Special-needs players score with Ice Wizards T


By Matt Mackinder


he Colorado Ice Wizards prove that hockey truly is for everyone.


As an organization made up of special-needs


players ranging in age from 6 to the late-30s, the Ice Wizards are now in their second season of see- ing non-stop smiles on the ice and developmentally disabled individuals be part of a team and learn the game of hockey. The team doesn’t check, adhere to icing rules or


even keep score. “This program is all about having fun and, if the


players aren’t doing that, then what’s the point?” said Ice Wizards president Tom Marshall. “Our players always go out and give 110 percent effort and, to be honest, I’m impressed with the results I’ve seen.” Practicing once a week on Saturday afternoons


at the YMCA Boulder Valley in Lafayette, Mar- shall challenges the team at the beginning of the session. “I always say that if we work hard, then we’ll


have a scrimmage at the end of practice,” explained Marshall. “We always end up scrimmaging.” Several times a year, the Midget Minor AA team


from Arvada practices with the Ice Wizards and takes part in post-practice scrimmages. JoAnn Stephenson, the Ice Wizards’ secretary


and treasurer and mother of one of the goalies on the team, said watching the club play and enjoy the game is pure joy. “I really admire our players for going out and giving it their all,” said Stephenson. “Hockey is by


Arvada’s Midget Minor AA team has developed a strong re- lationship with members of the Ice Wizards, a special-needs hockey program that plays out of Lafayette. Photo/Anne Hanson


no means an easy sport, but it’s just a great feeling to see the players enjoying themselves. “The parents are all very supportive, too.” The Ice Wizards organization is also an outlet to


expand the players’ social lives and help give them a sense of togetherness. It’s also meant to be as af- fordable as possible. “The only cost required is the USA Hockey reg-


istration fee,” said Marshall. “All of our equipment is donated, and we’ve also received unbelievable support from the YMCA. “Word of mouth is probably our best form of


advertising; many of the people that hear about us are already involved in the sport in some way, so we try to get fliers out to area rinks and to local hockey associations. We also work with therapeutic rec programs and other agencies serving people


with special needs.” The Colorado Golden Eagles are a similar team


in Southern Colorado and more than 20 players now with the Ice Wizards were previously part of that program. Due to travel issues and a growing interest in special-needs hockey in Northern Colo- rado, the Ice Wizards were formed. “It made sense to expand from a travel stand-


point and from the standpoint that we want to grow the program all across the state,” said Ste- phenson. “Special-needs hockey is getting big- ger and bigger and has actually been in Canada for about 20 years and is spreading down to the United States. “It’s something to be proud of and we’re looking


at the number of participants increasing down the road.” Affiliated with Special Hockey International


(SHI) and the American Special Hockey Associa- tion (ASHA), the Ice Wizards took part in an SHI tournament in Boston last year, an event Stephen- son said “was a blast.” “There were 70 special teams there and the kids


had a great time,” he said. This year, the team will participate in the


ASHA tournament that will be held later this win- ter in Texas. The Ice Wizards will also be holding a free


learn-to-skate for people with special needs at the YMCA on Dec. 27. The organization is hoping for a big turnout, said Marshall. Interested parties can receive more information


or register by e-mailing Stephenson at jstephe887@ q.com or by calling her at (303) 423-5729.


Silver Stick event competitive to the end G


By Bob Miller


oaltenders stole the show in the final rounds of the Rocky Mountain Silver Stick regional quali-


fier, hosted by the Hyland Hills Hockey Association, as four of the eight divisional-final games ended with the winning squad blanking its opponent. The showcase, which was held from Nov. 27-29


at Westminster’s Ice Centre at the Promenade, saw record participation with 73 teams competing, according to tournament director Sharon Benton, with clubs from Colorado, Arizona, Nebraska, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming vying for a trip to the International Finals. “It was a great few days of hockey,” said Benton.


“There was a lot of great competition and a lot of the games were tightly contested.” Littleton’s Midget Major A squad rode a 24-save


performance from netminder Sean Bader on its way to a narrow 3-2 championship-game victory over Aspen. Aksel Campbell’s goal at 9:39 of the final period


broke a 2-2 tie to secure the win for Littleton.Austin Young andTanner Doty notched the other Hawk goals, whileDaniel Kelso andBoris Lindeneau each tallied a goal for Aspen in the loss. GoaltenderTanner Colborg of Arvada’s Midget


Minor A team stopped all 14 Littleton shots he faced to ensure his team’s 5-0 victory in the final. Ian Snedden,Ronnie Davies,Caleb Squire,


Chase Tosh andBlake Ekblad rang up goals for Arvada, with Tosh’s goal his sixth of the tournament to lead everyone in the division. Two-goal performances from bothNicholas Gun-


8


Arapahoe edged Boulder, 2-1, in the Pee Wee A


final, as goaltendersFrancisco Clark-Silva (Boul- der) andBen Reinholtz (Arapahoe) each made 13 saves in the championship nail-biter. Jordan Suseski opened the scoring with an


unassisted first-period goal for Boulder, while Zach Purcell struck for both Warrior markers. In the Pee Wee B final, Boulder blanked Razor


City behind stellar goaltending fromReese Kelly. Sam Love tallied twice for Boulder withHenry


The Arapahoe Warriors staked claim to the Pee Wee A division championship at last month’s Silver Stick regional qualifier in Westminster.


sauls andNoah Ingwers helped Arapahoe double- up Hyland Hills, 4-2, in the Bantam A final. Kevin Ness andAdam Shimamoto answered


with a goal apiece for Hyland Hills. Southwest Colorado’sBen Barrett and Arapahoe’sLogan Es- posito each tallied six goals to lead the division. University of Denver Jr. Pioneers goaltender


Kamren Wong stopped all 11 shots Arvada threw in his direction to lead DU to the Bantam B champion- ship, 3-0. Jack Davidson,Franny Churches andMax


Bublitz provided the offense for DU with a goal each. Arvada netminderDayn Pyykkonen turned aside 24 of 27 DU shots in defeat, while Foothills’ Thimy Moraitis scored seven goals and added an assist in just four games to lead all scorers in the division.


McGowan,Tanner Leach, Jaxson Hebda and Jonathan Perry also chipping in a goal apiece. Hy- land Hills’ Jacob Wilton led all Pee Wee B scorers with five goals and one assist in four games. Addison Zeich made 15 saves in Arapahoe’s 5-0


shutout victory over Littleton in the Squirt A final. Five different scorers found the back of the net


for the Warriors in the championship, andCharles Chase Jones andPallen Brooks both chipped in a goal and an assist.Ethan Dupree,Christian Brown andChristian Carew also lit the lamp for Arapahoe. Aspen edged Krivo School of Hockey, 3-2, in a


Squirt B final that featured all of the game’s scoring taking place in the opening period. Max Ufkes paced Aspen with the opening goal


and assists on his team’s other two markers scored by Logan Reich andMatthew Rigney.Kieran Ce- brian andWes Coquet replied with goals for Krivo. The winning teams will advance to their respec-


tive Silver Stick International Finals tournaments, which will be played next month in various locations in Canada and Michigan. For more information, visit SilverStick.org.


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