For Halifax Bar, World Juniors Is A Reminder Of ‘Normal’ Crowds
HALIFAX — This year’s World Junior Hockey Championship has brought drama and excitement to hockey fans across Canada. For the city of Halifax, which is hosting the bulk of the tournament, the hockey games come with a much-needed economic boost for small businesses.
It is estimated that the World Juniors will generate millions of dollars in revenue for Halifax and co-host city Moncton.
Restaurants and bars that have often struggled during the three years of Covid-19 have been major beneficiaries of this economic spinoff. People are eager to take in an electric viewing experience for the big games. But with limited tickets available, thousands are flocking to their favourite pubs and watering holes to watch.
Jenna Vienneau is a manager at the Pint Public House in downtown Halifax. She says each game has brought in a crowd of 100-150 people. It reminds her of what the bar scene was like before the pandemic.
“It’s obviously great economically for everybody. But I think it also kind of woke people up out of the Covid (lifestyle). Even when restrictions lifted, we’d still notice that things weren’t the same as they used to be,” observed Vienneau.
“This is the first time in three years that we’ve really seen what we used to be like and the potential to be busy. Hopefully, that sticks with us and kind of shows us that things can go back to normal.”
And it hasn’t just been the Halifax locals filling pubs and bars. Businesses in downtown Halifax are experiencing a kind of second tourism season as die-hard hockey fans have travelled from the United States and Europe to watch the games. Vienneau even met the father and grandfather of one of the Swedish players when they came to the bar.
“We’ve seen them a couple of times. I’ve actually seen more Sweden fans than any other fans (besides Canada), by the way they’re dressed. We’ve had some people just come into town today just for the final games,” she says.
With Halifax being in the national spotlight for two whole weeks, it has also given the city and its business community a chance to showcase East Coast hospitality–and perhaps attract more visitors in the future.
So far, so good on that front. The hockey world applauded local fans on Monday night after Canada’s thrilling game against Slovakia. With Team Canada expected to steamroll the game, the young underdog Slovaks instead pushed the game into overtime–thanks mainly to Adam Gajan’s 53-save performance.
The game ended after superstar Connor Bedard scored the 4-3 overtime winner on an incredible individual effort. But the sellout crowd in Halifax gave Slovakia a roaring standing ovation as the team left the ice. The gesture got noticed on Twitter by the likes of Gord Miller. Other Twitter users complimented the city for showing such class.
Vienneau says visitors all say similar things about Halifax as a host city.
“They love it. We had two guys here today from Ontario. They said it’s a great city. They’ve never been here and they said that it’s beautiful. They’re really enjoying the games.”
The economic spinoffs haven’t solely been felt by the bar owners. Servers and other staff who rely on tips have also benefitted from the happy hockey fans.
“People are just happy to be in the city and watching these games,” notes Vienneau. “And the general mood of everybody is a lot better than normal. People are just really enjoying getting back to normal, so that really reflects on the experience for the servers as well, as they’re serving tables that are just having a really good time.”
But the biggest crowds (and biggest money) are yet to come. The deeper Canada goes into the tournament, the more the excitement builds. And on Wednesday night Canada will play its semifinal against one of its biggest rivals: the USA.
You can bet downtown Halifax will be abuzz. Bars will be busy during the day preparing.
“We’re excited going into tomorrow. We know we can handle it. We’re going to see a lot of interesting people. I think Canada’s going to win so that should be huge for the city.”
Derek Montague is a Huddle reporter in Halifax. Send him your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].