Sponsored by Dave & Buster's, the NYI Children’s Foundation hosts the largest youth hockey tournament in Long Island history – the Lighthouse Tournament; two Charles B. Wang Ice Hockey Project Hope teams from China to compete in the international division


Call it the New York Islanders’ gift to youth hockey.

Thanks to Charles B. Wang Ice Hockey Project Hope and the participation of thousands of children and parents at rinks across Long Island and China, the Nassau Coliseum will play host to Long Island Hockey Fest, featuring the first annual Lighthouse Tournament and the Lighthouse Cup.

As a celebration of the Islanders' commitment to youth hockey on Long Island and in China, over 2,500 kids from ages 3-18 will participate in a nine-day tournament that spans from Nassau to Suffolk to Westchester and all the way across the ocean to Finland and China.

"We're very excited to be hosting one of the biggest youth hockey tournament the Island has ever seen," said former Islanders fan favorite Steve Webb, Islanders director of Grassroots Hockey. "This week is about creating a youth hockey experience these kids will never forget."

The Lighthouse Tournament features an international division of four teams, including two Chinese teams, a Finnish team and a team competing from Westchester. The Long Island division encompasses over 60 teams from ten rinks located all across Long Island.


INTERNATIONAL DIVISION

The international section will comprise of two teams from China – Qiqihar and Harbin, one team from Ilves-Hockey Oy, Finland and the Westchester Mariners.

Thanks to generous donations from Islanders owner Charles B. Wang, children from China have been given the chance to develop and enhance their passion and love of hockey.

Since Charles B. Wang Ice Hockey Project Hope was founded in 2004, over 25 rinks will have been built in China by year's end. Thousands of sets of ice hockey equipment have been donated. Along with the addition of facilities and equipment, clinics have been set-up throughout China to help further the skills of the young Chinese players.

Prior to the formation of Project Hope, there was a mere 2,000 youth hockey players in a country whose population is over one billion. Thanks to Project Hope, there are six times as many young Chinese playing hockey.

This will be the third consecutive year a team or teams from China will compete in North America and the second time they will be played on Long Island.

The Chinese teams from Harbin and Qiqihar will be joined for the first time by a Finnish team and returning participant, the Westchester Mariners.

These four pee wee teams will begin round-robin competition at Islanders Iceworks on Friday, January 18 and conclude with the Championship game to be played on the Nassau Coliseum ice at 3:50 pm on Sunday.

On Saturday, the four teams will take part in a skills competition, provided by NHL Got Skills. The competition will take place at the Coliseum prior to the Islanders-Philadelphia game.

The children from Qiqihar and Harbin will take part in the pre-game ceremony and intermission of the Islanders-Carolina game on Sunday, January 21. They will get a special, private shopping session at Dick's Sporting Goods at the Roosevelt Field Mall on Sunday. In addition, the Chinese children will tour and shop in New York City on Tuesday, January 22. The trip into the city has become a tradition the past two years and a favorite amongst the youngsters.

Click here to purchase tickets to the Islanders-Hurricanes matchup on January 21 and watch the Project Hope kids compete during the second intermission of the game.


International Division Schedule

Friday, January 18 - Coliseum
9:00 am: Qiqihar vs. Harbin

Friday, January 18 - Iceworks
1:00 pm: Ilves vs. Westchester
6:00 pm: Harbin vs. Ilves
7:00 pm: Qiqihar vs. Westchester

Saturday, January 19 – Iceworks
10:00 am: Qiqihar vs. Ilves
11:00 am: Harbin vs. Westchester

Saturday, January 19 - Coliseum
2:00 pm: Got Skills Competition

Sunday, January 20 – Nassau Coliseum
3:50 pm: Championship Game


LONG ISLAND DIVISION

The largest Long Island youth hockey tournament in history will commence on Sunday, January 13. In-house teams from rinks all across Long Island from squirt (ages 9-10) to midget (15-18) will compete from Jan. 13-Jan. 19 at hosting rinks, with the finals of each division to be played at the Nassau Coliseum on Jan. 20.

Leading up to the finals, each participating rink will determine a champion for each division at their home rink. The final round will pit the eight best squirt teams, six best pee wee teams, three best bantam teams and four best midget teams against one another.

All teams remaining in the final round of each will compete in a round-robin tournament amongst teams in their age group. The top two teams from each level will face off against one another at the Coliseum on January 20 for a champion from each level to be crowned. Every team in the final round is guaranteed at least three games.

To celebrate the youngest hockey players on the Island, the Nassau Coliseum will host the Long Hockey Fest Jamboree, featuring 39 mite and mini-mite in-house teams on Long Island.

With the Coliseum ice divided into three smaller rinks, teams will compete in 18-minute games, Sunday morning on January 20. Included at the jamboree will be the Family Fan Fest, and an equipment showcase through local pro shop.

The Children’s Sport Connection will be collecting used equipment in the fan fest section on Sunday. Anyone who donates two pieces of equipment will go home with one ticket voucher for the January 29 game versus the Ottawa Senators. The donations will be made to the Children's Foundation for youth hockey initiatives.

Below is the list of rinks participating in the Lighthouse Tournament

Cantiague Park Ice Arena
Dix Hills Ice Rink
Freeport Recreation Center Ice Rink
Iceland Skating Rink
Islanders Iceworks
Parkwood Ice Rink
Port Washington Skating Center
Superior Ice Rink
The Arena of Long Beach New York
The Rinx - Hidden Pond Park

Stay tuned to newyorkislanders.com and Islanders TV for more updates on the Lighthouse Tournament.