Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Flyers en route to Whistler

The 2007 Philadelphia Flyers could easily be one of the most Canadian teams in the NHL this season. Of the 23 players on the roster so far this season, 16 hail from Canada.

The 2007 Philadelphia Flyers could easily be one of the most Canadian teams in the NHL this season. Of the 23 players on the roster so far this season, 16 hail from Canada.

Given those numbers it’s not surprising that the team managers have opted to host a couple of practices and team bonding session for two days in Whistler next month before facing the Vancouver Canucks on Oct. 10.

This is not the first time that Meadow Park Arena has seen NHL talent. The Vancouver Canucks have hosted several training camps in Whistler in the past, and the arena was used by Team Canada to warm up for the Nagano Winter Games. Two winters ago the arena held a tryout camp for the national junior team in Whistler, and many of those players have made their NHL starts in recent years. The Dallas Stars also held a couple of practice sessions at Meadow Park several years ago during the NHL season.

The Flyers have plans to open their practices and scrimmages to the public, and for no charge, on Oct. 8 and 9. They have the ice booked for two three-hour sessions, and the best viewing time will be between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. Drop-in hockey has been cancelled for those two days.

According to arena recreation programmer Ollie Kearnes, the Flyers contacted the arena back in July to arrange the practices. The Whistler stay falls in between a game in Calgary on Saturday, Oct. 6 and a game in Vancouver Wednesday, Oct. 10.

“We always do our best to accommodate when you get a group like this,” Kearnes said.