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a, Campus Spotlight, Student Life

Campus Spotlight: IMA

by Audrey Carleton on

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With a student body as diverse and international as McGill’s, it should come as no surprise that many students plan to continue travelling the world after graduation. The International Management Association (IMA) of Desautels caters to the aspirations of these students. 

“The International Management Association is a club for people who are interested in working internationally, as well as International Management majors,” explained Saul Muskin, IMA president and U2 Management student. “We try to be what we call a ‘networking resource platform.’” 

The IMA’s primary goals are to provide students with events and networks that help them build professional connections and expand their international basis.

“We have social and professional events,” said VP External and U2 Management student, Quentin Godefroy. “The social ones include pre-drinks, apartment crawls, [and] frosh. The professional [events] include guest speakers and events like speed networking.”

Additionally, the IMA aims to help students build relationships with professionals through their various and multi-faceted events, creating networking opportunities with both local and international professionals. 

“Often when people say they want an international career [or] they want to work everywhere, they don’t really know what that entails,” said VP Media and U2 Management student Dhruv Janmeja. “It’s harder for people who want to [work in] international management to connect with international professionals [.…] Our role is to connect people to professionals [with whom] they wouldn’t be able to otherwise.”

In addition to building business connections overseas, the IMA also aims to help students build connections with important people on campus, including professors. 

“It’s really cool because a lot of [our] speakers are our own [professors],” Janmeja said. “Students get to hear their own experience and be able to connect with them past what they teach in the classroom.”

The IMA also serves as a liaison between students and faculty, listening to the needs of the students and vocalizing them to the International Management board.  The International Management major within Desautels is still relatively new, founded within the past 10 years. According to Janmeja, the program still has some areas of improvement.  

“One of our roles is to take feedback from students, and then take it to the International major board,” he said. “Having that connection from a group that gives feedback from students to professors is something that’s important.”

Beyond bringing students closer to professionals and their professors, the IMA hopes to bring internationally-oriented students closer to one another. 

“We definitely have a few different goals, one of which is to create and strengthen the community around internationally-minded people,” Muskin said. “Especially those who are driven and want to achieve something right out of school.”

The diverse composition of the McGill student body is also reflected in the diversity within the IMA. 

“Desautels is 40 per cent international students, and McGill is 25 per cent,” Muskin said. “We […] just want to create a community around that and leverage the [cultural diversity] of McGill.”  

The executive team alone is comprised of students from a mosaic of different backgrounds. 

“I really like the fact that our team is made up of people from everywhere,” Godefroy said. “We have [executives who are] Greek, American, French, Swiss, [and more.]”

According to Muskin, with over 190 members, the IMA has grown a lot in the past few years. Huskin has hopes to keep the organization on this path. 

“Its a pretty new club, so I think there’s definitely a lot of room to grow,” Muskin said. “Ideally, I would love to have it where every single International Management major is involved.” 

As they prepare for their largest annual event of the year, the executives are feeling the impact of their growth as an organization. From Feb. 9-12, IMA will host a three-day Globalization Forum, featuring an African Business Summit, Chinese Business Summit, and a Professor’s Roundtable. 

“This is our biggest event of the year, so of course we care a lot about it,” Muskin said. “We have some really interesting speakers—we have people from all sorts of different fields. We have everything from non-for-profit, to finance, to consulting [and] marketing.”

To Muskin, the variation in the types of guest speakers they will have is representative of the variety of academic concentrations found within the International Management major itself. 

“[The] one thing that’s really important about the IMA is that […] International Management is not a specific discipline,” Muskin said. “You can incorporate finance and marketing and consulting and whatever else into it— it’s just under the context of international. It’s just multicultural, and the fact that you are doing work in a place that’s not necessarily your home.”

Godefroy echoed a similar sentiment.

“I guess what we’re trying to get people to [do] is to get out of their bubble, and maybe consider an international career, ” Godefroy said. “We want to expand their horizons and teach them that it might be a little bit frightening at first to meet people from other cultures, and have language barriers [and] cultural barriers […] but once you get over all of that, it’s such an enriching experience that it’s definitely worth it.”

a, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Pop Rhetoric: Musical mutability

by Wyatt Fine-Gagné on

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A couple of weeks ago, Sufjan Stevens announced that he will be releasing a new album in late March called Carrie & Lowell. The album will be his first studio release—not including Christmas albums—since 2010’s The Age of Adz. The news came shortly after Death Cab For Cutie and Modest Mouse announced new albums of their own, both scheduled to be released in late March as well.

