Mongrel Media is preparing for its largest release ever, as Score: A Hockey Musical opens on 130 screens across the country today (October 22), with more than $1 million in P&A spend.

That number of screens doubles the release for Michael McGowan’s last feature film, One Week (2009), which raked in $1.3 million at the Canuck box office.

“In terms of expectations – it is hard to say as we have never done a release this size,” president Hussain Amarshi tells Playback Daily. “Films like Water and The Corporation opened on limited screens and never went over 40 prints. With Score, we are going very wide off the gate and we are in all the top grossing cinemas in English Canada.”

Water grossed $2.2 million domestically, while doc The Corporation brought in $2 million domestically.

Mongrel’s marketing efforts include actor Allie MacDonald singing the Canadian and American anthems at the Leafs-Ranger game last night, the film’s theme song “Hockey, the Greatest Game in the Land” performed by Hawksley Workman playing during intermission, as well as releasing the soundtrack on iTunes and in stores.

Meanwhile, Canucks are also being asked to either sing the national anthem or create their own, competing for a grand prize of trip to Toronto, including airfare, hotel and tickets to an NHL game.