Highlight Reel: 2017

RED DEER - As 2017 comes to a close, Hockey Alberta looks back on the year that was with some of our favourite moments (in no particular order).

Alberta Hockey Day - Why We Play

Photo credit: MT Actions Photography

Hockey Alberta held its inaugural Alberta Hockey Day on January 21 to celebrate and showcase female hockey across the province. This day combined a number of on and off-ice events catered to both new and existing participants, focusing on fun, skills and friendships.

Grande Prairie served as the host site of Alberta Hockey Day’s main event, with special guests in attendance, including two-time Olympic gold medallist and former Team Alberta player and coach Carla MacLeod. Additional Alberta Hockey Day celebrations were held across the province.

Alberta Hockey Day 2018 is set for January 20 in Westlock, Brooks, Paradise Valley, Strathmore, Red Deer and High Level, with a special focus on age-appropriate hockey.

Alberta Goalie Plan

Photo credit: Raw Impressions

Hockey Alberta unveiled its Provincial Goaltender Development Plan in February, to ensure that Alberta’s goaltenders, and their coaches, are properly equipped for the best performance possible in the specialized position.

The first step was to identify and recruit six Regional Goaltending Leads, who are strategically located around the province, and will work as part of Hockey Alberta’s Regional Centre network. Each Regional Goalie Lead will provide leadership and support to minor hockey associations and Regional Centre Consultants in implementing Hockey Alberta’s Goaltending Development Plan throughout their region.

All six Goaltending Leads attended Hockey Alberta’s 2017 Development Seminars in Sylvan Lake in June, where they took part in a weekend of training and strategizing on how to carry out Hockey Alberta’s Goaltender Development Plan throughout the Province.

In addition to the Development Seminars, Hockey Alberta held three Goaltender Development Camps in May and June; a North and South Goaltender Camp in Edmonton and Cochrane, and an Elite Goaltender Development Camp in Sylvan Lake.

The true spirit of Provincials

The 2017 Hockey Alberta Provincial Championships, presented by ATB Financial, saw 16 host communities take part in True Spirit of Hockey Day: 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.

In conjunction with the Provincial Championship tournament hosts in these communities, local schools hosted a number of fun activities, allowing students to learn about hockey, and the teamwork and friendships that can be generated in the sport.

In the annual "March to a title", 39 new champions were crowned across the province from Atom to Senior.

Click here for a list of 2017 Provincial champions >

The South will rise again

It was a banner year for Southern Alberta players, as South teams came out on top at the Alberta Cup, Alberta Challenge and Peewee Prospects Cup.

Photo credit: LA Media

Team South went wire-to-wire as the tournament’s top team to win the 2017 Alberta Cup. South went undefeated (4-0-1) through the tournament, and clinched the Alberta Cup with a 5-1 win over Northwest. Click here for the full story >

Photo credit: LA Media

South Black also went undefeated (4-0-1) to win the 2017 Alberta Challenge, edging South White 1-0 in the championship final. Click here for the full story >

Photo credit: LA Media

South Black made it a clean sweep for South teams in 2017, rebounding from a slow start to win the 2017 Peewee Prospects Cup, defeating North Grey 4-1 to clinch the title. Click here for the full story >

St. Albert Slash go all the way

As the inaugural Alberta Female Hockey League season came to a close, the St. Albert Slash (Midget AAA), not only made league history, but National history as well.

After winning the first Midget AAA title in AFHL history, the Slash went on to win the 2017 Esso Cup, the first Alberta team to do so.

Click here for the full story >

The inaugural Midget Elite and Bantam Elite titles went to the Red Deer Sutter Fund Chiefs and Calgary Fire White, respectively.

Alberta players, officials take the next step

Photo credit: Colorado Avalanche (YouTube)

2017 was another a banner year for Alberta players and officials, achieving a number of accolades and recognition.

