Puck dropped for Babes hockey

By Tyler Lowey, Times Reporter

The recreational hockey league designed for women is back for its 10th season.
The Babes on Blades women’s hockey league hosted a “come try it night” on Oct. 15 at Rockyford Arena.
The organization is intended for women over the age of 18 with a wide range of hockey skills — featuring former college players and first-timers.
The Babes players meet up roughly once a week to play a scrimmage against other club members.
As a way to bring in more players, the group held a try-it event at Rockyford Arena.
“A lot of the time, we hear that people are nervous to try playing hockey again. The goal was to bring more people out to see if we could build any interest in the sport,” said a member of the Babes on Blades organization, Sara Van Kruyssen.
The event ran for an hour and featured 13 new participants.
“We pretty much hit our max capacity for new players and we have a few more people that are interested in the group but were unable to attend,” said Van Kruyssen. “It was a really good night for us.”
For the most part, the Babes will divide whoever shows up for the Sunday night scrimmage into two teams for an evening of activity.
“Some weeks we get a lot of skaters, some weeks we don’t get many numbers. Often times — with busy work lives and dealing with kids — our numbers dwindle over the season. We are just looking for a friendly, safe way to stay active and play some hockey,” said Van Kruyssen.
Occasionally, through years of built up contact, the Babes will play an exhibition game against teams from Carstairs, Vulcan and Delburne.
The program runs until the final week of March, when the Babes historically compete in the Banff Cup tournament.
Fees for a full season of commitment run $160, but there is also a drop-in option.
Any interested players are encouraged to check out the Babes on Blades Hockey Facebook page. Their next ice time is booked for Oct. 22 at 8 p.m. in Rockyford.