Donald Teuma-Castelletti

SHAWVILLE March 15, 2019

Provincial police departments from across the Outaouais came together on Friday for some fun and fundraising, all on ice.

Officers traded their uniforms for hockey jerseys at the Shawville arena, seeing seven teams compete in an annual tournament.

Sgt. Yves Martineau of the Campbell’s Bay detachment said the day is all about enjoying a bit of fun together off-duty, especially as some of their ties may go back to their time in school and training together.

“It’s basically the one day that we can get off to have a bit of fun, challenge each other,” he said.

Teams see a range of ages and responsibilities participate, from dispatchers through to investigators and highway patrol.

Though they share the common thread of law enforcement, the ties that bind on the ice were solely to their teammates as all teams brought their A-game to the forefront.

However, the Pontiac team came in the most determined to show the other departments where they were playing, soundly ranking first at the end of the day.

That final game proved a tough one for the Maniwaki team. Pontiac had less players on the bench and civilian members to boot, but still their visitors could not score.

The first goal of the game was scored by the tag-team duo of Martineau and his son, Cedric. Though their opponents upped their defensive front, Pontiac’s Roger Larocque got a breakaway and fired in their second.

Up 2-0 with less than 30 seconds on the clock, Maniwaki finally managed to score when they pulled their goalie and the elder Martineau was sent to the box. Still, it was too late and the Pontiac team won 2-1.

But the day was not just about the fun and games on the ice, as it also served as a fundraiser to help out in the hosting community.

“It’s a way of having fun, getting together,” said Yves. “At the same time it’s to raise money.”

This year, money raised was donated to the Shawville and District Recreation Association. By the day’s end, $1,300 was totalled supporting the organization’s summer programming in various initiatives.

The longstanding tournament rotates through locations each year, seeing the departments travel throughout the region to attend. In line with this, Yves said there’s another bonus to hosting the tourney, which is the influx of business to local restaurants and shops.

“It’s money, it’s good for the economy, it’s not millions but it’s a plus,” he concluded.