The 2017 WHL Bantam Draft was once again a strong showing for Albertans, with 74 players from Alberta drafted, including Sherwood Park’s Kaiden Guhle and Wainwright’s Connor McLennan, who were drafted first and second overall, respectively. It was the third straight year a player from Alberta was drafted first overall. Click here for the full story >

At the 2017 NHL draft, 16 Albertans heard their names called by an NHL team. Calgary’s Cale Makar made history by becoming the highest drafted player out of the Alberta Junior Hockey League when the Colorado Avalanche selected him fourth overall. Click here for the full story >

Six Albertans were among the 113 female hockey players selected in the 2017 Canadian Women’s Hockey League Draft. Defender Taryn Baumgardt (Innisfail) was the first Albertan off the board, taken fifth overall by the Calgary Inferno. Click here for the full story >

Three Alberta officials took the next step in their careers in 2017, as Kyle Kowalksi (Edmonton), Colin Stefanyk (Red Deer), and Jordan Lightbrown (Medicine Hat) were selected to attend Hockey Canada’s Level Six Officiating Seminar in Moncton, New Brunswick. 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.

Leading our leaders

Hockey Alberta took coach development to a new level in 2017, bringing back successful events such as the Coach Conference, Coach Speaker Series, and Coach of the Month program, while adding new programs such as the WHL and AJHL Game Day Coach Series, and Coach Development Seminars.

The WHL and AJHL Game Day Coach Series took place in various Western Hockey League and Alberta Junior Hockey League cities and towns across the province on a game night. The coaches in attendance were treated to a seminar from Hockey Alberta, as well as the opportunity to hear from the home and away team’s coaches, and to watch the game.

In June, Hockey Alberta’s Development team and Regional Centre Consultants hosted four streams of local minor hockey groups together in Sylvan Lake for Coach Development Seminars, with a goal of educating on the best practices to deliver the game locally. The four streams included Development Directors, Skill Coaches, Hockey Alberta’s Facilitators, and the Regional Goaltending Leads.

Albertans get the call to The Hall

Photo credit: LA Media

Five outstanding individuals, and perhaps one of the most celebrated families in all of hockey comprised the 2017 Induction Class for the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame (AHHF).

Mel Davidson, Bill Hay, Tony Kollman, Perry Pearn, Glen Sather, and the entire Sutter family were enshrined in Alberta’s hockey history on Sunday night at the AHHF Awards Gala, held at the Coast Hotel in Canmore. Click here for the full story >

Former Edmonton Oiler Ryan Smyth and the 1984/85 NAIT Ooks were inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame, while Calgary Flames legend Lanny McDonald, already a member of the AHHF, Alberta Sports Hall of Fame, and Hockey Hall of Fame, was inducted into the Canada Sports Hall of Fame.

The experience of a lifetime

Photo credit: LA Media

“This has been the best day of my life.” - In nine words, one of the 33 participants summed up the 2017 Rinks to Links program, hosted by the Hockey Alberta Foundation on July 25 in Canmore.

The participants were youths from Calgary, most of whom had never played golf or skated before, and it was a day none will ever forget.

Click here for the full story >

The Hockey Alberta Foundation’s Every Kid Every Community program took on a "hands-on" approach in 2017, taking to the ice in Red Deer with the Central Alberta Refugee Effort (CARE) for a learn-to-skate program, helping to teach new Canadians the fundamentals of hockey.

In addition to the on-ice instruction, the Foundation also provided equipment and apparel to the CARE program for all participants.

"The power of sport is its ability to change lives"

The power of sport was at the forefront as Catriona Le May Doan delivered the keynote address to kick off Hockey Alberta’s 2017 Hockey Conference and Annual General Meeting in late September in Red Deer.

The two-time Olympic gold medalist, and Olympic bronze medalist, shared stories of her journey, and the path that took her to the highest level of success an athlete can achieve.

"Those medals represent about two-and-a-half minutes of a 23-year journey. To me, success is about that entire journey," Le May Doan said of her three Olympic medals, which she brought with her to pass around the crowd. "The reason I was successful was because I didn’t burn out mentally.

