In less than three weeks, two of the NHL's most decorated stars of this century will forever be enshrined in B.C. hockey history.
Carey Price and Shea Weber are set to be inducted into the BC Hockey Hall of Fame, located in Penticton, on July 19.
“To me, it's amazing how incredibly fast careers come and go,” said Price, a goaltender who played parts of 15 seasons for the Montreal Canadiens and backstopped Canada to a gold medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
“Sitting here at home in my room full of equipment and everything, it’s really humbling to have been able to experience such an amazing ride from Anahim Lake to now. It has really been a surreal ride.”
Sicamous' Weber, a teammate of Price's in Montreal from 2016 and 2021, was drafted by the Nashville Predators in the second round of the 2003 NHL draft and went on to win two Olympic gold medals in 2010 and 2014.
The defenceman, 38, was in Penticton earlier this year when he heard the news of his pending induction into the provincial museum.
“It’s really a big honour being a B.C. boy in a small town of Sicamous," he said at the time. I was lucky to play my whole minor hockey and junior hockey career in B.C. and to get this call definitely means a lot."
The duo will be inducted during a ceremony on July 19, inside the South Okanagan Events Centre.
Speeches from this year's class -- which also includes Vernon referee Steve Kowal, Delta-born executive Scott Bradley and the 2010 Fort St. John Flyers -- will be among the featured events.
"Throughout the night, guests will have the opportunity to mingle with some of the greatest hockey players, coaches, referees, and builders of all time, and hear their stories and perspectives on the sport," representatives from the BC Hockey Hall of Fame wrote.
Established in 1994, the provincial museum has more than 300 cabinets that showcase B.C.’s hockey history. It is located inside the South Okanagan Events Centre in Penticton.
Tickets for the inductee gala, which begins at 5 p.m., can be purchased