Sports | DrumhellerMail

Raptors don Dragons colours

    Drumheller Minor Hockey is set to begin the season this weekend, and it looks like the association has a bright future.
   While the numbers at some of the upper levels has waned slightly, the incoming crop of newcomers is strong.
   “This year we have three novice teams, which is rare because usually we only have two, which is good,” said Minor Hockey president Norm Fournier. “Our tyke numbers are sitting at 24. We have two atom teams, but unfortunately in bantam and midget we are down to one team, which is unfortunate.”
   He said 14 potential players at the upper level either moved away or declined to play.
   “It made our numbers tough, which meant we had to release some players from bantam. That was really hard to do,” said Fournier.
   All the teams and coaches are in place, and the teams are “ready to roll” into the season.
   The teams will be sporting a new look on the ice. This year the association has adopted the Drumheller Dragons colours.
   Fournier said equipment manager Lisa Jacques has been instrumental in making the switch. The Dragons and team sponsors are supportive of the move. Sports Room Source for Sports has been busy putting the Raptor logos on the new jerseys.
   Rod Knelsen of the Dragons said many other communities with junior teams have done the same thing and it promotes pride.
   Fournier agrees.
   “Integrating the uniforms is awesome, the kids in Minor Hockey look up to the Dragons and doing this is huge,” said Fournier.
   One of the big changes to hockey all over is the new head contact rule.
   “It is going to be a big learning curve for everyone involved,” said Fournier. “Anything from the neck up is a no go this year and even an accidental knock to the head is a two minute penalty.
   "It is a good change, but it is going to be a tough growing change. Interpretation by the referees is going to be huge on this rule. Meaning some refs are going to go right to the letter of the law, and some are going to slack off on calling it. It is going to be tough for the coaches to accept what is being called.”
   “Obviously for the kids’ safety it is definitely imperative that we go this route,” said Fournier.
   The Sports Room Source for Sports continues to be supportive of the Stopconcussions.com program and is continuing to do free helmet fittings. Hockey players can bring their helmets, wherever they bought them, and have them properly fitted. They are also advocating using mouth guards, and will not turn any hockey player away who does not have the means to purchase one.
   The Sports Room is continuing with its merits program. They have the Three Star program, in cooperation with Bauer for atom to bantam players. The coaches pick the stars and the players collect points and can compete with players across the country.
   They also have their Supersport program for beginners to novice. Each player will be picked as a Supersport; it could be for sportsmanship, or meeting achievement goals. They will be rewarded with a gift bag. This program is a partnership with Sports Room, Bauer and Sherwood. Local sponsors have also contributed to the prizes.

Football championship postponed

Titans in exhibition match Saturday

    The senior Titans were primed to play in the league final this weekend, but alas, they will have to wait.
   The Titans were set to host Canmore to play for the Big Sky League top prize, but they have rescheduled for next weekend.
   Football fans can rest easy, there will still be gridiron action on the field on Saturday in Drumheller. The Titans will be hosting the Winston Churchill Bulldogs of Lethbridge in exhibition play. They are strong team and are sitting in third place in the province at the Tier 3 level.
   “We need to play strong team to get ready for provincials,” said coach Ken Fournier.
   Game time is 1 p.m.

Valley missed out on World Juniors participation

    Drumheller had a chance to be a part of the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship coming up in Alberta this winter.
   The main stumbling block - ice time.
   The prestigious international tournament will be hosted in Calgary and Edmonton through December and January and features the top international junior hockey talent. Organizers were looking at one of the teams coming to Drumheller for camps leading up to the tournament, but with a single ice sheet in the valley, the community was not able to accommodate it.
   “Drumheller was a group we talked to about hosting a World Junior Training Camp,” said Kevin Webster, manager of event operations for Hockey Canada. “It was a decision they had to make locally based on their groups and we totally understand that. It is not easy in some of these communities getting the ice time they need with their current groups.”
   He said one international teams could have used Drumheller as a site for its preparation camp.
   He said this is a model they often use, and it is valuable to the participating communities.
   “It is great. They (communities) wouldn’t normally have a team like that touch down in their communities. We did it in Saskatchewan and Ottawa and those communities really bought in to housing the teams for a bit,” he said.
   “It is good for the team, the community gets behind them, and there is a little bit of fanfare before they head off before the event.”
   He also indicated there is an economic impact for the communities that participate.
   Webster said they worked with the Drumheller Dragons on the possibility.
   “They were great to work with. In the end it wasn’t that they didn’t want to do it, it just didn’t happen,” said Webster.
   Brooke Christianson of the Drumheller Dragons sees the World Juniors as a lost opportunity.
   “I don’t think it’s a secret that prime ice time in Drumheller is hard to come by, the saddest part of it and the part that I think some people don’t realize is that because of that, Drumheller is not considered as a possibility for large tournaments or events like this that would bring many dollars into our town and this is a missed opportunity for Drumheller,” said Christianson. “Our staff were all very excited about hosting the world junior camp. I think about how excited all of the kids would have been to meet the players and see this level of hockey played right here in town. I remember when I was a kid and the world juniors came to Hanna for an exhibition game, at that age, it seemed like the biggest thing that ever happened, it was awesome.”
   Webster said Hockey Canada would be announcing shortly where the team camps and exhibition games will be located during the tournament.

More Articles ...