HUMBOLDT, Sask. – For the 42nd time, Canada’s top Junior A teams have gathered, this year in Humboldt, to battle for the National Junior A Championship, beginning Saturday, May 5. This year marks the seventh time Saskatchewan has hosted the RBC Cup and the second time Humboldt has welcomed the nation, the first since 1987.

The host team, the Humboldt Broncos, are joined by four regional representatives: the Penticton Vees (Pacific), Portage Terriers (West), Soo Thunderbirds (Central) and Woodstock Slammers (East). The five teams will take to the ice at the Elgar Petersen Arena, hoping to earn one of the two berths in Sunday’s nationally-televised championship game.

The Broncos, who were RBC Cup champions in 20, are looking to become just the third team to win at least three national titles, joining Vernon (six) and Prince Albert (four), and a victory would make them the first host team to win since the Weyburn Red Wings in 2005, the last time the tournament was held in Saskatchewan. Penticton and Portage are both looking for a second national championship – the Terriers won the Centennial Cup in 1973, while the Vees claimed the trophy (as the Knights) in 1986 – while both Soo and Woodstock are making their tournament debuts.

The championship game will be held May 13 at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT and will be shown on TSN/RDS, Hockey Canada’s official broadcasters (check your local listings). All preliminary round games and the semifinals can be seen live via webcast through FASTHockey at hockeycanada.fasthockey.com. Fans can watch all the action for free by following three steps:

STEP 1: Visit hockeycanada.fasthockey.com and sign up for a free FASTHockey account.

STEP 2: Like the RBC Cup on Facebook at www.facebook.com/rbccup.

STEP 3: Just prior to the game, click the RBC Cup LIVE link on the RBC Cup Facebook page to watch.

NOTE TO MEDIA: Keegan Goodrich, Hockey Canada’s coordinator of media relations, will be on site at the 2012 RBC Cup and will be the media contact for interviews, information or photos. He can be reached at 403-519-5754 or [email protected].

For more information on the 2012 RBC Cup, visit www.hockeycanada.ca/rbccup, or follow the tournament via social media at www.facebook.com/rbccup and www.twitter.com/hc_rbccup.