Weekend youth hockey tournament kicks off with scrimmages at Tahoe Blue Event Center

UPDATE: Thursday's ice action was canceled tonight due to soft ice. Everything will start Friday.

LAKE TAHOE, Nev. - Local hockey players will get a chance to break in the ice arena at the Tahoe Blue Event Center on Thursday, ahead of the 17th annual Martin Luther King Youth Hockey Tournament.

The tournament is for 16U, 14U, 12U, 10U, and 8U teams and runs from Friday to Monday at both the Tahoe Blue Event Center and the South Lake Tahoe Ice Arena.

On Thursday, January 11, starting at 5:30 p.m., six local teams will participate in three scrimmages and will be the first participants ever to skate at the Tahoe Blue Event Center and it is open to the public, free of charge.

The first scrimmage will be from 5:30 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. with the Tahoe Hockey Academy and Grizzlies alumni, as well as current players.

From 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m., the scrimmage will be student-athletes against coaches, followed by adult community players from 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.

The Tahoe Blue Event Center is located at 75 US50 in Stateline, Nevada, and the Lake Tahoe Ice Arena is located at 1176 Rufus Allen Blvd, South Lake Tahoe.