Land & Sea: It doesn't get more tight-knit than this 'boot hockey' tournament in Isle aux Morts

The streets of Isle aux Morts, on Newfoundland's southwest coast, are quiet in winter. 

The town has lost a lot of life since the 1980s, when the fishery thrived and the population was about 1,200. Now, half that number call Isle aux Morts home.

The fish plant closed in 1995. The school is down to 17 children, and there's only one fisherman working on the water. 

It's quiet, but there's still lots of energy in this tiny place — and every year, during a few days in February, there's also a deep expression of love, not just for St. Valentine, but for the community and a great Canadian game: hockey.    

This year marked the 10th annual Isle Aux Morts Winter Classic, spearheaded by Vic Lawrence, who founded the event.

"Last year I think we had 12 men's teams and six women's teams. We play for 10 minutes, that's it, game over. We have a schedule made up," said Lawrence.

February isn't the easiest time to travel, but the draw is irresistible for homesick, hockey-loving Isle aux Morters.

"People come back from everywhere: St. John's, Halifax, New Brunswick, Ontario. We have guys from Alberta," said Lawrence. 

Steve LeFrense grew up in Isle aux Morts and lives 15 minutes away in Port aux Basques.

He says the event always brings excitement and raises spirits in the community.

"I love everybody coming home and seeing lots of family and friends and people that you haven't seen in a while. Everybody's together for a full weekend. So we play hockey together, we eat together, then we're all at the bar together," said LeFrense. 

There, they relive old times and childhood memories from simpler days. 

"Everybody knows everybody and it's a really tight community," he says. "Growing up here ... I mean, we didn't have the technology things like kids have today. So our [time] was spent outside."

A lot of winter fun in Isle aux Morts has always taken place on Lorrie's pond, where locals have gathered on the ice for generations to play pond hockey. 

"We'd stay there all day long on the weekends and as soon as we got out of school, we were back there again. We'd build the wooden nets and we'd go to our buddy's father's stage and cover it and we used them all winter. There were days it wasn't fit to be down there, but we were still there," said Lawrence. 

Lawrence recalls that some of the kids who'd play would have skates and some wouldn't. To make sure they could have as many people on the hockey teams as possible, they all agreed to play in their winter boots.

Boot hockey, as they call it, is the game they play at the Isle aux Morts Winter Classic. 

"The first year there were 36 of us. And every year it's going bigger and bigger. Last year we had 150. This year, it looks like we're going to have more, probably 170," said Lawrence. 

The first several years the Classic was held right on Lorrie's pond.

But in recent years the ice became unpredictable, so the event moved to a space that used to be the marine centre.

When men like Vic Lawrence and Steve LeFrense were young boys, that space would have been filled with fishing boats all winter long. Now, there are none. 

And that's one of the reasons the Winter Classic means so much to the community: along with boosting spirits, it provides a financial injection into a dying town.

All year long, in the lead-up to the weekend of pond hockey, Lawrence organizes online hockey pools. All the money raised goes back into the community. 

Over the past decade, the local Anglican church has scored a huge blessing: donations totalling some $30,000 to help with operating expenses.

The community centre gets an annual cheque from the Winter Classic, and so does the Isle aux Morts Fifty Plus Club. 

Doreen Billard, club president, says the winter event has become an important gathering, both socially and economically. 

"The town comes alive. This weekend, wherever you go, she's full," Billard said. "We look forward to preparing for it because we know we're going to see people we haven't seen since last year."

Freeman Walters moved away from Isle aux Morts in 1966 to find work in Nova Scotia.

He hasn't missed one Winter Classic.

In fact, he gets so excited to come home in February each year, there are nights he can't sleep. 

"There's nothing like seeing your family and all your friends and the people that you grew up with," Walters says.

"Your heart and your brain is still in Newfoundland, regardless where you go."

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