As the only Canadian team in Major League Baseball reached the World Series for the first time in more than 30 years, people across Canada flocked to the home of the Toronto Blue Jays – many northerners among them.
Shane Bennett and Adam Scarf took the red-eye flight from Yellowknife to Toronto first thing on Friday morning to watch game six of the series. Bennett called it a “once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Shane Bennett and Adam Scarf hold a Northwest Territories flag outside Rogers Centre in Toronto ahead of game six of the World Series. Claire McFarlane/Cabin Radio
“After all the stuff that everyone’s gone through in the country since Covid, it’s kind-of nice to have something that actually unites people, and it’s a positive thing that we all can actually be happy about,” said Bennett.
He said living in a more isolated community like Yellowknife, he can feel detached from events like this.
“Being here with all the other people, there’s nothing else quite like it,” said Bennett.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
For Robert Voudrach, getting to see the Jays face off with the Los Angeles Dodgers in a World Series game last weekend was the result of a coincidence and a bit of luck.
Voudrach, who is from Tuktoyaktuk but now lives in Edmonton, was scheduled to attend a meeting in Toronto last weekend.
“As the meeting time came closer, I was kind-of monitoring, saying, ‘Hey, the Blue Jays could still be playing baseball.’ But I never fathomed they might be in the World Series,” said Voudrach.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
His wife also happened to be travelling for work in the area at the same time.
“I thought, because I’m going to be flying in Friday night, why not make it a day earlier and try to meet up with my wife and get a chance to go to a ball game?” said Voudrach.
“When the tickets did come available, I looked at them and I just turned my computer off because it was… it was too crazy of a cost.”
On the day of the game, however, Voudrach said he noticed ticket prices online start to drop. Three hours before game one began, Voudrach changed his mind – and headed to Rogers Centre.
He said the energy in the stadium was “powerful.”
“It was insane, it was deafening,” said Voudrach. “I know they read the decibels of over 110 at one point but I think there were some parts of the game, specifically when [Addison] Barger hit a grand slam, that I had to plug my ears, it was that loud.”
He said he went into the game a quiet Dodgers fan, but the energy in the stadium converted him.
“My view has changed, and I’m on the Blue Jays train now.”
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
Robert Voudrach left Rogers Centre in Toronto a Blue Jays fan after witnessing the energy in the first game of the World Series. Photo: Robert Voudrach
As a child, Yellowknife resident Karen Faulkner said she remembered watching the game on TV with her grandfather the last time the Jays made it to the World Series in 1993.
Baseball is part of a family tradition, Faulkner, her mother and grandfather having each played the game. Faulkner’s daughter now plays for the Yellowknife Wolverines fastball team.
“It’s just something my daughter and I do. That’s our thing, is sports, and we love to go to baseball games,” said Faulkner.
“It’s a great feeling to keep that going from when I was a kid. It’s a lot of nostalgia.”
When Faulkner and her daughter make the drive from Yellowknife to Nova Scotia, where Faulkner’s daughter is currently studying, they often drive through the United States and visit stadiums along the way.
As the Jays reached the World Series, she bought tickets from some season ticket-holders she knows and asked her daughter to meet her in Toronto.
She said the games always have a great atmosphere that allows her to meet new people, bonding over a shared love for baseball.
“It feels like everyone knows everyone. It’s that vibe, it’s like they’ve known you forever,” said Faulkner.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
She said she met an international student from Asia who had travelled from Winnipeg to attend the game on his own, as well as a group from Inuvik who were waving an NWT flag.
“I talk to everyone I meet. I like to hear everyone’s stories and where they’re from, what they’re doing and things that they’ve experienced,” said Faulkner.
She said she wished in-person games were more accessible so more people could experience the electric energy in the stadium, perhaps through a mechanism that could cap the price of resale tickets.
Karen Faulkner and her daughter attended the second game of the 2025 World Series in Toronto. Photo: Karen Faulkner
The opening ceremony of a World Series game in Toronto on October 25. Photo: Karen Faulkner
Eleven-year-old Evan Cockney, who dyed his hair blue for the event, spent most of the warm-up time at the Rogers Centre trying to catch a stray ball.
While the Yellowknifer was ultimately unsuccessful in that endeavour, he was pleased to have made it onto the big screen in the stadium for about 15 seconds during the second game of the World Series.
He described the experience as “really fun.”
“For me, it was like the eight-year-old girl inside of me was so excited,” said Evan’s mom, Meghan Etter-Cockney, describing herself as a “generational” Jays fan.
Evan Cockney holds up the sign that earned him time on the Rogers Centre big screen during the second game of the World Series. Sitting next to him is his “Auntie Boo Boo” (Tamara Hansen) from Inuvik. Photo: Karen Faulkner
The last time the Jays reached the World Series, that’s how old she was.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
“I was in front of the TV staring at it,” she said, “so to be there in person was amazing.”
The Jays, who lost game six 3-1, head into the seventh and final game of the series on Saturday night to decide the winner.
Those across the NWT – and the country – will be on the edge of their seats.
Related Articles
