For young athletes and fans, it's always a special moment when you get to come face-to-face with someone you grew up admiring, and that is a major aspect of Rogers Hometown Hockey. 

This weekend's stop in Red Deer brought together community members with NHL stars like Glen Wesley, Glenn Anderson, and central Albertan Shane Doan. 

Doan said he appreciates the concept of connecting stars and community members, and recalled the impact it had on him as a young player. 

"I remember Mike Vernon and Jim Peplinski came to a local sports banquet when I was around 12, and it had such a huge impact on me. I still remember and talk about it to this day," he said. 

"To be able to come back - not being a current player is a little different - but still being able to come back and help is something that I'm very grateful for and I think it's important."

He said it's events like these that inspire fans, both young and old, and those memories are around long after the tents and trailers of Hometown Hockey are gone. 

Doan said that he enjoyed being able to connect with some of Red Deer Minor Hockey's players and taking in the atmosphere of the local hockey community are the aspects he will take from the weekend event. 

"It's the stuff like getting to just hang out, and play a little hockey- that's the fun parts. And then there's getting to meet the people, the teams that come through. You can tell that the coaches who come through are all excited. It's just a lot of fun," Doan said. 

"I think Hometown Hockey lets the community kind of show their identity and their enthusiasm for the sport. I think we all want to do that. We kind of want to be part of something bigger, and Hometown Hockey lets us do that, and that's special."