In response to an article on Stereogum about Stevens’ new album, a user on the site commented, “[It’s been] a great week for people who were in college in 2005.” I was not in college in 2005, but it was a great week for me anyway. All three artists were staples for me in my early teens thanks to both a dad who listened to indie rock and exposure to the popular television drama The O.C.—a show that no doubt also exerted some influence on what was being played in college dorm rooms as well.

It’s easy to see why these artists and others like them were so popular with young adults at the time. The lyricism on Death Cab For Cutie’s Transatlanticism (2003) is sad, to say the least. The album’s title is meant to define the emotional gap between two lovers, but the music has a pop sensibility that made it easy to absorb. The same sort of thing can be said about Modest Mouse’s Good News For People Who Love Bad News.

For many people, university is the first time in their lives that sadness, confusion, and uncertainty truly bubble to the surface, and so it is a logical time to turn to this type of music. But when I first listened to these albums, those emotions weren’t what I was feeling. At 13, I had romantic ideas in my head about the pain that these songs aimed to capture, but I didn’t truly feel anything like it myself. I bobbed my head along with the bouncing guitar in “Title and Registration,” but the song didn’t floor me in the way that it does now. I liked the idea of being sad, brooding, and heartbroken because I felt there was something mysterious and intriguing about people who wrote those sorts of songs.

Listening to Transatlanticism now is a completely different experience than it was for me a decade ago. The album hasn’t changed, but I have. When I first heard “The Sound of Settling,” it felt incredibly happy and bright. But when I listen to it now, I can’t ignore the idea of growing old alone and unsatisfied that permeates throughout it.

Who you are in a given moment affects the way you perceive any piece of art. This isn’t necessarily a new revelation for some, but it has been for me. Certain things may seem brilliant to you if they happen to find you at the right time, but can just as easily become schlock once you’re past that moment.

This is perhaps most apparent when going back to watch shows or films you loved during your childhood. While some have staying power, many become tiresome once you push past the nostalgia and sentimental feelings you associate with the content. Even if you’re still able to enjoy them, it is often for different reasons.

Things can work the other way around as well, with art that once barely affected you becoming meaningful years later. Growing up, Bruce Springsteen’s big hits were the only songs of his that I cared about. I never had patience for Nebraska (1982), but now it’s among my favourite Springsteen albums. For whatever reason, I eventually became hooked on the album in a way that would have been unthinkable to me 10 or 15 years ago.

I have no idea if I’ll enjoy Carrie & Lowell. With Sufjan Stevens, it’s a pretty good bet that I will. Regardless, the album will almost certainly mean something to me, and a decade from now it’ll mean something entirely different.

a, Chill Thrills, Student Life

Chill Thrills: Embracing the cold at Igloofest

by Caroline Shenoda on

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As the New Year rolls in every year, Igloofest opens its doors to Montreal’s partygoers. Started in 2007, this winter music festival has attracted crowds to the city’s Old Port year after year, despite sub-zero temperatures. Hosted by Piknic Electronik and the Quays of the Old Port from Jan. 16 to Feb. 8, this four weekend long party is the perfect way to escape the constraints of midterms as well as the McGill bubble. The party is set up right by the Saint Lawrence river, with the city’s skyline painting the sky behind the icy architecture.

Activities

Alcohol sponsored activities are set up throughout the venue to keep everyone’s blood pumping and mind off the cold. The centrepiece of the ice-capped site is a slide carved from ice, on which bundled up people can slide down. Throughout the venue, various beverage stands offer activities from “Sapporo Hero,” a game similar to the widely known Guitar Hero, where contestants beat to drum patterns attempting to outdo their friends—to Bacardi’s curling game, in which rivals slide a miniature puck back and forth on an ice table for points. Rivals can make amends at the picture booth while showing off silly warm clothing. When all the activities leave folks parched, the many ice bars located around the site are available, and when the cold becomes unbearable, there are fire pits to help regain feeling in your toes.  

Scène Sapporo

Dancing the night away, the crowd huddles by the main stage with the clear star-studded sky watching over the picturesque party. The event hosts some of the biggest DJs in the electronic music industry. During Igloofest 2015, the stage welcomed names such as Dubfire and Flosstradamus, while entrancing lights beamed across the masses. Many colourful and abstract visuals play on the high wall of screens, right above the stage. The friendly atmosphere encourages everyone to let loose. The top of the crowd stays lined with elated people on their friends’ shoulders, while some even surf the crowd.

