Frayed U.S.-Canada relations puts suburban youth hockey tournament on ice

Plans for an international youth hockey tournament in the Northwest suburbs matching players from the United States against their Canadian counterparts have been put on hold, amid strained international relations between the two countries.

Officials in Rolling Meadows and Winnipeg, Manitoba — where the Rolling Meadows mayor and city manager took an economic development trip in December 2023 — cited U.S. actions on the federal level and reductions of Canadians visiting the U.S. for the pause.

Rolling Meadows City Manager Rob Sabo even referenced the booing of national anthems at sporting events involving the two countries.

“For now, you know, the topic has been, ‘We boo your national anthems at hockey games, so we’re not going to talk about this further,’” Sabo said. “We’ll let that calm down for the time being, then we’ll revisit it as things start to have cooler heads.”

Sabo provided a status update on talks over a sports partnership with Winnipeg during an otherwise unrelated meeting last week. He and Mayor Lara Sanoica first touted the possibility of a hockey tournament that would be held in Rolling Meadows — home to two indoor ice rinks — a little more than two years ago.

Winnipeg officials initially were excited about the prospect of such an event, and considered making a similar economic development visit to Rolling Meadows.

Then came President Donald Trump’s threats to impose tariffs on Canada and suggestions the country should become the “51st state” in early 2025, followed by boos at hockey games. The most prominent jeers on the international stage happened before a U.S.-Canada game during the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off tournament in Montreal.

There’s now “a little bit of wait and hold” on the tournament proposal, Sabo said.

But officials hope the pause is just temporary.

Sabo and Meet Chicago Northwest tourism bureau President/CEO Heather Larson expressed optimism about the opening of an indoor ice arena this fall in Elk Grove Village, adding to the number of sheets of ice in the Northwest suburbs. Nicholas & Associates, the developer of the Elk Grove rink, opened a similar facility last fall in Rosemont, and also manages rinks in Mount Prospect and Vernon Hills.

Officials have eyed the Rolling Meadows Park District’s Nelson Sports Complex and West Meadows Ice Arena as two additional sites that could host an international tournament.

“This will give us kind of a nice triangle to bring in some of those large tournaments and events,” Larson said.

Added Sabo: “While there is a bit of a pause on our efforts with respect to attracting a tournament that brings the two countries together, the added ice to this area and to the region I think further strengthens our ability to revisit that as tensions cool.”