As the 2012 Budweiser CARHA World Cup heads into playoff rounds in numerous divisions on Thursday, the Budweiser Open Division remains one of the hottest draws of the tournament thus far.
A pair of local teams took to the ice at the Essar Centre on Wednesday night as the Soo Greyhounds Free Agents took on Mr. Transmission in front of another packed crowd.
Mr. Transmission sealed a spot in the championship with a 5-0 win over the Greyhounds Free Agents.
With Russian-based Torpedo having already lost a pair of games heading into their final round robin game on Thursday morning, the winner of Wednesday night’s game would earn a spot in the final.
The win by Mr. Transmission also cements a spot in the final for the other Russian-based team in the division, AK Bars 35, who have a win over the Greyhounds Free Agents and a tie with Mr. Transmission, making the championship on Friday night all the more important for bragging rights as well as the tournament title.
Prior to suiting up in Friday’s final though, AK Bars still has one round robin game remaining, set for Thursday morning.
That’s when they will take to the ice in an all-Russian matchup with Torpedo at the John Rhodes Community Centre on rink two at 10:45.
In a similar fashion, round robin action wraps up in most other divisions on Thursday.
Playoff action also kicks off on Thursday in most divisions as action on Friday and Saturday is reserved for semi-final and final games before the closing ceremonies on Sunday.
The closing dinner and gala is being used as an opportunity to bring the players together one final time, honour the tournament winners and finalists.
The gala will also feature live entertainment for the players, volunteers and everyone involved in the tournament to share the moment one final time before most depart, in many cases, on Monday morning.
For a full schedule of games remaining in the tournament along with their respective venues as well as rosters and other tournament information, check thecup2012.ca.