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Labatt Blue Pond Hockey Tournament

On a picture perfect day in February 2008, Labatt USA, which recently moved its headquarters to Buffalo, hosted the first-ever Labatt Blue Pond Hockey Tournament on Lake Erie. The tournament returns for its second year, again played on Lake Erie at the Erie Basin Marina, on Saturday, February 7, 2009, from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The tournament will feature eight brackets with eight teams in each, representing novice, intermediate and advanced players. Teams will be comprised of four to six players, 21 years of age and older, who play a four-on-four format, absent a goalie. Nets are six inches high and six feet wide like the goals used in USA Pond Hockey. Teams will compete in a round robin format in one of eight divisions. The winner of each bracket will go on to play a championship game.

The goal of the tournament is to provide a competitive, entertaining and nostalgic Real Hockey experience for local adult hockey players. Labatt USA has been working with the City of Buffalo and Erie County to expand this event and make it a regional draw. The event is scheduled to be held on eight rinks, spanning nearly 136,000 square feet on a frozen Lake Erie. In addition to the tournament getting larger, Labatt Blue also will add music, a skills competition, food and apparel vendors and a short list of local sponsors.

Check out this video to see highlights from the 2008 tournament and see Buffalo at its finest.

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