With the NHL on ice, many Calgary fans are turning their attention to amateur leagues to get their hockey fix.

The Triple A Midget Hockey Mac’s Tournament is on at the Max Bell Arena in northeast Calgary and the hometown Buffaloes faced the Battleford Stars on Thursday night.

It was a see-saw battle for most of the game but the Stars took a decisive lead in the third period and held off the Buffaloes for the remainder of the game.

The final score was 4 to 1 for the Stars.

The Buffaloes will play again on Friday night against the Vancouver Canadians.

Grande Prairie’s women’s team will play on Friday morning against the Melville Prairie Fire.

Finals are on New Year’s Day at the Max Bell Arena.

But that isn’t the only hockey tournaments that is drawing the attention of many starving hockey fans – the IIHF World Juniors tournament is going on, but far from the city.

The tournament is ongoing in Ufa, Russia, so fans in the city need to get up mighty early to catch the games live.

“We haven’t had hockey for almost a year now,” one fan says. “It’s just a great chance to watch some decent hockey.”

Canada’s World Junior team has been doing well so far in the tournament, winning all of the games they’ve played which include two preliminary games and two competition games.

Their most recent win came on Friday morning, beating Slovakia 6-3.