BDO KIMMT Midget Elite Hockey Tournament Announcement 

The KIMMT Organizing Committee was recently informed of changes made to the 2018 league schedules for major midget hockey associations in Western Canada, including the CSSHL and similar leagues in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.   These changes have resulted in scheduling conflicts meaning these teams no longer have an opportunity to participate in the KIMMT tournament. 

The KIMMT tournament committee has prided itself on providing one of the best and most competitive midget hockey tournaments available in Western Canada, in the truest of hockey forms; a forum for the meaningful development of young men as they endeavor to aspire to become elite hockey players, on ice officials or coaches.   The KIMMT tournament has offered a competitive tournament format, one that has attracted the attention of elite midget teams from not only Western Canada but from across Canada Eastern Europe and in the Western USA as well, as a forum to judge their aspiring players in meaningful games against their peers.  The KIMMT tournament has been recognized for its notable differentiators including: icing four officials, a minimum five game format, full stop-time, and live streaming of games.   

Due to the scheduling changes in Elite midget hockey, KIMMT is unable to field an elite tournament 2018 that meets the level of competition that our participants have come to expect.   As such, and after much deliberation, we regret to announce that the KIMMT tournament must take a hiatus for the coming 39th tournament, originally scheduled for January 2018, while we contemplate our options for future tournament dates in 2019. 

As we take time to reflect on the first 38 years of KIMMT, we recognize that the tournament has impacted the careers of many of our participating players, coaches and on-ice officials, some of which have gone on to advance to higher levels of play, including at the professional level.  Notable participants include: 

 Players: Brett Hull, Cliff Ronning, Russ Courtnall, Kent Manderville, Paul Kariya, Jeff Friesen, Robert Dirk, Jarome Iginla, Willie Mitchel, Ryan Bayda, Joe Colburn, Cory Conacher, Martin Jones, Justin Schultz, Tyson Barrie, Matt Dumba, Curtis Lazar, Tyler Benson   

 Officials: Steve Papp, Kevin Bennett, Ward Pateman, Kevin Crowell, Dave McMahon 

Numerous others have gone on to earn scholarships at universities and colleges.  We are pleased to have awarded annual bursaries to support players and on-ice officials in their pursuit of higher education! 

The success of this tournament, and the teams that it draws, has annually attracted dozens of hockey scouts (up to 50 plus total in 2017) working for various leagues including the WHL, AJHL, BCJHL, KIJHL, NCAA.   They have benefited from having a single tournament on their calendars from which to assess potential future picks, or the development of their drafted assets.  KIMMT provides a forum for elite midget players to showcase their talents, in the presence of top rated professional scouts, and the resulting opportunity to be recognized and subsequently awarded with future educational and/or professional playing opportunities.   

We are hopeful that you, as a participant in the KIMMT, have recognized the value that this tournament has afforded you as players, coaches, scouts, officials and our local community.   If so, the KIMMT Tournament Committee seeks your candid feedback as we contemplate the future direction of the tournament. 

We look forward to hearing from you!    

KIMMT Tournament Committee

Please e-mail bannok@shaw.ca 

or Write to: PO Box 2829 Kelowna, B.C. V1X 8B6 Canada.