Communities and teams across Alberta gearing up for Hockey Alberta Provincial Championships

RED DEER - Six months of regular season and tournament action, including up to six weeks of games in Zone playdowns, culminates this month, as teams prepare to “March to a title” at the 2017 Hockey Alberta Provincial Championships, presented by ATB Financial.

Tournament action will determine the majority of the 2017 provincial champions. 14 titles will be awarded on March 19. March 26 will see another 16 champions crowned. The remaining five champions will be determined on April 2. Tournament champions will emerge from a weekend of round-robin pool play and playoff action in their respective tournaments.

The slate of provincial championship tournaments starts this weekend, March 16-19 in fourteen locations around Alberta.

Provincial championships set for March 16-19 include: Midget Female AAA (Okotoks), Bantam A (Grande Prairie), Bantam B (Springbank), Bantam C (CNN), Bantam D (Hanna), Bantam Female Elite (Olds), Bantam Female B (Leduc), Atom AA Major (Fort McMurray), Atom AA Minor (Sturgeon), Atom A (Foothills), Atom B (Fairview), Atom C (Provost), Atom D (Delburne), Atom Female (Battle River).

Provincial championships set for March 22/23-26 include: Junior C (Calgary), Minor Midget AAA (Grande Prairie), Midget A (Strathmore), Midget B (Rocky Mountain House), Midget C (Slave Lake), Midget D (Elk Point), Midget Female Elite (Sherwood Park), Midget Female A (Edmonton), Midget Female B (High Prairie), Bantam Female A (Edmonton), Peewee A (Lloydminster), Peewee B (3 Cs), Peewee C (Athabasca), Peewee D (Kneehill), Peewee Female A (Calgary), Peewee Female B (Lacoka).

Provincial championships set for March 30-April 2 include: Senior AA (Wainwright), Junior B (St. Paul), Midget AA (Okotoks), Bantam AA (Olds), Peewee AA (Edmonton).

Four champions will be determined via league playoffs: Senior AAA, Junior A, Midget AAA, and Bantam AAA.

For schedules, arenas, host organizations, and other event-specific information, check the Hockey Alberta website at hockeyalberta.ca or the Provincial Championships website at haprovincials.ca. You can also follow Hockey Alberta on Twitter and Facebook.

Provincial championship host locations were awarded in mid-December, and in the ensuing months, organizing committees in communities across Alberta have been busy securing local sponsors, organizing opening ceremonies, confirming teams and schedules, ordering souvenirs and player gifts, arranging for accommodations, and numerous other tasks to ensure that the participating teams have a memorable experience.

In addition to the on-ice action, several communities will participate in True Spirit of Hockey Day activities in their location communities. In conjunction with the Provincial Championship tournament hosts in these communities, a local school is hosting a number of fun activities, allowing students to learn about hockey, and the teamwork and friendships that can be generated in the sport. Participating communities are: 3Cs, Athabasca, Battle River, Delburne, Elk Point, Fairview, Fort McMurray, Hanna, High Prairie, Kneehill, Okotoks, Olds, Rocky Mountain House, Slave Lake, Sherwood Park and Strathmore.

RED DEER - Hockey Alberta is pleased to announce the rosters for the 2017 Alberta Cup.

Eight teams will take to the ice at the Canmore Recreation Centre April 26-30. The teams include two from each of Calgary and Edmonton, and one each representing the South, Central, Northeast and Northwest zones of the province.

Twenty 2002-born players comprise each roster, along with volunteers serving as head coach, assistant coaches, trainer, and director of operations. Rosters were selected based on performances at zone camps held March 24-26 throughout the province.

2017 Alberta Cup Rosters >

The teams will play in a four-day, tournament-format competition. The event also features an education seminar hosted by the Western Hockey League (WHL).

Tournament passes for the 2017 Alberta Cup are now on sale. Passes are $59+GST each, and include one Alberta Cup Program. Family passes for up to five people (maximum two adults) are $173+GST, and also include one program.

Tickets for the 2017 Alberta Cup Banquet are also now available for purchase. Tickets are $50+GST for adults, and $27+GST for children (12 and under). The Alberta Cup Banquet is Saturday, April 29 at 6 p.m. at the Coast Hotel.

Tickets > | 2017 Alberta Cup Schedule >

For more information on the Alberta Cup, click here.

CALGARY - Hockey Canada wants all of Canada on the same page when it comes to the delivery of its Initiation Program - traditionally a player’s first brush with organized hockey at the ages of five and six.

Although the Initiation Program - originally developed more than 35 years ago - always recommended cross- ice or half-ice small-area games, its delivery has varied from community to community. Beginning in the upcoming 2017-18 season, a new Hockey Canada policy now mandates that Initiation-aged players receive age-appropriate programming on cross-ice or half-ice surfaces.

“You would never put a five- or six-year-old child on a full-size soccer pitch, or expect them to play basketball without any adjustments made for their size. Hockey is no different,” said Paul Carson, vice- president of membership development for Hockey Canada, who notes that while some provinces and communities already deliver cross-ice programming at the Initiation level, others have always utilized full ice for practices and games.

“The Initiation Program was developed to allow kids to have fun, learn skills, and develop confidence,” said Carson. “Re-sizing the playing surface to cross-ice or half-ice means more puck-touches, which result in more chances to practice puck-control and shooting, as well as overall more movement and motor skill- development - twisting, turning, balance, coordination, agility. Their field-of-play matches their size, and these players hone in on their skill-development in a way that larger ice surfaces just aren’t conducive to.”

The differences in skill-development opportunities with cross-ice or half-ice hockey are significant: players receive five times more passes and take six times more shots. They’re called on to have to make more decisions more quickly, and are overall more engaged in the game.