Le May Doan also stressed the importance of being a multi-sport athlete, and focused on several examples of successful multi-sport athletes.

Click here for the full story >

The Greigs: making Alberta hockey history

While members of the Greig family are no strangers to hockey accolades, brother and sister Ridly and Dara can now say they’ve made Hockey Alberta history.

With Ridly skating for Team Alberta’s U16 team at the 2017 WHL Cup, and Dara (for the second year) playing for the U18 squad at the 2017 U18 Nationals, the pair became the first brother and sister to play for Team Alberta at the same time.

Click here for the full story >

Kicking off the Road to Red Deer

The Road to Red Deer officially kicked off in November, as Carla MacLeod and Serge Lajoie were announced as the head coaches of the Alberta squads competing in hockey at the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer.

MacLeod is the head coach for the Team Alberta U18 Female team, and Lajoie is the head coach for the Team Alberta U16 Male team. Both have previous experience in the Canada Winter Games and Team Alberta programs. Bobby Fox will join Lajoie as the U16 Male team’s associate coach.

Competition at the Canada Winter Games runs February 14-23, 2019 for the Male squad, and February 23-March 2 for the Female squad.

Click here for the full story >

Team Alberta vs Canada’s National Women’s Team

As they prepared for the 2017 WHL Cup, Team Alberta’s U16 Male squad had the rare opportunity to play against Canada’s National Women’s Team in Calgary, as part of Team Canada’s "Road to Pyeongchang".

Team Alberta and Team Canada battled in a modified special teams game, just two days before the WHL Cup kicked off, with Alberta skating away with a 9-4 win.

Hockey Gives Back

Alberta’s hockey community is always at its best during the holiday season, and we’ve asked Minor Hockey Associations and teams from across Alberta to share their stories of giving back to the community with us.

This year, we saw an overwhelming influx of stories, with teams across the province working to make their season just as successful off the ice.

Click here for the full story >

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].

Alberta’s hockey community is always at its best during the holiday season, and we’ve asked Minor Hockey Associations and teams from across Alberta to share their stories of giving back to the community with us. If you would like to share your team’s story of giving back during the holidays, please email [email protected] with details and photos.

Airdrie Midget Elite

The Airdrie Midget Elite team teamed up with the Airdrie Atom Female team to purchase turkeys to donate to the local food bank. They raised enough money to purchase 236 turkeys, well beyond their goal of 150.

The team also collected 150 jackets and hoodies to donate to those in need in their communities.

Barrhead Atom 1

The Barrhead Atom 1 team is helping to fight hunger this holiday season by collecting food donations for the local food bank, advertising in the local paper and on social media, and set up a food bank hamper at their local arena. They have also adopted a family from the local FCSS for Christmas, using their tournament proceeds money to purchase Christmas gifts and the Christmas meal for the family. The boys have also decided to hold a snow shovelling blitz and shovel driveways and sidewalks in our community for free.

Barrhead Midget Steelers

The Barrhead Midget Steelers have hosted a few events this season where they have given back to their community. In October, they honored their mothers and all women for Women’s Cancer month.In November, they donated the team’s proceeds from the 50/50 to the local FCSS Family Violence Prevention campaign. Lastly, they hosted a Toy Drive in December, and volunteered for the Food Bank and Santa’s Toy Box.

Beaumont Peewee 1 Braves

The Beaumont Peewee 1 Braves spent an evening volunteering their time at the Edmonton Mustard Seed.

Big Valley Bandits

The Big Valley Mites and Novice Bandits teams invited spectators and teams to bring food bank donations, as well as cash donations to a home game, filling the back of a truck with donations.

Blackfalds Midget

During the recent Midget tournament in Blackfalds, six local families were adopted, and received donations for everything they needed to have a Merry Christmas.

Central Alberta Peewee AA Selects

The Central Alberta Peewee AA Selects spent an evening visiting the Lacombe senior’s home, complete with an interactive bingo game.

Chestermere Minor Hockey

The Chestermere Minor Hockey Association hosted a "Build it and They WIll Eat" structures challenge for the local food bank on Giving Tuesday (November 28).

