Mac's hockey tournament renamed Circle K Classic

Calgary's Mac's U18AAA tournament was rebranded as the Circle K Classic in November 2022. (image: Circle K Classic/Facebook)

A decades-old hockey tradition will return over the Christmas holidays this year, but under a new name, with fans in the arenas and still without a female division.

The Mac's U18AAA Tournament has been rebranded as the Circle K Classic.

"As a proud and active member of our communities, we are excited to once again renew our commitment to this longstanding and world-class tournament that has been a pillar in the Calgary community for the past 44 years," said Marc Gelinas, vice-president of Western Canada for Circle K. "We are thrilled to continue to be the title sponsor of the event now with our Circle K name and brand."

Organizers say the 2022 edition of the tournament is set to include 32 teams including six U.S. teams and one from Europe. The participating teams are expected to be announced in mid-November with the schedule finalized by early December.

The Circle K Classic will take place from Dec. 27 through New Year's Day, with games being played at the Max Bell Centre in southeast Calgary and the Seven Chiefs Sportsplex on the Tsuut'ina First Nation.

This year's tournament will only include a male division, a departure from previous years where female teams also took part. Organizers say the move was made in 2018 due to the fact there's already an established female tournament held each December in Wilcox, Sask.

This is not the first time the tournament, which started in 1978, has rebranded. The AAA junior tournament was known for decades as the Mac's Midget World Invitational Tournament but the name was changed in 2020 to align with Hockey Canada's decision to remove descriptive names from playing levels — including midget, atom and peewee — in favour of age groups.