[Tournament Recap] Grouse Mountain Pond Hockey Tournament

Burnaby Wildcats Novice at the Grouse Mountain Pond Hockey Tournament

Playing hockey on outdoor ice rinks is one of Canada's oldest and richest hockey traditions. Outdoor rinks have been the stage for the beginnings of many of Canada's greatest hockey stories. From Wayne Gretzky to Sidney Crosby to Angela James to Geraldine Heaney, all the game's great players seem to start their hockey stories the same way: playing all day, every day, on outdoor hockey rinks near their homes. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately, if you don't like the cold!), backyard hockey rinks are a rarity in the Lower Mainland. It isn't often that temperatures sink low enough for residents to get a sheet of ice ready for play. To get a real taste of what the rest of Canada is talking about, we Vancouverites have to make the trek up to one of the local mountains before we too can enjoy outdoor hockey.

Burnaby Wildcats (Team Czech Republic) in action

Fortunately, Grouse Mountain features one of the best outdoor rinks on the West Coast - an 8000 square foot sheet of ice, surrounded by trees and slopes, located high above the city. The rink is open to the public starting from late-November through to mid-April. This year, during the week of February 5th to 9th, Grouse Mountain held their annual Junior Pond Hockey Tournament. The Burnaby Wildcats Novice team saw this as a perfect and unique opportunity to take their players away from the indoor rinks they're used to and up to Grouse Mountain for what truly became a memorable weekend.

The Burnaby Wildcats were one of only two all-female teams that entered the tournament. Each team that entered was assigned an Olympic-participant country, which they would be "representing" in this tournament. The teams included Russia, Canada, Slovakia, Austria, Sweden, Czech Republic, USA, Slovenia, Switzerland, Finland, Norway, and Latvia. The Burnaby Wildcats were assigned as Team Czech Republic, and the only other all-female Novice team was Slovenia. The tournament was played at 3-on-3 format, with no scorekeeping, no lines on the ice, no icings or offsides, and no penalties. A referee was there to ensure safety but the environment was pretty casual and everyone was allowed to keep the play going. There were no whistles so the players had to change on the fly! There were no boards either. The rink surface was surrounded by snowbanks on all sides. In addition to playing against Slovenia, the Burnaby Wildcats (or rather, the Czech Republic Wildcats!) also played against Switzerland and Austria. The latter two games were against teams comprised mainly of boys, and our Novice girls did a great job of playing against them.

It was a beautiful, sunny day but it was definitely cold up there! At one point on the Wednesday evening, temperatures dropped to -11C. Players had to improvise a little bit to make sure they were nice and warm. In addition to the great memories of playing outdoor hockey, the players also got to keep their very stylish Team Czech Republic jerseys as a souvenir. 

As is always the case in a sport like hockey, participating in this tournament required a lot of commitment on the part of the Wildcats parents. It is never easy to give up a weekend and to ensure that all the gear gets packed and put on properly and that everyone has a good time. It is always said that when players look back at their minor hockey experiences, no one will remember every single practice or game. What they will remember are the memorable moments where they were doing something different and doing it together as a team. This tournament was definitely something rare and different! The early morning runaround to get everyone organized was well worth it when the players were out on the ice laughing and having a great time.

All in all, this is what team sports are all about. Enjoying new experiences together. The Burnaby Wildcats had a great time participating in the The Grouse Mountain Pond Hockey Tournament. It is something that will definitely be a highlight of the season and hopefully one that the players will reflect back on fondly whenever they think back to their time in minor hockey. The Winter Olympics are underway half a world away, but Team Czech Republic should know that they had a very worthy bunch of representatives playing for them here in Vancouver.

