Postcards From Quebec: Feb. 22-23

With no more hockey to be played in Quebec, the Colorado Avalanche Pee-Wee team spent Saturday at iSaute, a local indoor trampoline park.
Players enjoyed the 30,000 square foot warehouse full of trampolines from wall to wall, playing dodgeball and basketball on trampoline "courts" and practicing their flips into foam pits. It was the perfect team activity to follow up a tough loss on Thursday night.

The team then headed to Videotron Center to get a full session of pin trading in and watch some playoff games. During the final rounds of the tournament, it is not unusual for more than 3,000 fans to be in attendance.

Walking around the arena is truly a special scene with little brothers and sisters playing knee hockey in every corner of the concourse that they can fit two pairs of sneakers as nets into with pin exchanges taking place left and right and thousands of hockey fans cheering on pee-wee hockey. In terms of youth hockey, there is truly nothing like the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey tournament.
Players spent their final night with billet families on Saturday night and met back up at Videotron Center on Sunday to watch the championship game of the Jr. Avs division (AA). The Austrian Selects defeated the Rive-Nord Titans 4-3 in overtime. Following the game, the team shared one final meal with their billet families before saying their goodbyes.

The Jr. Avalanche will travel to Montreal via a team bus on Sunday evening and fly back to Denver on Monday, concluding an incredible two-week trip in Quebec City. The final postcard for trip was written by head coach John McKibbon.
Coach Kibby
Dear Avs Fans,
The 2020 Jr. Avalanche just said goodbye to Quebec City, the Videotron Center and their Billet families. It was very special to have everyone together one last time, reminiscing about all the adventures and memories forged during our time in Quebec. It is pure joy to watch a group of Pee-Wee hockey players from Colorado share a meal with French-Canadian families that made our kids part of their families for the last 12 days. A stranger observing today would assume they have been friends for years. Our players now have special memories they will hold for the rest of their lives. I could not be prouder of our players for adapting to the French culture, high-level hockey and an incredibly busy schedule we executed during our visit.
It seems like we said Bonjour only a few days ago, yet now we have to say Au Revoir to the 61st annual Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. To that end, I would like to say a heartfelt Merci to the Colorado Avalanche organization for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The competitive hockey was secondary to the priceless experiences provided to our team on this incredible trip. The tradition you have established over the years has changed hundreds of players and players families lives for the better.
Good Luck to the 2021 Jr. Avalanche...Coach Kibby
View: 2020 Postcards from Quebec Photo Gallery