Only in Canada: Hockey wedding includes marriage commissioner in referee jersey
CBC News | Posted: February 8, 2016 11:16 AM | Last Updated: February 9, 2016
Brittany and Wade Peterson said their vows on ice
It might just be the ultimate hockey wedding. Brittany and Wade Peterson said their "I do's" on ice on Hockey Day in Canada.
The couple, who grew up in Saskatchewan, had a complete hockey-themed celebration at the Delisle Centennial Arena on Saturday.
"We are like those kids, typical Saskatchewan, who could probably skate before we could [walk]," sister of the groom Brenna Strohschein said.
Strohschein said the couple grew up playing hockey and ringette, and when love started to blossom they found common interest at the rink.
"They just really love ice hockey and when they got engaged they just thought it would be super neat if they could make their special day even more special by having it on an ice rink," Strohschein said.
"I thought they were crazy."
But when the day of celebrations finally came, she was able to see the appeal. The bridal party walked up the ice to a marriage commissioner wearing a referee jersey while family and friends watched from the stands and the boxes, usually reserved for the teams.
The bride slid once after the ceremony, but took it all in stride and with humour, Strohschein said.
"The ceremony was all just walking on the ice and then after the ceremony everybody put their skates on and went for a victory lap," she said.
The wedding was not planned to fall on Hockey Day in Canada, but the bridal party said it must have been fate, Strohschein said.
Strohschein herself had just moved back from living in China and abroad for the past 11 years, and said she's excited to have a new "only in Saskatchewan" story to tell her friends overseas.
"People are like 'what is it like in Saskatchewan'? And I tell these stories about the Saskatchewan winters…This is just another story that will fall seamlessly into the story I tell people about 'this is Saskatchewan,'" she said.