For more pictures from the 2014 Grouse Mountain Pond Hockey Tournament, check out our link:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/qihn5c2jynftr9y/54E_H8thr8#/


~ Jehan Jiwa

[Monthly Recap - January] Burnaby Wildcats Novice

Burnaby Wildcats Novice having fun at practice

Division: Novice
Manager: Joanne Lee
Games Played: 6 GP
Results: 3 Wins - 3 Losses

The new year started off with a light schedule for the Burnaby Wildcats Novice team. After a busy December in which the team not only played league games, but also participated in a tournament over the Christmas holidays, the month of January saw the team with only 6 games to play. The slight break in the schedule allowed for the team to focus more on practice. With players ages 5-8 years old, practice is especially important because it gives the coaches a chance to work on the fundamentals of ice hockey, which are sometimes hard to work on in game situations. It is always a tendency for young hockey players to skate to where the puck is rather than to where they need to be. Practices give coaches a chance to explain things like positioning, shooting, passing, and just overall hockey IQ to the players. Practices are also important in helping to build team chemistry. At novice age, a blank sheet of ice is an open invitation to play some hockey and have some fun!

All the skill-development work that the Novice girls have been working on will be on full display in February. The team has already participated in the 2014 Junior Pond Hockey Tournament up at Grouse Mountain. The tournament ran from February 5th to 9th and it was a unique opportunity for players to enjoy playing outdoor hockey on Grouse Mountain's 8000 square foot rink, while enjoying some friendly competition with their opponents and some enjoyable moments with their teammates and families. The tournament is played at 3-on-3 format - lots of skating, lots of goals. The Burnaby Wildcats team is the only girl's team to have entered this tournament. It'll was quite a challenge playing against boys, but the girls enjoyed showing the boys what they are capable of doing! While at this tournament, the team was also given a chance to strap on some skis and/or snowboards so they could try their hands at a few mountain sports.

Look for some updates and pictures from the tournament on our blogger page and on Twitter - @BurnabyWildcats.

~ Jehan Jiwa

[Monthly Recap - January] Burnaby Wildcats Peewee

Division: Peewee C1            

Manager’s Name: Qun Gee

Head Coach: Mike Richards

Assistant Coaches: Troy Dragon, Luie Zappacosta

Record in January: 

Record: 1-5-0

Opponents: Richmond, Langley, North Shore, North Shore Winter Club, Tri-Citites, and South Delta

It is always fun to be part of a team sport like hockey when the team is winning. Celebrating big goals and great saves and beating your friendly rivals from other teams is something every athlete enjoys doing. But what happens when a team is struggling? What happens when everyone is working hard but not getting the results?

That is the scenario that the Burnaby Wildcats Peewee team has been faced with quite frequently so far this season. The team is comprised of players from all different levels of experience in hockey. Some have been playing the sport for a few years now, while for others, this season is their first exposure to it. 

After an up-and-down end to 2013, which saw the Peewee Wildcats struggle in league play but have some success in the Remembrance Day Hockey Tournament, the new year has started out with things looking up for the team. Despite a 1-5-0 record in the month of January, the team has been playing better and better, and they were finally rewarded for their hard work with a victory over Tri-Cities. A goal for the team right now is to close the gap in scores in each game they play. Where early in the season their losses were more lopsided, the results now are much closer and the team is working hard to stay competitive in every game. 

When things are not going as planned for a hockey team, morale amongst players is very important. Head coach Mike Richards continues to award the Hard Hat Award to the hardest working player on the team after each game as a way of encouraging everyone to keep working hard and doing the right things. Tournaments are also a fun way to build camaraderie among players. The Peewee Wildcats participated in the Angels on Ice Female Hockey Tournament in Langley over the Christmas holidays. All players had a good time and it was an enjoyable experience for everyone involved. 
 

The team has been dealing with more challenges to start off the new year. Their goaltender suffered an injury in early January and there is no ETA on her possible return to the lineup. Goaltenders are the toughest players to replace on a hockey team because of the nature of their position, but the Wildcats wish their goalie a speedy recovery. With the playoffs just around the corner, the entire team will hope to be healthy so that they can push for more positive results.
 

~ Jehan Jiwa