Iglooswag

One way to know Igloofest is in full swing is by noticing the popular accessories sold at the event. Soon after the festivities start each year, the growing appearance of Igloofest gear makes its way into downtown, primarily on the McGill campus. Meanwhile, at the event, individuals rock their wackiest winter apparel to partake in the Sapporo Iglooswag contest, which welcomes people in snowsuits and various costumes to compete for the craziest outfit and determine who wins a prize trip for two to Cuba. Many people wear onesies and jumpers over their winter apparel, disguising themselves as animals and cartoon characters. While there are themes for every weekend, there are also smaller scale prizes awarded more regularly.

a, Science & Technology

The element of truth

by Clare Lyle on

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“Where did I spend my 18th birthday?”

Derek Muller asked a packed Leacock 232 on Tuesday, Feb. 3. The question sparked confused laughter from the audience. However, this was only the start of a presentation that would continue to amuse. 

Muller—the man behind the YouTube channel Veritasium—explores a huge range of topics through videos, including explanations of quantum entanglement and how a slinky falls in slow motion. 

Muller spent his 18th in Montreal. Perhaps the more relevant question, though, was why he asked that in the first place.

“When you’re giving a presentation, you want to make the audience feel close to you,” he explained. This technique came into play in his talk, but is also evident in his online presence, where his videos have made him a familiar face to millions of people.

The path to YouTube fame is a winding one, however. Muller initially studied engineering physics at Queen’s University in Ontario, although he said the decision was difficult to make.

“I wanted to be a filmmaker, and I was also incredibly interested in science and engineering,” Muller explained. “The world itself is incredibly interesting—it’s hard to pick one thing.”

After graduating, Muller moved to Australia, and while he contemplated going to film school, he eventually pursued a Ph.D. in Physics Education. His thesis explored ways to make multimedia physics education more effective. The results that he produced seemed to oppose the traditional lecture model for physics education. 

As it turns out, simply telling students facts about physics does little to improve their understanding. In fact, after students watched an expository educational video, they performed equally poorly on a physics test, but were more confident in their answers. At this point, he hadn’t shown them their results from the physics test.

“When I asked [the students] to describe the video […] they used words like ‘simple’ and ‘easy to understand,’” said Muller.

In contrast, students who watched a video, where an actor’s misinterpretation of Newton’s laws was clarified, found the simulation much more confusing. But when it came time to take the test after, they performed significantly better.

This effect was most pronounced in novices—students who’d had little to no exposure to physics beforehand. 

After finishing his Ph.D., Muller starting working with a tutoring company. Although he was happy to be financially independent, he was also dissatisfied.

“I realized I’d been living a life of back up plans,” he said. 

So he cut back his hours at the tutoring company and followed his passion for filmmaking to make YouTube videos about physics.

His strategy for educating people about physics built on his Ph.D. research by dispelling people’s misconceptions about physical phenomena.

“It was often while doing this kind of work that I realized how vast [the general public’s] ignorance is,” Muller said. 

Initially, the videos remained relatively obscure, but as time went on the presence of Muller’s channel grew, aided by a number of videos that went viral. One in particular, a slow-motion shot of a slinky being dropped, even ended up on CBS.

Muller ended his talk the same way he began it—with a question.

“What is […] Veritasium?” Muller asked. “Is it a real element? For me, [Veritasium] was that moment in my life when I stopped pursuing backup plans. Know what you really want, and do that.

a, McGill, News

Fortier confirms 2015-2016 budget cuts at Board of Governors

by Remi Lu on

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Increased budget cuts

Principal Suzanne Fortier confirmed a budget cut from the Quebec government for the 2015-2016 academic year at the Board of Governors (BoG) meeting on Feb. 2.

Fortier announced that she attended a meeting with representatives from other Quebec universities and the Deputy Minister of Education Marie-Claude Champoux on Jan. 21.  The meeting discussed the most recent report from the “Chantier sur la politique de financement des universités,” a working group that researches university funding policies in Quebec, and recommended substantial changes to the current funding formula for universities in Quebec. 

While the proposed plan by the working group was rejected by the university and government representatives at the Jan. 21 meeting, the Quebec government committed to using the report as a starting point for funding discussions.

“The positive news from our perspective is that I think the government is really intent on making changes to the funding formula in this province,” Fortier said. “So we are being cautiously optimistic about changes in this province regarding funding for universities.”

According to Fortier, McGill will work to prepare for a new funding formula by the province. However, she declined to reveal the details of the government’s implementation plan.

