/deposit, $200 will be refunded after the Tournament if you followed all the mandatory requirements: play all scheduled games (preliminary and playoffs), participate in all events in the DNA Swag Skills Competition, for outside teams to stay at our selected hotels, full participation at our Awards Banquet. For teams flying to Dieppe, the tournament committee will reserve your local transportation requirements (we have outstanding partners who will provide you the best pricing). No registration fee refunds are given. If games are cancelled due to bad weather, every attempt will be made to reschedule. Games will be shortened if necessary to complete tournament by Sunday.
General:
Because a Tournament of this size and scope requires a significant number of both local and national companies and businesses as sponsors, we require that you book all hotel rooms, and car rentals through us. We strongly recommend that all visiting teams stay at one of our host hotels. If you do not stay at our host hotels (Coastal Inn or from our selected list of hotels) the registration fee is $1400 for female and $1500 for male (higher officials cost) with $200 as a deposit. We also ask when possible during your stay in Dieppe, that you schedule as many of the team’s meals as possible at restaurants that sponsor the Tournament.
Arrival/Departure:
Eastern Conference should be ready to play by 4:00pm on Thursday. Teams outside of the Eastern Conference should be in Dieppe and ready to play by 7:00am on Friday. If necessary, teams residing close to Dieppe might be required to play Thursday evening. Championship games might only finish by 7pm on Sunday, so plan accordingly.
Mandatory: To play in all of your scheduled games (preliminary and playoffs).
Information:
We require a good deal of information concerning your team. Various forms of this information are provided to, or required by the media, hockey scouts, hotels, and are necessary for the Tournament Website. Acceptance is confirmed only when we have received your Application Form, cheque or email transfer, team roster (jersey number, full name, position, year of birth and members of the coaching staff), UNSUNG HERO, and team photo (you can do it after an exhibition game or practice). If you do not comply with all the requirements, we will go to the next team on the waiting list. We are only accepting 32 teams this year. If you can appreciate, we are under very strict time constraints with having the tournament in November. Scholarship candidates and UNSUNG HERO must be submitted no later than November 1st.