California hockey team's lost luggage arrives in time for first game in Ottawa
The return of a holiday hockey tradition in the city of Ottawa got off to a shorthanded start for some teams.
The Bell Capital Cup is underway at arenas across Ottawa for the first time in three years, but the airline baggage disaster and travel delays across the country meant some teams arrived without their equipment.
One team from Orange County in California arrived without their luggage after it got caught in the baggage mayhem at Toronto's Pearson Airport.
"We had 40 people and about 70 pieces of luggage were still missing,” said Kathryn Fuji-Hara, whose son was playing on the team.
As the team scrambled to get ready to play their first game, support came pouring in from the community.
“We had people at the rinks, people asking to help out and not one person said no. Everybody was just like, 'How can I help?'” said Mark Slubman, the Bell Capital Cup general manager.
"They literally brought a truck load of old gear they had and they just let us all pick what size fit. Even Play It Again Sports gave us a huge discount, which helped us out,” said Carlos Marshall, the Orange County hockey club coach.
The team borrowed gear and purchased some as well, but it still wasn’t the same.
“It was super hard to shoot and everyone was falling over,” said Fuji-Hara.
At the eleventh hour, the bags arrived early Thursday before the team took the ice for their first game of the tournament.
“They were able to track some of our air tags and locate and pinpoint some of our luggage,” said Fuji-Hara. “We woke up this morning to a lobby full of hockey gear, stick bags, and luggage. It was wonderful, a Christmas miracle.”
The gear appearing just in time.
“I feel like everyone was excited that their gear was there because yesterday we were doing our practice and everyone was not used to that gear and everyone was all stressed out and then when we found out that our gear was there, everyone was so relieved," player Colin Cantwell said.
The team ended up winning their first game and is hoping the next step might be the championship game, scheduled for this weekend at Canadian Tire Centre.
With files from CTV News Ottawa's Jackie Perez and Josh Pringle
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
Feds hope to table foreign interference legislation next week: LeBlanc
Democratic Institutions Minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to table legislation this week to help the federal government address foreign interference, but he wouldn't say whether the proposal will include a foreign agent registry.
Auston Matthews skates ahead of Game 7, status unclear with season on the line
Auston Matthews was back on the ice with his teammates Saturday.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.