Former N.B. man wins the Golden Ticket, coming home for the holidays
A former Fredericton man now living in Calgary, Alta., will be home for the holidays.
James Morrison was a big contest winner at the gold medal game during the 2022 World Junior Hockey Championships in Edmonton this past summer.
A team from Tourism New Brunswick tossed out dozens of t-shirts into the stands and Morrison was fortunate enough to have the Golden Ticket inside his.
The surprise and thrill of winning the Golden Ticket still hasn't worn off for the hockey fanatic.
“It's funny, my friends who were with me and a couple of kids said, 'you're usually a pretty quiet guy and that's the most excited I've ever seen you,'” said Morrison from his home in Calgary.
“I've coached those three kids for a while and they were pretty excited for me. I think it was just the realization of winning a trip and getting to go home and seeing my family again.”
Morrison received a prize worth $12,000 that includes a flight to Moncton, N.B., a hotel stay, a car rental and tickets to three consecutive games at the 2023 championship.
Better still, Morrison and his 10-year-old son will get to see his parents and two siblings who live in Fredericton.
“I've won a free lottery ticket every now and then on Lotto 6/49, but nothing to this magnitude,” he said.
James Morrison and his son, J.V. Morison, are pictured at the 2022 World Junior Hockey Championships in Edmonton. (Courtesy: James Morrison)
Being a co-host for this year's junior championship was an opportunity for Tourism New Brunswick to put the province on the map during the international event in Edmonton.
Katie Kohler, the director of strategic marketing at Tourism New Brunswick, said the tournament in Edmonton was an amazing opportunity to leverage the spotlight of the championship in Moncton.
“We had the Hopewell Rocks projected on the ice. We shot t-shirt cannons and we threw t-shirts all around the audience until one lucky winner, who just happened to be from New Brunswick, won that Golden Ticket and a chance to come home,” said Kohler.
So, what is Morrison looking forward to the most? Seeing his family, or going to the games?
“Tough question because I'm sure my mom is going to see this,” laughed Morrison. “We'll love to see the family and then of course my son and I can watch hockey all day long. Some days we have three games and he'll watch it, analyze it and learn from it. Between the family and the friends, it's tough to choose between the two.”
The tournament starts in Moncton and Halifax on Dec. 26 and runs until Jan. 5.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.