Special boards and bumpers have been developed that allow for quick and easy division of a regular-sized rink into two half-ice surfaces or three cross-ice rinks, with options to create different small-area configurations. Not only does re-sizing the playing surface allow for Initiation-aged players to develop their hockey skills more effectively, it also allows communities to maximize their ice time by safely putting more teams and games on the ice at one time.

Instruction on delivering age-appropriate programming will also be available to coaches trained in the National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) Coach 1 - Intro Coach. This clinic, delivered by Hockey Canada’s 13 members, is geared towards coaches of entry-level players to provide resources that will aid in the implementation of skill-development and game play.

To ensure all members of the Alberta hockey community understand the new mandate for the Initiation Program, Hockey Alberta will be undertaking a multi-faceted communication plan that includes the following opportunities for engagement and updates:

• May 6-7: in-person with Minor Hockey Association (MHA) presidents/executive members during SpringConference sessions held in Okotoks and Fort Saskatchewan.

• June 17-18: in-person with Development Directors for MHAs, and Provincial Coach 1 Facilitators at the Hockey Alberta Development Seminar in Sylvan Lake.

• September: in-person with Initiation Program Directors for MHAs (date/location TBA)

• October-November 15: in-person as part of Coach 1 Clinic delivery (locations across the province)

• Online at hockeyalberta.ca, where Initiation Program and development materials can be accessed by any member of the hockey community.

Resources such as the Hockey Canada Network - a best-in-class skill-development resource geared to coaches - features information on the purpose of cross-ice hockey and how to run effective on-ice sessions for the five-and six-year-old Initiation age group.

Hockey Canada has also produced a video that features renowned sport scientist Dr. Steve Norris; Olympic, World Cup, world, and Stanley Cup champion Sidney Crosby (Cole Harbour, N.S./Pittsburgh, NHL); Memorial Cup, World Cup, and IIHF World Championship-winning coach Bill Peters (Three Hills, Alta./ Carolina, NHL); and Olympic gold-medallist and two-time IIHF Women’s World Championship silver-medallist Brianne Jenner (Oakville, Ont./Calgary, CWHL) describing the importance of small area games and cross-ice/half-ice hockey.

For more information on Hockey Canada and the Initiation Program, please visit HockeyCanada.ca, or follow along through social media on Facebook and Twitter.

RED DEER/CALGARY - Alberta was very well-represented when the Western Hockey League announced its 2016-17 Eastern and Western Conference award winners and All-Star teams on Wednesday.

Four Albertans took home major awards:

Sam Steel (Sherwood Park), Regina Pats - Eastern Conference Player of the Year, WHL Top Scorer
Zach Sawchenko (Calgary), Moose Jaw Warriors - Eastern Conference Top Goaltender
Carter Hart (Sherwood Park), Everett Silvertips - Western Conference Top Goaltender
Tyler Steenbergen (Sylvan Lake), Swift Current Broncos - Eastern Conference Most Sportsmanlike Player

All four players were also among the eight Albertans named to the WHL’s First and Second All-Star teams:

Eastern Conference First All-Star Team:
Goaltender - Zach Sawchenko (Calgary, AB), Moose Jaw Warriors
Defenceman - Kale Clague (Lloydminster, AB), Brandon Wheat Kings
Forward - Sam Steel (Sherwood Park, AB), Regina Pats
Forward - Tyler Wong (Cochrane, AB), Lethbridge Hurricanes

Eastern Conference Second All-Star Team:
Defenceman - Jake Bean (Calgary, AB), Calgary Hitmen
Forward - Tyler Steenbergen (Sylvan Lake, AB), Swift Current Broncos

Western Conference First All-Star Team:
Goaltender - Carter Hart (Sherwood Park, AB), Everett Silvertips
Forward - Matthew Phillips (Calgary, AB), Victoria Royals

WHL Award Winners > | WHL All-Star Teams >

Hockey Alberta is proud to unveil a new section at hockeyalberta.ca. Home Ice Feature stories will focus on interesting stories about the individuals and groups who make a difference within the hockey community in Alberta. If you have a suggestion for a Home Ice Feature story, email [email protected].

EDMONTON - Twelve former Team Alberta players and three former staff are now U Sports national champions as members of the University of Alberta Pandas.

The sixth-seeded Pandas defeated the fourth-seeded McGill Martlets in double-overtime Sunday night in Napanee, Ontario to clinch the championship.

Taylor Kezama, Cayle Dillon, Ashley Morin, Deanna Morin, Amy Boucher, Alex Poznikoff, Hanna Olenyk, Regan Wright, Abby Benning, Kirsten Chamberlin, Dayna Owen, and Kennedy Ganser have all previously played in the Team Alberta U18 Female program.

Kezama netted the double-overtime winner for the Panadas, while Poznikoff, who was recently named to the Canada West All-Star team, was named one of the tournament all-stars.

Head Coach Howie Draper, Assistant Coach Leah Copeland, and Equipment Manager Wes Nystrom were also previously involved with the Team Alberta program.

About the Team Alberta U18 Female Program

The High Performance U18 program works towards identifying the top 20 female players in Alberta, who will comprise Team Alberta U18 representing the province at the National Women’s Under 18 Championship or the Canada Winter Games. Making this team is the pinnacle of female amateur hockey in Alberta, and a major lifetime highlight for the players.

Hockey Alberta is proud to unveil a new section at hockeyalberta.ca. Home Ice Feature stories will focus on interesting stories about the individuals and groups who make a difference within the hockey community in Alberta. If you have a suggestion for a Home Ice Feature story, email [email protected].