A Calgary parent is asking the city to set the record straight on street hockey.
Patrick Lucas and his friend were playing street hockey when a bylaw officer warned them to shut the game down for good.
"He said ‘you're not supposed to be playing hockey out here," says 10-year-old Patrick.
Patrick's father says he had a hard time explaining the issue to his son. "It's like a national pastime and he was confused, he was upset," says Ian Lucas.
The confusion grew when the family learned police in District 7 were carrying hockey sticks in their patrol cars.
Officers in the area have the sticks and try to engage the kids in a game of street hockey to help connect with the community.
"We're helping to keep kids out of trouble, what would you rather have youth doing," asks Cst. Geoff Wilson.
According to bylaw authorities, playing street hockey in Calgary is legal but they can, and will, issue tickets for safety concerns.
"It's not so much the hockey. It's the kids not moving off the road. Of, they've damaged somebody's car and broke a headlight, or damaged someone's property with a puck," explains Bill Bruce from Animal and Bylaw Services.
Police agree that safety is key but they don't want to stop a game that isn't causing any harm.
"It's about common sense and we use discretion all the time, and I ask our officers to do the same," says Acting Deputy Chief, Trevor Daroux. "When you're dealing with kids, it's about educating them for their own safety, educating them about interfering with other people."
Ian Lucas is hoping bylaw officers will be less heavy-handed in the future. "Most kids, from the time they can hold a hockey stick, understand what it means when someone yells ‘car.' Everybody scatters to the curb and vehicles are allowed to pass," says Ian.
Anyone who doesn't get off the roadway, an
