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After a year on the sidelines, the Kinsmen Club of Saskatoon is bringing back one of its signature events in January.
The club’s Celebrity Sports Dinner will return in January with a new name and a new vision, according to event chairman Rob Huck.
“Honestly, my phone has been ringing off the hook,” Huck said. “I’ve been getting so many notifications, everyone’s excited to bring this back.”
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On Jan. 28, 2027, the inaugural Kinsmen Sports Classic will be held downtown at Cameco Centre, currently known as TCU Place.
Huck said it’s an event the club is excited to bring back after being forced to pull the plug on the 2026 edition of the dinner and banquet.
“This is a long time coming,” Huck said. “The sports dinner was always one of my favourite events to participate in and we’re able to bring it back in a brand new way. It’s a little more fresh, a little more modern, more inclusive and a little more fun, in my opinion.”
The event, which has featured celebrity guests such as Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Maurice Richard, Joe Montana and Jose Bautista, was put on pause for the first time since 1959 in February 2026.
According to Huck, the decision was made to reimagine the event while also dealing with some financial hurdles.
“Ever since COVID, food prices and other prices really took a dent into our event,” Huck said.
“It actually was going on to even last year, but last year sort of hit a head. We said, ‘Let’s take a step back here, cut our losses and let’s really think about where the value is with our event.’”
Two big changes have been made to the Kinsmen Sports Classic. The event will now be split into two nights, with a smaller VIP cocktail reception the evening before the main show.
Ticket prices will also start at $49.99, with the goal of making 70 per cent of tickets available for under $100.
“This is going to open it up to have families, lots of kids,” Huck said.
“I want to see some softball and baseball teams there. It’s going to be a lot more fun this way I think, but it still maintains on the premium level that kind of quality experience as well.”
Legendary Toronto Blue Jays player and broadcaster Buck Martinez will be honoured in January following his retirement from television broadcasts last season.
“Buck Martinez is one of the best people I’ve ever met in my entire life,” Huck said. “To have a chance to honour his legacy is so good.”
Joining Martinez in Saskatoon will be fellow Blue Jays broadcasters Dan Shulman and Jamie Campbell, 2015 American League MVP Josh Donaldson and current Toronto closer Louie Varland.
Guests for the first Kinsmen Sports Classic in Saskatoon include Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Louis Varland (left), broadcasters Jamie Campbell (second from left), Buck Martinez (middle) and Dan Shulman (second from right), and retired all-star Josh Donaldson (right).
(Kinsmen Club of Saskatoon/Submitted)
Members of the Saskatchewan Roughriders will also be present in January.
Huck said money raised through the Kinsmen Sports Classic will fund community programming, including sports leagues, music festival scholarships and playground construction.
“It goes back into a variety of ways of building our community out and building it for the future,” Huck said. “We’re doing it together.”