Crowfoot Peewee 1 (Calgary)

The Crowfoot Peewee 1 team in Calgary gave back in two ways this holiday season. They volunteered their time to join the two Crowfoot Timbits teams on the ice, and they visited the Arbour Lake Senior Residence to play bean bag baseball, and host a happy hour cookie and ice cream party.

Drumheller Minor Hockey

Peewee, Bantam and Midget players from Drumheller took part in the Salvation Army’s annual community food drive, volunteering to pick up and sort the food collected for the local food bank.

Duchess Minor Hockey

Duchess Minor Hockey hosted "Hockey Weekend in Duchess" November 24-26. The weekend kicked off with a Teddy Bear Toss at the Midget game on Friday night, where the Novice team helped collect the bears off the ice to donate to the local Hospital, the Emergency Services Department, and the Women’s Shelter.

Throughout the rest of the weekend there was a “fill-the-net” food bank and toy donation bin, Santa selling 50/50 rickets, a raffle table full of donated items, as well as soups and baking to raise money for the Brooks Health Foundation Dialysis Machine and the Oncology Unit at the Calgary Children’s Hospital.

Edmonton Bantam Elite Pandas

The Edmonton Bantam Elite Pandas of the Alberta Female Hockey League volunteered as porters at the Santas Anonymous depot, spending several hours bring bags of toys to the drivers.

EGHA 690, BE888

EG690 decided to challenge BE888 from Beaumont to bring toys to a game to donate to Santas Anonymous.

EGHA 700 Peewee A Swarm

This year the EGHA 700 Pee Wee A Swarm participated in two events to give back to the community. On November 21, the Swarm went to the Edmonton Food Bank and sorted food donations. "The girls worked enthusiastically, for about two hours," said Head Coach Barry Benkendorf. "You could tell they knew they were doing something important. We also had a number of parents who participated. Everyone got to know each other a lot better, and came away from the event feeling good about themselves and their team."

The Swarm were also were invited to participate in a Teddy Bear toss by the NE 288 Hawks. "All the girls came with new Teddy Bears and were excited about scoring the first goal," said Benkendorf. "It was a lot of fun, and added excitement to a normal game. The girls came away feeling like they made a difference for Santas Anonymous and made someone’s Christmas better. These events are important to our team as first and foremost, playing hockey is not about the hockey. For our team it is about having fun, developing a work ethic, building self-confidence, and learning how to be good people. It is our hope that the experiences we give our players will help, in some small way, to make them successful for the rest of their lives."

EGHA 705 Vipers

For their last game of 2017, the EGHA 705 Vipers, along with their competitors, the NW290 Hawks, collected cans for the Edmonton Food Bank.

Foothills Bisons

All three Foothills Bisons teams (Peewee, Bantam and Midget) played in High River to benefit the long term care facility at the High River Hospital. All three teams donated prizes to a raffle table and a total of $1,933 was raised, as well as a few large baskets of groceries for the local food bank.

Hanna Minor Hockey

Hanna minor hockey association hosted a town wide food drive that included participation from all teams. Over two truck loads of groceries were collected for the local food bank.

High Level Peewee Northstars

The players placed small coin collection containers and posters at businesses around High Level and Rainbow Lake to raise money to purchase gifts for less fortunate families in the local communities. Once the coins were all collected and rolled, the team spent an afternoon shopping and then wrapping all the gifts. They were able to buy amazing gifts for everyone on their list, and still had over $2000 left over. The team decided to donate the rest of the money to the Christmas Food Hamper program and purchase grocery gift cards to help nearly 50 families.

Hinton Alstar Peewee Hornets

The Hinton Alstar Peewee Hornets hosted a “Skate Your Socks Off” event, where they collected over 120 pairs of socks for Hinton’s Homeless Resource Room.

