Lloydminster Ready To Shrink The Rink

LLOYDMINSTER – Everyone is welcome to check out the new look for Initiation hockey in Alberta this weekend in Lloydminster.

Lloydminster Minor Hockey Association (LMHA) is hosting two days of special events to demonstrate the new guidelines, goals and expectations for the Initiation Program (players aged six years and under).

On Friday evening, a “hot stove session” features experienced coaches, and Hockey Canada and Hockey Alberta representatives discussing Initiation Program guidelines and Long Term Player Development (LTPD). The session is open to all coaches, parents and members of the public interested in learning more about these significant topics. The hot stove session will be held at the Days Inn, 5411-44 Street in Lloydminster, starting at 7 pm.

On Saturday, action shifts to the Servus Sports Centre, located at 5202-12 Street. Initiation and Novice division players will be the focus of attention during “Shrink the Rink”, a day filled with cross-ice games, as well as interactive games, and a public information session. All events during the day are designed to demonstrate and discuss the benefits of Initiation guidelines and LTPD.

On-ice action will be held in the Rusway Arena, starting with opening ceremonies at 8:30 am, and games running from 9 am to 5 pm. The off-ice interactive games will be held from 11 am to 3 pm in the Synergy Credit Union Field House. The public forum will be held in the OTS room from 1:30-2:30 pm. There will also be Hockey Alberta and Bauer information booths open throughout the day.

Hockey Alberta announced new guidelines for the Initiation Program in April. The guidelines are based on Hockey Canada’s LTPD model. The goal is to ensure that players have fun, and that the first impression of hockey is a positive one for all players and parents. The guidelines, along with information for instructors and parents, can be reviewed and downloaded from the Players section of the Hockey Alberta website. 

For more information, contact:

Darrell Wagner, General Manager,
Lloydminster Minor Hockey Association
Phone: 780-872-0525
Cell: 780-871-3075
Email: [email protected]

Hockey Alberta and the Officiating Committee are pleased to announce four officials have been selected to attend the Hockey Canada Level Six officiating seminar in Moncton, New Brunswick from November 3-8.

Cody Rude of Edmonton, Kevin Webinger and Reid Anderson of Calgary, and Chris Schlenker of Medicine Hat will be attending this event, which is the highest level in the officiating program in Canada. 

There are only about 80 level 6 officials registered in Canada each season, making this a very select group of top officials from across Canada. 

Hockey Alberta and the Officiating Committee would like to congratulate each official on their selection.

CALGARY – The Western Hockey League, in partnership with Hockey Alberta, BC Hockey, Saskatchewan Hockey Association, Hockey Manitoba and Hockey Canada, announced team rosters, an event schedule, and ticket information for the 2015 Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup on Monday.

This year’s event will take place from October 28-November 1 at the Markin MacPhail Centre (WinSport) in Calgary.

The roster for Team Alberta was announced Monday, along with rosters for British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

Click here to view the Team Alberta U16 Male Roster.

Team Alberta won the title at the last Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup held in 2013. Team Alberta’s 2015 roster features one returning player (Ty Smith) from the squad that won a silver medal at the 2015 Canada Winter Games in Prince George, BC.

The staff for the team includes: Bobby Fox (head coach), Craig Perrett and Bram Stephen (assistant coaches), Matt Keillor (video coach), Derek Purfield (goalie coach), Jamie Porter (head scout), KarynFanstone (athletic therapist), Alexander Le (equipment manager), Barry Medori (coach mentor), and Mike Kraichy (director of operations).

"Our coaching staff is extremely excited about this group of players," said Bobby Fox, head coach of Team Alberta. "There were many difficult decisions, as the depth of talent in Alberta is strong. It will be an honour and a privilege for our entire staff to work with the final 20 players selected to represent team Alberta at the 2015 Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup."

Team Alberta opens against British Columbia on Wednesday, October 28 at 7 p.m. Team Alberta also plays Saskatchewan on Thursday at 3 p.m., and concludes round-robin play on Friday at 7 p.m. against Manitoba. The semi-finals go Saturday afternoon, with bronze and gold-medal games on Sunday.

Click here to view all rosters, schedules and ticket information.

The Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup will feature the highest-rated players in the under-16 age category from the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. The four-team round robin tournament is the first step in Hockey Canada’s Program of Excellence for players. Additionally, the event assists the four provincial hockey associations in evaluating top prospects for future high performance programs.

The majority of players participating in the event were selected in the 2015 WHL Bantam Draft or have since been listed by WHL Clubs. The Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup is made possible through financial support provided by the WHL and Hockey Canada.

This year will mark the fifth year of the event, which is held in non-Canada Winter Games years. The first Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup was held in Blackfalds in 2009 and featured four of the top eight players selected in the 2012 NHL Draft. Other events have been hosted in Moose Jaw, SK in 2011, and Calgary in 2012 and 2013.

“The Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup provides the top prospects in each province with their first opportunity to compete against the best players in their age group,” commented WHL Commissioner Ron Robison. “The WHL, together with the four Western Branches and Hockey Canada, are proud to support this first step in the Program of Excellence which will showcase the future stars of the WHL and Canada’s National Teams for the first time.”

Past participants in this event include Matt Dumba (2009), Jake Virtanen (2011), Nick Merkley (2012), and upcoming NHL Draft prospects Tyler Benson, Sam Steel and Kale Clague (2013).