“The plan is to do our work between now and Fall 2015, leading to an implementation plan of the new funding formula in 2016,” Fortier said. “[We] still have a lot of work to do before we get to the implementation.”

Varsity eligibility review and student satisfaction

Deputy Provost (Student Life and Learning) Ollivier Dyens gave his annual report, in which he revealed that McGill is in the process of reviewing and rewriting the university’s varsity sports principle and eligibility criteria for student athletes. The commitment comes in the wake of several controversies involving the McGill Redmen football team.

Student satisfaction

In addition, Dyens commented on student satisfaction at McGill, stating that the university had high student engagement in student governance, but has received criticism on its advising. Dyens also stated that students are increasingly feeling under pressure at McGill, which is something the university needs to pay attention to.

“Students […] want this university to be demanding, and this university actually is very demanding,” Dyens said. “We are working very closely with the associate deans to make the McGill rules and regulations a bit more understanding of some of the things students are going through [….] It is important we make the rules and regulations more flexible so students can take some time off. We’re not where we want to be, but we’re moving in that direction.”

Research funding and revenues

The BoG was also given an update on McGill’s research relative to other Canadian universities in Associate Vice-Principal (Research and International Relations) Sarah Stroud’s annual report on research performance and innovation. In her report, Stroud stated that McGill solidified its place in FY2013 as second in the country in research funding intensity—a measure that takes into account the relative size of universities—placing behind the University of Toronto. 

However, according to Stroud, McGill remains about average in Canada in terms of revenue from innovation and entrepreneurship.

“In terms of the inputs from our research, we’re doing really well,” Stroud said. “In terms of our outputs of our research into the community and market, we’re only about average. However, through the Quartier de L’Innovation and the McGill University Business Engagement Centre, we’re really making a concerted effort to improve.”

Renewal of health care contracts

The BoG also passed a motion that called for the approval of contracts of affiliation with health care bodies in Quebec. The motion renews McGill’s teaching and research relationships with its health care establishments, including its largest partner, the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC). The new contracts will be signed prior to Quebec’s Bill 10—set to be implemented on April 1—in which the government has proposed a revised structure for health care bodies.

a, Arts & Entertainment

Album Review: Bob Dylan – Shadows in the Night

by Morgan Alexander on

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Bob Dylan is a folk hero and a masterful songwriter. His lyrics speak to a generation of people who went through a history of turmoil and conflict that culminated in the rebirth of American cultural society. In a recent interview with NPR, the musical legend described growing up listening to Sinatra and how he always aspired to be as great a singer Sinatra was. It is this long-term adoration of Sinatra that led Dylan to re-record some of Sinatra’s best in his latest album Shadows in the Night.

While the project is not surprising—musical legends often seek to emulate the other legends who preceded them—it’s still odd hearing someone as enigmatic in the music world as Dylan speak of Sinatra with such reverence. However, Dylan’s sincerity illuminates every note in the album, a necessary plus considering the obvious—Bob Dylan really cannot sing. While skeptics would read this and assume that the resulting album would be a garbled mess, Dylan surprises by sticking to Sinatra’s slower ballads and interpreting them in a way that complements his shaky folk vocals.

“Stay With Me” in particular highlights the raw beauty and of this album. “I grow cold/ I grow weary/ And I know/ I have sinned,” Dylan croons to a gentle backing guitar. For older fans of both Dylan and Sinatra, the album is sure to bring back faded, loving memories. For newer audiences, the album is slow and steady, one that will stay with you just as these two great singers have continued influencing and inspiring musicians from past to present.

a, Arts & Entertainment

What’s happening in Montréal

by Morgan Alexander and Max Berger on

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  • COMEDIC OPERETTA — H.M.S. Pinafore

    McGill’s Savoy Society brings you your annual dose of Gilbert & Sullivan.

    Friday, Feb. 13 to Saturday, Feb. 14 and Friday, Feb. 20 to Saturday, Feb. 21 at 7:30 p.m. at Moyse Hall. Matinees will also take place for both Saturday shows at 2:00 p.m. Student tickets are $10.

  • VALENTINE’S DAY — Chocolate Love Songs

    Do you really love your valentine or are you just a worthless scrub? Prove yourself via tickets to the über fancy gala hosted by the McGill Chamber Orchestra.

    Saturday Feb. 14 at 6:30 p.m. at Sofitel (1155 Sherbrooke Ouest). Tickets are $180.

  • VALENTINE’S DAY — Valentine’s Day Metal Massacre

    Hallmark™ created Valentine’s Day to sell mass produced cards and candy and everyone knows it. Fight back against consumerism, capitalism, and corporate greed with a truly metal V-day extravaganza.

