August 21 ~ 22, 2010
It’s that time again! Get ready for the 2nd Annual George Cloutier Scramble!! Not sure how we are going to top last year’s event, but we are going to give it our best shot...
The original idea behind this tournament was to bring players together from all over the Gulf South, in hopes to achieve several things.
First, to give some of the children who might not otherwise have the chance, the opportunity to play with and against their peers. Many of our hockey-playing children have played with the same team…well, for years. This tournament can change that.
Second, by having the coaches or program directors rank these players by their skill levels, into three categories, we hope to have the teams as evenly matched as possible.
Next, to bring the hockey families together for a weekend of hockey fun, without the “pressure” of “winning” at all cost. Hockey will only survive in the gulf south if we all work together. That requires not only the efforts of the house league program directors, but the parents of our hockey-playing children as well. Taking the time to get to know one another, even if only for a weekend, can go a long way towards cementing the foundation that is necessary to keep the great sport of in-line hockey alive in our region.
The above was the original thought….the basis for the idea of the event. But the tragic loss of one of our own in 2008, has sent this event in a different direction, and brought it to a more meaningful purpose.
For those of you who didn’t know him, George Cloutier was a spirited young man of 12 years. He was a goalie that lived in the Shreveport, Louisiana area. George was a fierce competitor and an exceptional goalie. But on October 8 of 2008 we lost George in an awful freak accident at his home. Those who knew him….those who played with and against him know that his spirit is with us yet today.
George loved the game of hockey and all things related to the sport. The competition. The sportsmanship. The success achieved by him and his teammates when their hard work lead to victories. The relationships formed with players and families over an entire region. He gave back as much if not more than he took from the game….even as a young man.
George hoped…dreamt that the sport he loved so much would be available to him and to other children as long as they would want to play. George’s dream has now become my motivation for this tournament.
The hope now is to offer this tournament as a celebration of George’s young life, not as a memorial. It will be organized and designed, to be a reminder of the way the game should be played…the way life should be cherished….and keeping in mind the fact that before anything else, and no matter what our differences, we are all part of one big extended hockey family.
All…I repeat, ALL of the proceeds after the expenses are covered will be go towards the development of inline hockey across the region as requested by the Cloutier family, in George’s name.
The tournament will be held the weekend of August 21 & 22. Augustl 14 will be the cut off date for signing up to participate.
Attached you will find a registration form. Please make sure all information is filled out completely. Do not worry about the child’s “play level” category. That will be taken care of in house. There is much to do in order to organize this event, so please….sign up as early as possible.
A General Outline Of The Event
* Fee to play would be $50.00 per player.
* All players must have a current AAU membership. No exceptions here.
* Maximum number of players per team will be 8 skaters and a goalie.
* Age groups would depend on actual number of players registered per age group, but the hope would be to have an 8U,10U,12U,14U and 18U division.
* All players must come with a dark AND a white (not yellow) jersey.
* Once the deadline to register is reached, players will be placed on teams according to the rankings provided by their league representative.
* No player will know what team they are on, or who they will be playing with until they check in Friday evening at the rink.
* All teams will play a minimum of four games. Games will be two, fifteen minute running clock periods. Clock will stop only for the start of penalties and on any whistle in the last minute of the game, if the score is within one goal or tied.
* Parents who desire to coach a team are encouraged to do so. However, no parent will be allowed to be the coach of a team that his/her child will be playing on.
* I will work with different sponsors to secure giveaways for the event. Last year the silent auction was a very big success. If you have any item(s) to donate please let me know.
* Medals will be given to all players on the winning and runner-up teams of each age group.
* The event will end early enough Sunday so that those traveling from long distances can get back home at a reasonable time.
Thanks for your time and interest. We hope to make this an enjoyable weekend for all involved.
Keith Lauf
Head Coach
Southeast Louisiana Inline Hockey Club
Cell # 504.400.3179
Registration Form (print, fill out, and return it to us).
Tournament Rules.