Lethbridge Val Matteotti Bantam AAA Goldenhawks

The Lethbridge Val Matteotti GoldenHawks Bantam AAA team took part in #snowballeffect2017 and raised $350 for Youth One, and $50 and a truck bed full of food for the local food bank

Lloydminster Pond Hockey

The Lloyd Pond Hockey program participated in a variety of activities which included preparing & serving food at the community supper evening for the Olive Tree at the Fred North building, as well as at the MOM’s group at Southridge Community Church. After supper, the Pond Hockey players helped build crafts with the kids and entertained them with a variety of fun activities in the gym while the moms received guidance services.

Lloydminster Peewee AA

The Lloydminster Peewee AA team attended Points West Assisted Living Facility to perform Christmas carols for the residents.

Lloydminster PWM Steelers

The Lloydminster PWM Midget AAA Steelers of the Alberta Female Hockey League provided a major boost to a local initiative called Project PJ, helping to collect new pajamas to donate to the Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton.

Full Story >

Maple Leaf Athletic Club (Edmonton) Bantam AA

The Maple Leaf Athletic Club Bantam AA Team collected donations and built a gift basket for a specific homeless man in Edmonton. The team took the time to pick out some of his favourite things, including food and drinks, gift cards to restaurants for him to purchase meals and t-shirts that were specifically his size. Each of the members of the team wrote a personalized letter ot the man to brighten his spirits and wish him a happy holiday season.

Medicine Hat Atom B Knights and Flames

The Medicine Hat Atom B Knights and Flames spread Christmas cheer by hosting a Teddy Bear Toss, delivering 232lbs of food to the local food bank, and delivering the Teddy Bears to the Hospital.

Medicine Hat Atom Blackhawks and Wild

The Atom Blackhawks and Atom Wild teams from Medicine Hat hosted a Teddy Bear Toss on December 8. The players and their families were thrilled to gather teddy bears for the Medicine Hat & District Health Foundatio, with over 200 bears collected.

Medicine Hat Peewee AA Hounds

The Medicine Hat Peewee AA Hounds took part in the Salvation Army Christmas Kettles Campaign to help raise money for those in need this holiday season.

Medicine Hat Peewee Knights and Candiens

The Medicine Hat Minor Hockey Pee Wee Knights and Canadiens hosted a "WHL inspired" teddy bear toss game. Upon the first goal being scored, approximately 150 bears were thrown onto the ice by friends and families in the stands. These bears were gathered by both teams and on Sunday December 17, both teams met at the Medicine Hat Regional Hospital and went around giving the bears to patients of all ages.

NAIT Ooks and MacEwan Griffins Mentorship Program with EGHA

The NAIT Ooks and MacEwan Griffins have started a mentorship program for both coaches and players with Edmonton Girls Hockey Association. Five or six NAIT and MacEwan players are assigned to each EGHA team involved (Atom and Peewee), and those players attend two-to-three practices with their assigned team. Both NAIT and MacEwan also hosted a one-night coach workshop, a goalie session, and team building with all teams in the age group (about 80 players and 18 coaches), as well as a facility tour.

Northwest Zone Peewee Raiders (Edmonton)

The Raiders teamed up with the Edmonton Police West Division and Grovenor School to raise over $1000 AND 1000 pounds of food for the Edmonton Food Bank. The Raiders held a bottle drive that raised $1092.00 and met up with EPS to fill a police car with food. All of this was then added to Grovenor’s Grade 3 Food Bank.

NW288 Peewee Hawks

The NW288 Peewee hosted a Teddy Bear Toss game with the aforementioned EGHA700 Swarm, collecting Teddy Bears and stuffed animals for the "Santas Anonymous" fundraiser put on by a local radio station.

"We thought that having our own Teddy Bear toss game with another team would be a great way to gather some items for 630 CHED’s Santas Anonymous," said Manager Lisa Scheu. "We contacted the EG700 team manager with the idea and they agreed immediately! Both teams invited friends and family to the game to join in the fun!"

