From sun to skates, local kids are getting ready to lace up for the upcoming ice season

By Melissa Crispin-Piche Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

As summer starts to wind down, local ice sports are already looking ahead to another busy season, with hockey and ringette associations getting registration numbers in place and preparing to put players back on the ice.

For the Wheatland Wranglers girls hockey program, that growth has been especially noticeable over the past few years.

Cody Brown, president of the Wheatland Wranglers, said the organization is now heading into its fourth season after a group of volunteers decided the area needed a dedicated place for girls to continue playing hockey.

Brown said the idea started after seeing the number of girls playing hockey drop significantly as they got older. 

“My kids are (born in) 2012 and when they first started playing hockey there was probably close to 15-20 girls enrolled,” Brown said. “And then by the time he got to U13, there was a drop for like two or three (girls) and I kind of said, well, where’d all the girls go?”

The answer, he said, was that girls were often left with limited options.

“They (either) quit playing hockey because there wasn’t an outlet or they went to ringette, and those were kind of their two options,” Brown said.

The Wranglers were formed with the goal of providing another option for girls who wanted to stay in hockey, and the response has been significant.

The organization’s registration numbers have climbed from 56 girls in its first season to about 120 in more recent years. Brown said the association is sitting at 125 registered players at the moment, putting it in a position where the numbers appear to be stabilizing.

The organization offers hockey from U7 through U18 and draws players from a wide area, including Drumheller, Indus, Beiseker, Chestermere, Duchess and Brooks. 

For Brown, however, the numbers only tell part of the story. “When we first started (The Wranglers), you knew every single person. And now, when you walk into the rink, and you see Wranglers on the board and sometimes don’t know maybe two or three of the kids, that’s the coolest thing,” he said. “And then seeing all the dads running their Wranglers swag; it’s pretty awesome stuff.”

While the Wranglers have seen substantial growth, the Strathmore Minor Ringette Association (SMRA) is also heading into the new season with more than 120 athletes registered.

Kevin Krall, vice president and director of coaching, said registration was sitting at just over 120 players as the Aug. 15 deadline approached.

“We’re a little over 120; we’re actually climbing today,” Krall said. “Some people do wait till the last minute.” 

He added that they anticipate the official number to be a little higher.

The next step will be evaluations, which are expected to begin Sept. 1 and run for roughly two weeks, depending on available ice time.

The association is also using its annual Come Try Ringette event as a way to introduce new players to the sport. The free event was held Aug. 23 at the Strathmore Family Centre and included an equipment swap, giving families an opportunity to find equipment without taking on the full cost of starting a new sport.

“Any new athletes or families that are just kind of getting into it, they have the ability to pick up some free equipment,” Krall said. “Kind of lessen the blow of the cost of getting into the sport.”

Strathmore Minor Ringette is also entering its second season of collaboration with Indus, with the partnership covering the U12 to U19 age groups. 

“Both run smaller associations and it can be hard to form reasonably sized teams with like skill levels,” Krall said. “This way we’ve been able to properly place the athletes at the appropriate skill level so they have the best chance for development.”

SMRA is hosting their annual season kick-off event on Sept. 20 at the Strathmore Family Centre with an exhibition game between the University of Calgary Dino’s ringette and the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns at 1-3 p.m.

In Strathmore, the local minor hockey association is also preparing for another busy season with registration numbers currently sitting around 324 players.

Brett Thurston, president of Strathmore Minor Hockey Association (SMHA), said the association is expecting to finish the registration period with a healthy number of players.

“I think we’re close to 300 player registrations; that’s not including our goalies, which, I believe, are around 23 or 24 – so they have 324 kids right now,” Thurston said.

The number is slightly higher than what the association saw last year, although some of the final numbers will depend on players trying out for AA hockey. 

The association is preparing for evaluations with the process expected to begin around the weekend of Sept. 12-13.

Thurston said the timing is affected by AA tryouts, but once evaluations begin, the process moves quickly.

“We cram (approximately) 70 per cent of our evaluations within 10 days, so a lot of work for our eval group and a lot of those volunteers on the boards,” he said.

The association is also introducing a new U16 team, something Thurston said is intended to help fill a gap for players before they reach U18. 

While Strathmore is working with hundreds of players, Gleichen and District Minor Hockey Association, also known as Gleichen Pond Hockey, takes a different approach, focusing on keeping hockey accessible for local families.

Registration is currently open exclusively to returning players until Sept. 1. It will then open to everyone until Sept. 15.

Shelah Downey, president of Gleichen and District Minor Hockey Association, said the organization typically has about 85 players and expects to be around that number again this season.

“Historically, we have always been around 85 so that is what we are thinking it will be,” Downey said. “Currently, we have 20.”

The season begins Oct. 13 and runs through March with players on the ice twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Registration is $115 per child. Families must also purchase an arena membership, which allows them to use the arena during public skate times for an additional $75 for an individual membership or $150 for a family membership.

For the association, keeping the cost manageable is a major part of the program.

“There are many families who either cannot afford the financial burden that hockey tends to place on families or the time burden – our program enables people to be able to play without the huge cost of time and money,” Downey said. “Our program is designed to contribute to the development of our youth through the game of hockey. We are committed to providing our young people the opportunity to have fun on the ice while learning the basic skills of ice skating and how to play hockey.”

Gleichen Pond Hockey also has an equipment swap planned for Sept. 13 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Gleichen Arena.