The 10th Annual Carlos Paolinelli Oldtimers and Women’s Hockey Tournament is only getting better with age, with 11 teams from the region invading Prince Rupert November 6-8 to compete against four local teams for North Coast bragging rights.

Prince Rupert is icing one over-50, two indiscriminate-age men’s and one women’s team to battle against teams from Smithers, Kitimat, Terrace and Haida Gwaii. The 15 teams will play 21 games in four divisions, starting Friday at 5:15 p.m.

“We expect to see some pretty good quality hockey if past years’ tournaments are any indication,” says tournament chair Ron German.

“The tournament just keeps getting better with age. We have a lot of players who have played junior, college and university hockey, and get pretty competitive when they step on the ice. We have some very entertaining games.”

The women’s hockey is equally as competitive, with teams a mix of veterans and rising stars that regularly play against each other in tournaments across northern B.C. and who have established great rivalries.

“The caliber in women’s hockey is rising, and our team is getting better right along with it,” says Corinne Bomben, captain of the Adventure Paving Raiders women’s team.

“We now participate in three oldtimers tournaments a year, including our own. It is a relatively new phenomenon at oldtimers hockey, but with the gender barriers breaking down, now husband and wife can participate jointly in a great competitive and fun-filled weekend centered around the Great Canadian past time.”

The entertainment isn’t limited to the ice. The centre piece of the smorgasbord of weekend hockey is the annual Saturday night dance and social in the Civic Centre Auditorium, with live music by AWOL and fabulous food. The other good news is the social isn’t open to just tournament hockey players and their mates, notes German.

“The dance has become so popular that we are holding it in the auditorium to accommodate the growing number of locals who want to come,” he said.

Social tickets are available from old timer players and it starts at seven p.m.