Falcons featured in heritage clip
Vignette to be shown at Jets game
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 31/10/2014 (3436 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Nearly a century after their groundbreaking victory, the Winnipeg Falcons are still generating a buzz.
The winners of Canada’s first Olympic gold medal in hockey in 1920 are the stars of a soon-to-be-released Heritage Minute.
The 60-second vignette has been produced by Historica Canada, which is devoted to enhancing the awareness of Canadian history.
“It’s a great story, and it fits within our self-established mandate of great stories that we feel have not been told. There aren’t enough Canadians who are aware of it,” said Anthony Wilson-Smith, Historica Canada’s president.
“It’s got everything, every element. It’s such a Canadian story. It combines hockey and heroism.”
The Falcons’ eight-man roster was made up of Icelandic players who banded together after they were not able to play on other Winnipeg teams because of ethnic prejudice.
They encountered little opposition in winning the seven-team Olympic tournament in Antwerp, Belgium, defeating Czechoslovakia 15-0 in the quarter-finals, the U.S. 2-0 in the semifinals and Sweden 12-1 in the gold-medal game.
The team has received numerous honours in recent years, including having Team Canada wear replica Falcons jerseys at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey.
Jared Keeso is the star of the show. Many Winnipeggers will recognize him from his role as a young Don Cherry in the movie about the longtime hockey personality and former NHL coach, which was shot here a couple of years ago.
There will be separate launches next month of the Falcons minute at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa and the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.
The Falcons minute will be shown during one of the intermissions when the Winnipeg Jets host the Pittsburgh Penguins Thursday.
Jets spokesman Scott Brown said True North Sports & Entertainment has always been a proud supporter of the Falcons. “They’re an important part of hockey history in our province. When (Historica Canada) approached us about this video, we agreed we would most certainly find a way to show it as part of our game production,” he said.
geoff.kirbyson@freepress.mb.ca
History
Updated on Friday, November 7, 2014 10:11 AM CST: Adds full heritage minute.