Daaaa-dum...... Daaaaa dum....Those famous two notes from Jaws may be echoing in the minds of many as the RBC Cup tournament - and with it, hundreds of visitors - comes closer and closer.Humboldt will be hosting Canada's Junior A hockey championship tournament May 4-13, where five of the best hockey teams in the country will vie to be the only junior A team in Canada to end their year with a win. The Humboldt Broncos is one of those teams. As the host, the Broncos are automatically playing in the tournament. However, the team is still playing hockey, and after two games, were up 2-0 over the Portage Terriers of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) in the ANAVET Cup series. Portage will also definitely be attending the RBC Cup, as will the Soo Thunderbirds. The rest of the teams attending are still being determined. And until it's been decided who is coming, a lot of things have been kind of left in limbo, noted Kevin Dow, chair of the local RBC Cup organizing committee. "We're getting down to the final decisions... the final competitions (to determine) who is coming to the RBC Cup," he said. Knowing that the Portage Terriers will be attending, however, has given the RBC Cup committee a bit of a trial run for hotels and logistics during the ANAVET games, he indicated. "One of our greatest challenges has been where to put everybody," Dow said, referring to putting the teams up in local hotels. But there is room for all the teams in Humboldt, he noted. This has meant there are very few hotel rooms available for out-of-town guests, but the campground will be open early to accommodate campers, Dow said, and there may be other camping opportunities in town as well. Just where in the rink some things will be located are among details that have not been locked down yet, again because the teams attending haven't all been decided. But of the decisions that need to be made, and the details that have yet to be looked after, "there's nothing that's out of control," Dow promised. One of the committee's big concerns leading up to the RBC Cup has been the parking situation outside the arena, which has a tendency to get extremely muddy in the spring."We're very fortunate the snow left early," Dow said."At least the parking lot has firmed up. The city has worked on it to make it a little better."Volunteers will be out there the week of the Cup tournament, directing people where to park, he added. "I think the parking part will work itself out," Dow added. "It's going to be a chaotic period (and) I think... people will understand."They will have to roll with the punches during the tournament if the weather turns bad, Dow said. "We have a lot of contingency plans," he smiled. Ticket sales to the tournament have gone extremely well, he reported. There are only about 250 all-week packages left, not counting the tickets being held back for each participating team."Depending on the number of fans that come (from each team)... I'm certain there are going to be game-day tickets," Dow said. "There will be some freed up. But I'm certain the Broncos games are doing to be difficult to get tickets for."They do plan on broadcasting the games live in the PotashCorp Events Centre in the curling rink, Dow added. With help from Access Communications and Sears in Humboldt, they are going to broadcast the games they can in the event centre, as an overflow area for those who cannot get into the rink. They are also hoping to rebroadcast games from other times in the week, or broadcast NHL games there when no one is playing in the arena, he added. A "Hot Stove" will be held in that event centre after every game as well, featuring coaches and players and possibly special guests, Dow said. The entire week will kick off with opening ceremonies on Friday, May 4 at 7:30 p.m. at the Elgar Petersen Arena. "There's free admission. It's open to everyone," said Jodi Smith, a member of the Humboldt RBC Cup organizing committee. They're planning a pretty big show to open the 10 days of hockey. It will include indoor fireworks and an appearance by Broncos alumni from the 2003 and 2008 RBC Cup winning teams. "They are so excited to come here," Smith said of those alumni players. "A good number will be there."The students from the Grade 6 Intensive French programs from the three Humboldt elementary schools will be singing "O Canada," and there will be a special visit from "Coaches' Corner", Smith said. "It's going to be a really special (ceremony)," Dow noted. "It's something you don't want to miss."The ceremonies are free because they want a huge crowd there to kick off the week's events, Smith explained. There will be a lot of things to do in addition to watching hockey that week. A large number of events are being held in conjunction with the RBC Cup tournament. Most of those will be taking place in the PotashCorp Event Centre in the Uniplex Curling Rink. It's here that the cabarets will be held each Friday and Saturday night. The kick-off cabaret will be held right after the opening ceremonies on May 4, featuring Saskatchewan's own country recording artist Codie Prevost and his band.Three more cabarets will feature bands with strong Humboldt connections. Heirloom Cadillac will be playing on May 5, rock/punk band Spy 66 will play at a cabaret on Wednesday, May 9, and 40 Oz. Philosophy will appear on May 12. On the nights no band is playing in the event centre, area DJs will provide music. Two Humboldt born-and-raised comedians - improv comedy duo Don't Mind Us, will appear after the awards banquet on May 11.The event centre will also host a beer gardens most days starting at 2 p.m.Also going on during the RBC Cup, the Humboldt and District Museum and Gallery will have a display covering the history of hockey in Humboldt area, featuring the stories of those players who have gone on to play in the NHL. A number of local groups will be putting on special barbecues and luncheons in conjunction with the RBC Cup week, and an exhibition floor hockey game featuring the local Special Olympics floor hockey team against a select group of local "celebrities" is also being planned for May 10 at 5:45 p.m. at the new Humboldt Collegiate Institute, attached to the Humboldt Uniplex. Pulling off these 10 days of hockey and other events has meant countless hours of volunteer labour from the committee, Dow noted. "There are lots of things that have to get dealt with.... it's been a tremendous amount of support everyone has given, starting two years ago with the bid (for the RBC Cup)," he said. In some ways, time has flown since Humboldt won the bid, Dow said, and in some ways, it has dragged. But they are ready for this tournament, he said. "We're extremely confident that the.... games will go on without a hitch, and the teams will be hosted in a tremendous way," Dow stated.The weather and other variables have created some uncertainty, he said, but this tournament "is going to be exciting for (Humboldt)... We hope businesses dress up and add colour... try to attract people and keep them in town."