    Saturday, Feb. 14 at 9 p.m. at Les Katacombes (1635 Saint Laurent). Tickets are $10.

  • LITERARY THEATRE — The Art of Preforming Aural Sex

    Presenting the clitoris: Now just as elusive in the theatre as it is in the bedroom.

    Sunday Feb. 15 at 6 p.m. at Le Belmont (4483 Blvd. Saint-Laurent). Tickets cost $25.

  • MUSIC — Swans

    Because how often do you get the chance to see an experimental rock band from the 1980s New York no wave scene?

    Wednesday, Feb. 19 at 8 p.m. at Le National (1220 Sainte-Catherine Est). Tickets are $32.25.

  • MUSIC — The Bombadils

    Their name is a reference to a Tolkien character and their music sounds like it came straight out of the Shire.

    Thursday, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. at La Vitrola (4602 St. Laurent). Admission is $10.

  • MUSIC – Shred Kelly

    A west coast Canadian band with banjos, synths, and a new music video in ’80s ski attire.

    Monday, Feb. 16 at 9:30 p.m. at Quai des Brumes (4481 Saint. Denis).

a, Arts & Entertainment

Album Review: All We Are – All We Are

by Jack Neal on

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Recently shortlisted for both the 2015 NME and BRIT Awards, Liverpool-based band All We Are is the latest to latch on to the seemingly endlessly growing number of indie-rock bands vying for attention and supposed critical acclaim. Featuring guitar riffs, lots of drums, and rock-based production, All We Are ticks most of the boxes on the ‘alternative’ checklist. However, they also feature heavy bass, whispered vocals, and an overall atmospheric sound more akin to that of a The xx record.

Part The Naked and Famous, part CHVRCHES, and with a hint of Daft Punk on the standout track “Feel Safe,” All We Are should have called themselves ‘We Are All’. The record lends itself to multiple listens—not because it merits them based on impressiveness, but because it’s hard to believe that after a record of 11 intricately produced songs, there is so little to grab on to. “There’s something about you,” they sing; clearly a statement directed towards anything but their own album.

All We Are isn’t completely terrible; the synthesizers on “Honey” are extremely likable, and the opening hook of “I Wear You” is brilliant. However, this reconstruction of vague ’80s guitars, synths, and layered vocals makes it hard to tell it apart from anything else in the indie-rock arena. Maybe this doesn’t matter; maybe a rehash is a respectful nod to music of the past. However, here it just falls flat—like a collection of torch songs with no flame.

Background music? Yes. Studying music? Absolutely. But that’s it; All We Are could be good for any mood, event, or circumstance, and while the band should be applauded for their incredible ’80s sound, it lacks a certain thing called personality—something actually worth liking it for.

a, Arts & Entertainment, Film and TV

Dark creatures and light humour in What We Do in the Shadows

by Chris Lutes on

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Comedy, in a lot of ways, is the most subjective genre in any medium. Something that one person finds hilarious could fall completely flat for another—and both would be correct in their opinions because comedy comes from the realm of visceral, indescribable feelings, and gut reactions. Even more subjective is how a comedy film should be judged. Is a comedy a success by virtue of the fact that it makes you laugh, or does it need to offer something in the way of plot and theme in order to be considered a ‘good’ movie? How you answer this question will ultimately be the deciding factor in how you judge What We Do in the Shadows, the new vampire comedy from Takia Waititi and Flight of the Conchords’ Jermaine Clement.

Co-written, co-directed, and co-starring Clement and Waititi, the film tracks four vampires through day-to-day existence in present-day Wellington, New Zealand: Viago (Waititi), a romantic-era English dandy; Vladislav (Clement), a sadistic nymphomaniac; Deacon (Jonathan Brugh), an ex-nazi punk; and Petyr (Ben Fransham), an 8,000 year-old grotesque vampire resembling Max Schreck in Nosferatu. 

There isn’t much in the way of a narrative through-line; instead, a few subplots weave their way in and out of scenes—including an annoying bro-type who risks drunkenly blowing the protagonists’ cover, a suburban housewife who supplies the crew with victims in the hopes that she will one day receive eternal life, and a rival pack of werewolves. The film tries to split the difference between being a series of unconnected vignettes about the practical implications of being a vampire (given that the film’s production company is sketch site Funny or Die, the film was likely conceived as such), and a more traditional plot-driven story that places stock in the character’s feelings and ambitions. As a result, the film feels slow and pace-less for the first two-thirds before rushing into a final act that brings all of the characters into one room.

