Nova Scotia

Sidney Crosby Hockey School gets underway at Cole Harbour Place

A highly anticipated hockey camp got underway at Cole Harbour Place Monday.

Camp open for eligible boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 12

The camp is open for eligible boys and girls between the ages of eight and 12. (Paul Palmeter/CBC)

Sidney Crosby hit the ice in Cole Harbour once again on Monday, this time with young boys and girls eager to learn from the hockey great.

The Sidney Crosby Hockey School is hosting kids from all over Canada, the United States, even Japan. The camp had thousands of applicants and organizers had to whittle it down to only 160 young skilled players.

"[Crosby] wanted to bring this home, it was important to him to bring it to Cole Harbour, give kids not only from his hometown, but also other kids, he wants them to learn not just about on-ice stuff but off-ice," said organizer Paul Mason.

Another Cole Harbour star, Nathan MacKinnon, was also on the ice.

Sherri Thom has two young boys from Cole Harbour who were very excited to take part in the hockey school.

"My youngest son actually had all of his clothes laid out all ready to go this morning and he couldn't wait to get here," she said.

Craig Wright played his junior hockey in Cole Harbour and now lives in Boston. He made the trip home to Nova Scotia and brought along his 11-year-old daughter.

"When I heard that this hockey school was being done I thought it would be a great opportunity for my daughter to, not only learn from some of the best players in the world, but also skate on the ice that I used to skate on," he said.

The camp activities will include on- and off-ice skills development, as well as special guest presentations. It will wrap up on Friday, Sidney Crosby's 28th birthday.