"It was exciting to watch the teams battle to get that first goal and once it happened, the ’bears’ were thrown and both teams excitedly gathered them up," said Scheu. "Santas Anonymous was the recipient of six large bags of stuffed toys for boys and girls of all ages to be sent out this Christmas season! As our hockey club is smaller than most, we are lucky enough to have many of the same players year after year, so this was the third Teddy Bear Toss for many of our boys."

North Central Impact Midget Elite (Leduc)

The North Central Impact decided to play Santa’s helpers for a young girl in Thorsby. They secretly took her Christmas wish-list and purchased many of the items for her. She thought she was coming to watch her first every hockey game but was surprised when the team sang her Christmas carols and presented her with gifts from every player.

Okotoks Peewee AA Oilers

The Okotoks Oilers PeeWee AA Black team helped give back to the community by supporting the Calgary Mustard Seed. The players did a bottle drive in Okotoks to raise enough funds to pay for food and supplies to make over 300 bagged lunches for the Calgary Mustard Seed. The team made and delivered the lunches to the Mustard Seed and then also presented them with a cheque for $800 (the remaining funds left from the bottle drive).

Olds Bantam Elite Grizzlys

The Olds Bantam Elite Grizzlys of the Alberta Female Hockey League joined in on the Sherwood Park Royals’ "Fill the Net" fundraiser for the local food bank.

Olds Peewee AA Grizzlys

The Olds Peewee AA team split up into groups to purchase gifts for the Olds Christmas Angels. Each group chose a tag for a boy or girl in the community and purchased a gift for that child.

PAC Saints Midget 15AAA

The PAC Saints Midget 15 AAA team was proud to support coach Tyler Pennington in his quest to raise money to support men’s health issues during "Movember". The boys were challenged to donate to the cause (using their own money). Head coach Mike Leonhardt supported the cause further by agreeing to match all money raised by the team. The end result was $550 raised for the Movember Foundation.

Peace River Midget AA Royals

The annual Peace River Midget “AA” Royals “Fill the Net with Toys” toy drive took place in December, bringing in close to 100 pieces of toys for the local Salvation Army "Toys for Tots" campaign. An additional $425 was raised through a 50/50 draw, which was donated to the Salvation Army.

Red Deer Sutter Fund Midget AAA Chiefs

The Red Deer Sutter Fund Midget AAA Chiefs of the Alberta Female Hockey League hosted a "Fill the Net" food drive for the Red Deer Food Bank during a home game on December 2.

Rimbey Minor Hockey

Rimbey’s Nordstrom Dental Midget Renegades and The NAL Resources Atom A team recently held a food drive and canvassed door to door accepting donations for the local food bank. In just two short hours, the players raised 1073lbs of food and $1,074 in cash donations for the Christmas Food Hamper Program.

Sexsmith Minor Hockey

Sexsmith Minor Hockey Association participated in a “reverse Santa Parade”. Some members of the Atom A and Peewee B teams, along with Coaches went door to door collecting food and toy donations for the local FCSS food bank.

Sherwood Park Atom AA Arrows

The Sherwood Park Atom AA Arrows donated their time to help out at the Strathcona County Food Bank.

Sherwood Park Midget Elite Fury

The Sherwood Park Midget Elite Fury of the Alberta Female Hockey League, along with other Sherwood Park Kings Athletic Club teams, collected dozens of bags and hundreds of pounds of food with their "Fill the Net" initiative at the annual "Kings Day" on December 2.

"Since Steve Mancini started coaching the (Fury), his players and he have “given back”, especially with three years of a weakened economy in Alberta," said Manager Jeff Markowski. "Despite the Strathcona County area being relatively stable, many families are overcome by unemployment, abuse, and medical/health issues that disable their lives in unseen ways. Our local Bureaus and helping agencies are seeing fewer donors and funds come there way with each passing season."

"This season the Fury players and staff spent an evening at the local Christmas Bureau, finding and wrapping gifts and collecting food for those that would go without," said Markowski. "Just over 30 families this year will be able to enjoy the their upcoming Holidays with a bit less stress on their minds, a few gifts of kindness, and food in their stomachs. Great giving Fury, and thanks for being the terrific young people you are!"

