Postcards From Quebec: Feb. 15-16

The Colorado Avalanche Pee-Wee team had a day off from team activities on Saturday, giving them the opportunity to spend quality time with their billet families. Many of the billets hosted the player families that are in town for the tournament.
On Sunday, the team met at the Quebec Winter Carnival, which coincides with the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament each year. In its 66th year, the Carnaval de Québec spans over 10 days with many different attractions including ice sculptures, parades and other winter related activities.

Following the Carnival, the Jr. Avs stuck to the winter theme of the day and headed to a local outdoor rink to play some "shinny", or casual pick-up hockey. Where you typically find a basketball court in every neighborhood in the states, it is the outdoor rinks that hold reign in Quebec City and its surrounding towns.
Some locals that were at the rink even joined in on the fun, playing alongside the Jr. Avs. Players threw their sticks into the middle of the rink, a classic outdoor hockey tradition, and teams were randomly selected.

The Jr. Avalanche looks forward to playing in the second round of the Quebec tournament on Monday night versus the St-Hyacinthe Mousquetaires of Quebec, Canada. On Monday, the tournament begins a single elimination format for competition.
Forward #18 Braeden Reiher
Dear Avs Fans,
This trip to Quebec has been amazing. Yesterday we had a day off with our billet families. We all got to sleep in, and then we went to the restaurant that our billet parents own. After that, we played pond hockey against a bunch of Canadian locals, it's so cool that everyone plays hockey here. Then, we had a huge dinner with our real parents and billet family.
Today, we got to sleep in again and then went to the winter carnival, which was fun and enjoyable. We walked around and saw lots of different ice sculptures. Afterwards, the team had lunch at Subway. Quickly after that, we hopped on the bus and went to an outdoor hockey rink. We got to play shinny the whole time. All in all, staying with a French-Canadian family has been a new experience but a time to remember!
Sincerely,#18