Thankfully, the acting is good enough to carry the film through its weak spots. Waititi is the standout, playing the fastidious straight-man who has to clean up after his roommates and mediate their petty grievances. He brings to the role a sense of world-weary forlornness that only a 183-year-old can truly experience, elevating the material to a level of pathos that the rest of the movie would have benefitted from. Clement, Brugh, and Fransham all give performances that can be called funny and memorably weird, but not much else. The supporting cast of New Zealand locals is fantastic, with Rhys Darby unsurprisingly stealing every scene he’s in as the alpha male of the werewolf pack who tries to keep his beastly urges at bay.

The other redeeming element is that the film looks better than any film with such a small budget has any right to. It’s filmed more competently than most modern documentaries—the cameras are placed in a way that can simultaneously capture the reactions of every character on screen, which is essential for a comedy like this. Some of the special effects are shockingly well done—especially when the vampires fly, which looks realistic and works well comedically.     

Ultimately, this is a film that is best approached with managed expectations. Those who see this movie expecting anything more than humour are going to be disappointed, but there’s still enough great material that makes it relatively worthwhile. This is the very definition of an airplane movie—quick and funny, enough to keep you entertained through an hour and a half flight, but light enough to forget about when you reach the tarmac.

What We Do in the Shadows opens on Friday, Feb. 13, at Cinema Cineplex Forum (2313 Sainte-Catherine W). General admission is $12.99 and $6.99 on Tuesdays.

a, Hockey, Sports

From the Cheap Seats: Red Bull Power 5

by Nicholas Jasinski on

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Montreal’s top university intramural hockey programs gathered on McGill’s lower field skating rink Thursday night beneath the downtown skyline to play their annual tournament. The stakes were high as teams from McGill, Concordia, Université de Montréal, UQÀM, École de Technologie Supérieure (ETS), and HEC Montréal’s respective intramural leagues faced off in an eight-team, double elimination bracket, with a $500 prize for the winning team. McGill, Concordia, and Montréal each put forth two entries, while ETS and HEC Montréal had one team per school. Supporters from all sides came out to brave the cold and cheer on their teams as they progressed through round after round of 10-minute games.

Sponsored by Red Bull, the event included some unconventional rules to pick up the pace of the games and keep the crowd engaged. Each team started out with four players on the rink and no goaltender. When a team scored a goal, a fifth player was added to their team and they remained in a power play until the opposing team scored a goal. At that point, the scoring team added a fifth player and the first team lost their fifth player, thereby reversing the power play.

This rule, combined with the small size of the rink and the unattended nets, led to a lot of action on the offence and many high-scoring games. The night’s most exciting moments came when games were tied at the end of regulation. Both teams would then choose their strongest player for a one-on-one, sudden death, winner-take-all faceoff. The first player to score would win the game for his team.

The crowd grew as the night progressed, drawn by the spectacle of an illuminated hockey rink in the middle of campus with passionate players duking it out in an exciting format. Music blared from the World War II-era Red Bull-restored Volvo Sugga truck, encouraging the onlookers to stay warm by giving them something to dance to and keep their bodies moving. Red Bull employees milled about the crowd, handing out free energy drinks to players and fans alike. Players from all teams socialized and cheered each other on in the spirit of friendly competition.

One by one, teams were eliminated and the field became smaller. The one ugly and potentially dangerous moment of the night came in a semifinal match between one of the McGill teams and the UQÀM team when a series of repeated collisions between two players led to a minor shoving match and a roar from the crowd. The scrum was quickly broken up by their teammates and the players laughed it off almost immediately.

The final was an all-McGill match up contested between the “Bucking Feauties” and “Just Butter.” Bucking Feauties were the definitive winners of the Fall 2014 intramural hockey ‘A’ division, going undefeated and outscoring their opponents by an average of more than three goals per game. That trend continued, as the Bucking Feauties heavily outscored Just Butter to win the 2015 Red Bull Power 5 in front of a what was a home crowd for both sides. 

The highlight of the night came just after the championship match, when the top two teams posed together for photographs, mixing up their teams in contrasting uniforms. They then revealed that before the game began, the teams had agreed that no matter what the outcome of the game, they would split the $500 winnings and head out for drinks all together. There couldn’t have been a more appropriate ending to the evening. The remaining members of the crowd cheered, clapped, and huddled close together against the winter air, enjoying the moment and readying themselves for the cold journey home.

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