Spruce Grove PAC AA Timberwolves/PAC Saints Bantam AAA

The PAC Bantam AA Timberwolves delivered nearly 400 fliers for the Spruce Grove Kinettes’ Christmas hamper program prior to one of their home games. The Spruce Grove PAC Saints Bantam AAA team did the same for the Spruce Grove Kinettes on November 22.

St. Albert Atom Hawks

The St. Albert Atom Knights collected 100 pounds of food and sorted 1000 pounds of food at the local food bank.

St. Albert Peewee A Steel

The St. Albert Peewee A Steel volunteered their time at the St. Albert Food Bank to prepare 200 bags of soup for families in need.

St. Alberta Peewee Spitfires

St Albert’s Peewee SA763 "Spitfires" constructed a tower of food bank donations for the Wainwright Food Bank while at a tournament.

St. Albert Peewee Crunch

The St. Albert Peewee Crunch were one of many teams who supported the St. Albert Kinettes this holiday season. The Crunch participated in the 12 Days of Christmas challenge, where each player collected food to fill a hamper in order to provide a family in need with a variety of meals, one type of food item per day. Each player also included a toy, something that he would like to receive on Christmas morning. Finally, the team, along with many parents, spent time helping to sort through and organize donated items at the Kinettes’ warehouse.

Sturgeon Peewee AA Sting

The Sturgeon Peewee AA Sting have collected and donated to local charities this year. The Sting gifted over 700lbs of food in February and this October, and more than 400 lbs of clothing. They also hosted a community celebration of hockey at the recent Sturgeon Sting Peewee AA Outdoor Classic game; an NAHL league game vs Ft. St. John.

Wainwright Racks-Oilfield Bantam

The Wainright Racks-Oilfield Bantam team visited the Wainwright Battle River Lodge. The evening was filled with games (snowball hockey), cookies, juice and also we helped celebrate one the of the residents 93rd birthday.

West Central Tigers

During a game against the Bow Valley Timberwolves, the West Central Tigers held a Christmas food drive for the food banks in Rimbey, Rocky Mountain House, Eckville, Spruceview and Sylvan Lake communities.

Westlock Midget

The Westlock Midget team went shopping for the two families they chose to sponsor through Santas Anonymous, with proceeds from the annual Gord Smith Memorial tournament they host each December.

RED DEER - Hockey Alberta is pleased to announce the host sites for the 2018 Hockey Alberta Provincial Championships, presented by ATB Financial.

2018 Provincial Host Sites >

A total of 39 Provincial Championships will be hosted across the province, at locations ranging from La Crete in the north, Taber in the south, to Marwayne in the east and Fort St. John in the west.

Week one (March 15-18) features 14 tournaments: Bantam A, Bantam B, Bantam C, Bantam D, Bantam Female A, Bantam Female B, Atom AA Major, Atom AA Minor, Atom A, Atom B, Atom C, Atom D, and Atom Female.

Another 15 tournaments are set for week two (March 22-25): Senior AA, Midget A, Midget B, Midget C, Midget D, Midget Female AAA, Midget Female A, Midget Female B, Peewee A, Peewee B, Peewee C, Peewee D, and Peeweee Female A.

The 2018 Provincials wrap up with six tournaments in week three (March 29 - April 1): Junior B, Junior C, Midget AA, Midget Female Elite, Bantam AA, Peewee AA.

The following provincial champions will be decided via league playoffs: Senior AAA, Junior A, Midget AAA, and Bantam AAA.

ATB Financial will once again headline as the presenting sponsor of the Hockey Alberta Provincial Championships, continuing a long-standing relationship with Hockey Alberta.

Hockey Alberta’s month-long “March to a title” features provincial championship tournament action during three weekends in March and April, along with four champions crowned through league playoff series. Organizations interested in hosting a provincial championship tournament completed a detailed bid process, with a bid committee evaluating the submissions.

