Four Nations Tournament: “Montreal wouldn’t have had it without a subsidy”
Auteur: Christopher BrownIn the next few days, the Kings will move to Quebec City to finish their training camp. No telling how many fans they’ll be playing in front of, but hey.
But now we learn that this isn’t the only NHL-related event to be staged in the province during the 2024-2025 season that will have needed a subsidy.
According to what Vincent Brousseau-Pouliot (La Presse) wrote this morning, the presentation of the tournament’s first four games was made possible because Quebec City (not Ottawa and not Montreal) gave a $480,000 subsidy to Tourisme Montréal, which will pay it to the NHL.
Because without the subsidy, Manuela Goya, vice-president of Tourisme Montréal, maintains that Montreal would not have been able to host a portion of the tournament.
Quebec gives another subsidy to the NHL https://t.co/wHHtXxa7Xd
– La Presse (@LP_LaPresse) September 27, 2024
If Montreal couldn’t host the event, Toronto would have. And with economic spin-offs estimated at between $20 and $30 million, we couldn’t afford to lose the games to the Ontario city.
I can’t afford a billion-dollar promotional campaign to position Quebec. For $480,000, I have an extraordinary image ad in Montreal. – Quebec Minister of Tourism, Caroline Proulx
Because yes, if Montreal does things right, it will speak well of the city – as it did after the 2022 draft, for example.
I have a feeling that this subsidy will go down better than the Kings’, but there will still be criticism of the fact that public money was given for it.
It’s like that every time money is used in sport.
It’s important to remember that, unlike the Kings’ games in Quebec City, the hockey at the Bell Centre in February 2025 will be top-notch. Four top teams will be playing, and all of them will be made up of NHL players.
Overtime
– Habs training: 12:15pm.
Canadiens will practise at 12:15 p.m. today at CN Sports Complex in Brossard #Habs #HabsIO pic.twitter.com/OSUKEOEIdU
– Stu Cowan (@StuCowan1) September 27, 2024
– First line: a challenge for Aatos Koivu.
Aatos Koivu (MTL) is listed to play RW on TPS’ top line in today’s Liiga match versus Ässät.
Koivu has added 2 points in 7 games to start the season. He surpassed 14 minutes of TOI for the first time in the previous game on Wednesday. #GoHabsGo
– Lassi Alanen (@lassialanen) September 27, 2024