Grand Celebrations Marking the Reopening of the Aréna Raymond-Bourque on September 3, 2022

Grand Celebrations Marking the Reopening of the Aréna Raymond-Bourque on September 3, 2022

Saint-Laurent, August 29, 2022 – Saint-Laurent is pleased to announce the grand reopening of the new renovated Aréna Raymond Bourque on Saturday, September 3, 2022. The event will be celebrated at the arena with festivities from 12:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., in the presence of Raymond Bourque himself. The arena was named after this hockey legend in 1990.

Residents will find many activities to enjoy that day, such as shows and demonstrations of hockey, figure skating and ringette as well as a contest and door prizes. The festivities will come to a close with a family show by the creative collective The 7 fingers and skating enthusiasts will even be able to try out the brand new public skating rinks.

Women’s hockey Olympic champions Danièle Sauvageau and Kim St-Pierre, the two ambassadors of this event, will also be on hand, along with Saint-Laurent Council members and Caroline Bourgeois, Vice-Chair of Ville de Montréal’s Executive Committee, responsible for large parks, sports and recreational activities.

Quotes

“What a pleasure it is to be able to celebrate Saint-Laurent’s newly renovated arena, with our clubs and residents, in the presence of Raymond Bourque, the outstanding champion who this building was named after. Today, we are all celebrating a new modern, user-friendly and environmentally-friendly place for residents who love ice sports. We are proud to encourage them, in this way, to play sports, which are so essential to a healthy lifestyle. We are also continuing our tradition of architectural innovation, as this new facility will help achieve 40% energy savings, while aiming for LEED Silver certification. These accomplishments would not have been possible without the invaluable financial assistance of all our partners to whom I wish to offer my most heartfelt thanks.”

Alan DeSousa, maire de Saint-Laurent

“What a pleasure it is to celebrate today the long-awaited reopening of Aréna Raymond-Bourque, in the presence of incredible athletes who have dedicated their lives to their passion for ice sports and have given us the opportunity to experience incredible moments, thanks to their achievements. Montréal is an outstanding city for sports and we are committed to providing our residents with quality facilities throughout our territory. It is also a long-term investment in our physical, mental and social well-being and health.”

Caroline Bourgeois, Vice-Chair of Ville de Montréal’s Executive Committee, responsible for large parks, sports and recreational activities

“It’s here, at Notre-Dame des Bois-Francs in Saint-Laurent that it all started for me! When we played here, we were chasing our dream: winning the Stanley Cup! It took me 22 years to achieve this. So I am very happy to pass on this opportunity, once again, to the youngsters who have an incredible chance to benefit from such wonderful conditions in this magnificent renovated arena. I look forward to seeing them on September 3 to celebrate this place together!”

Raymond Bourque, hockey legend

Highlights

The festivities will begin at 12:30 p.m. with a few speeches by the dignitaries in attendance and a ceremonial puck drop by Raymond Bourque and the two ambassadors, Danièle Sauvageau and Kim St-Pierre. Benoît Leduc, Raymond Bourque’s former gym teacher, will also be on hand. Saint-Laurent’s athletics track was named after this phys ed teacher.

The festivities will then continue on with shows and demonstrations by the three Saint-Laurent clubs that use the Aréna Raymond-Bourque:

1:15 p.m. – Skating rink A: a show presented by the Club de patinage artistique (CPA Saint-Laurent)
2 p.m. – Skating rink A: a demonstration by Ringette Saint-Laurent
3 p.m. – Skating rink A: skills competition organized by Hockey Saint-Laurent and an entertaining presentation on the role of an ice resurfacer

At 4 p.m., on Rink A, families will then be delighted to discover the show presented by the creative collective The 7 fingers—a show that will alternate between dancing and wheeling around on ice, a figure skating duo and a balancing act, all emceed by Patrick Léonard, co-founder and co-artistic director of this group.

And lastly, 1 p.m. – 6 p.m., Saint-Laurent sports lovers will have the pleasure of discovering the new public skating rinks on Rink B, with lively music played by a DJ.

A draw for door prizes will be held as well.

About Raymond Bourque

Raymond J. Bourque was born in Montréal. He quickly rose through the ranks of minor hockey and was selected by the Boston Bruins in the 1979 National Hockey League (NHL) draft.

During twenty seasons with the Bruins, including twelve as team captain, he was chosen for the NHL All-Star team 17 times and received the Norris Trophy, awarded to the best defenceman in the NHL, five times. He joined the Colorado Avalanche in March 2000 and went on to win the Stanley Cup in 2001. It took Ray Bourque twenty-two seasons to finally achieve his dream. He retired right after that, ending his fantastic career with this sublime accomplishment.

In addition to his immense influence on the ice, Raymond Bourque has constantly supported causes close to his heart, such as Operation Christmas toy giveaway in Boston, which distributed gifts during the holidays to families in need.

In 2017, he and his family created the Bourque Family Foundation, which supports a variety of charitable initiatives.

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