The majority of teams competing in minor Provincial Championship tournaments qualify by winning a zone playdown. Playdowns start in mid-January across the province, with up to 1,000 teams vying for the right to represent their zone at the provincial championships. Host teams receive an automatic berth in the championship they are hosting, although they do participate in zone playdowns, and have the opportunity to win their zone title.

Hosts for the following events are still being accepted and reviewed: Midget Female B, Bantam Female B, and Atom AA Major . Interested applicants can contact Bryden Burrell, Coordinator, Hockey Operations.

RED DEER - Hockey Alberta is pleased to announce the female rosters for the 2018 Alberta Winter Games.

Six teams will take to the ice in Fort McMurray on February 16-19, with 120 female players (born 2003 and 2004) ready to take the first step in the Team Alberta program.

2018 Alberta Winter Games Female Rosters >

Twenty players comprise each roster, along with volunteers serving as head coach, assistant coach, coach mentor, and director of operations. Rosters were selected based on performances at regional camps held December 8-10 in Morinville and Innisfail.

Of the 120 players selected, 102 play in the Bantam Elite division of the Alberta Female Hockey League.

Male rosters were announced on November 29.

2018 Alberta Winter Games Male Rosters >

The Alberta Winter Games is a multi-sport event for developing athletes, aged 11-17 years old. The Winter Games were first hosted in 1976 in Banff, and occur each even-numbered year. The athletes are selected to represent the eight zones in Alberta in 20 sports such as hockey, badminton, gymnastics, skiing and skating. Hockey Alberta coordinates the ice hockey portion of the Winter Games, as a core segment of its Development Program.

RED DEER - Seventeen of the top 2003 and 2004-born male athletes living north of the 55th parallel have been selected to represent Team Alberta North for the 2018 Arctic Winter Games.

Team Alberta North Male Roster >

Simon Juckes and Damon Jeffs will serve as Team Alberta North Male’s Head Coach and Assistant Coach, respectively. Juckes returns to Team Alberta North after winning a gold medal in 2016 as an Assistant Coach. Selection camps ran December 8-10 in High Prairie, and saw over 150 athletes turn out to compete for a spot with Team Alberta North.

Hockey Alberta’s Bantam Male squad, along with a Junior Female team, will compete in the Arctic Winter Games March 17-24 in Fort Smith and Hay River, NWT.

Female team selection camp runs January 5-7 in Slave Lake.

The Arctic Winter Games are the world’s largest northern multi-sport and cultural event. The Arctic Winter Games are a celebration of athletic completion, culture, friendship and cooperation between northern contingents. Athletic competition features sports that enjoy worldwide popularity alongside traditional Arctic Sports and Dene games. The cultural component is a pillar of the Games, featuring visual arts, dance, ceremonies and galas with participants from across the circumpolar region.

Each hockey team is comprised of 17 players and two coaches. Teams participate in a round-robin tournament to determine seeding for medal-round pairings. One gold ulu is awarded in each division. Teams that regularly participate in ice hockey include Alaska, Yukon, Alberta North, Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

Eligible communities for the Arctic Winter Games are located North of the 55th Parallel.

RED DEER - Book the date on your calendar now - Saturday, January 20.

Hockey Alberta is proud to celebrate the second annual Alberta Hockey Day across the province.

The theme for the 2018 edition of Alberta Hockey Day is age-appropriate hockey, and the importance of using cross-ice or half-ice surfaces at the Initiation and Novice levels.

Alberta Hockey Day is being hosted in six locations - Brooks, High Level, Paradise Valley, Red Deer, Strathmore and Westlock

Fun and interactive on-ice activities are scheduled throughout the day, with special skills development clinics and other events, along with a variety of off-ice sessions and seminars for players, coaches and parents. All events are designed for both new and existing participants in our great sport with a focus on fun, skills and friendships.

Alberta Hockey Day Schedule >

Activities in some locations require pre-registration, while others are open on a drop-in basis. Check back regularly, as activities for each location are being updated regularly as details are confirmed.

For the current information on Alberta Hockey Day activities in your area, check hockeyalberta.ca