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Trophy Town to air on TSN

Documentary on the ‘39 and ‘61 Trail Smoke Eaters hockey teams and how they conquered the world
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Norm Lenardon and Dave Rusnell played for the world champion ‘61 Trail Smoke Eaters and attended a Smoke Eaters reunion in December. The ‘39 and ‘61 Smoke Eaters are the focal point of the film Trophy Town: Local Heroes, International Legends that will premiere on TSN on Wednesday, Sept. 28. Photo: Jim Bailey

Trophy Town: Local Heroes, International Legends will be broadcast across the country on The Sports Network (TSN) on Wednesday, Sept. 28.

The broadcast premiere marks the 50th anniversary of the ‘72 Canada-Russia Summit Series, and there is no better way to underscore the importance of hockey to Canadians than to tell the story of the ‘39 and ‘61 Trail Smoke Eaters and their incredible gold medal victories at the World Ice Hockey Championships.

The documentary was crafted by Toronto filmmaker Robert Barrett and narrated by Trail native, former NHLer, and current TSN broadcaster Ray Ferraro.

“Trophy Town airing on TSN is a fantastic opportunity to share the story of the Smoke Eaters across the country,” said Barrett. “Ray Ferraro and the TSN team have been very supportive of the film, the network will air Trophy Town multiple times over the course of the next few months.”

The film premiered at Trail’s Royal Theatre from November 12-18 and ran again in December to sold-out audiences. Ferraro says he provided copies to friends at TSN, who he thought would enjoy the story, but had little to do with its airing. He likely knew, however, that it would leave a mark.

“Those players and that team was the beginning of my dream,” said Ferraro. “My goal was to play in the Cominco Arena on Friday nights. The NHL was so far away.”

The documentary is so much more than the success of a small town, BC hockey club. It is an evocative and powerful tale that shows why hockey is so much a part of our Canadian identity, and its power to unify not only a community like Trail - but a country.

“Their victory brought Trail recognition world wide, to the point that when I was in Europe playing at a World Championship, I was reminded several times of that team by the locals and they wanted updates on where the players were,” said Ferraro. “Made me very proud of my home.”

According to Barrett, 14 minutes of the full-length feature was edited out for TSN programming, yet, will still resonate with local fans and be made easily accessible to and enjoyed by audiences across the nation.

“As the film’s creator, the audience I was most concerned about was made up of the faithful generations of hometown fans,” said Barrett. “This has always been a story about community, and the success of Trail’s hockey club is directly tied into that local love and support. The heart felt response from Trail to Trophy Town, including local screenings and DVD sales, has been very humbling and affirming.

“I’m very proud of the film and can’t thank the community and the players enough for their support.

“We did this together!”

Trophy Town will air on TSN at 4:30 P.T. on Wednesday, Sept. 28.

Read: Building ‘Trophy Town’: A Home of Champions story



sports@trailtimes.ca

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Jim Bailey

About the Author: Jim Bailey

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