Spreading Their Wings
A well-respected fixture in local youth hockey scene, the Anaheim Jr. Ducks have their sights set on continued prosperity By Chris Bayee
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f it seems as if there are more and more webbed footprints appearing at California hockey rinks - and beyond - you’re not seeing things. And if things go according to plan, the Anaheim Jr. Ducks’ flock will grow in the coming years.
That’s because the club, which this season includes 14 boys teams and eight Lady Ducks teams, is also the umbrella for the growing Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League (for more on California high school hockey, see Page 15).
Factor in a tight relationship with the NHL’s Ducks and The Rinks program, which in the past few years has added Westminster Ice and inline facilities in Corona, Huntington Beach and Irvine to Anaheim Ice, and a growth trend is evident.
“Adding more rinks has given us the opportunity to grow, expanding both boys and girls hockey,” said Art Trottier, the Jr. Ducks’ president and the The Rinks’ vice president. “We still buy ice at other facilities because when you include the high school league, this is by far the most teams we’ve ever had.”
Trottier won’t rule out The Rinks adding more facilities in the future. “We don’t want hockey to go by the wayside in Southern California,” he said. “If any other rink came up for sale, we would consider it.
“As for expansion, we hope that our next project takes us to South Orange County.”
While the Lady Ducks offer AA and AAA programs, the Jr. Ducks have only sporadically had tier programs during the past 15 or so years. That’s about to change.
“We’ve been known as an A- and B-level club, which isn’t a problem,” Trottier said. “With the addition of Craig Johnson as director of coaches, we’re looking at AA and AAA teams. We’re looking to cover the whole spectrum.
“Our house league has helped every program in the area. It’s probably the strongest in Southern California with 24-25 teams. We want to grow the sport - that’s really the goal of The Rinks, the Jr. Ducks and the NHL Ducks.”
Johnson also coaches a Jr. Ducks Bantam A team, Santa Margarita Catholic High School’s varsity team and the California Firstars Squirt AAA team, which plays out of Anaheim Ice.
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girls program, competing at a tier level was the only option; a difficult way to start, but one that ultimately has paid off.
“The success we saw with growing the program and being pretty good rubbed off on the boys and their desire to have tier hockey,” she said. “The Jr. Ducks have transitioned into AA and birth year teams, giving them the same opportunities to be at the highest levels.”
The Lady Ducks, who began with two teams and about 20 players, now number approximately 140. A try- hockey-for-free day in November drew 24 girls, with 10 signing up to join teams or attend clinics with an eye towards joining a team next season, McGarrigle said.
“Art did girls hockey for the right reasons. When we had 10 kids and a goalie on a team, he did it even though the club lost money,” she said. “We’re the only club south of San Jose that fully supports girls hockey. “The philosophy for the Ducks from leadership on down is more of a village mentality; let’s grow the village every week, every month, every year. It’s a bigger-picture mentality, and hockey will be around for a long time in Orange County and the Inland Empire because the Jr. Ducks embraced roller hockey and girls hockey.”
With the Anaheim Lady Ducks already positioned as one of the top girls programs in the country, the Jr. Ducks organi- zation is working towards building its boys contingent to the same level of success. Photo/
Photography66.com
“That’s our goal, to have 18 AAA all the way down to Pee Wee AAA,” said Johnson, a veteran of 14 seasons of pro hockey, including 557 games in the NHL. “This year we made a stab at it, but it didn’t work. We’re going to come back strong next year.
“This is the direction the Jr. Ducks want to take. They want to raise the caliber of the teams, to have the AAA levels, and that’s the challenge we’re going to embrace.”
Having the club affiliated with The Rinks makes that plan more viable, Johnson added.
“Ice is the most important thing to start a tier program,” he said. “You need the facilities, the weight rooms, everything to make it a top-notch facility. Whether at Westminster Ice or Anaheim Ice, we want to have locker rooms for the older kids and have a training facility so they can work with the top guys.
“We’re going to try to bring in quality coaches who have worked at higher levels of hockey so we can help
the kids move on. The relationship with the NHL Ducks also will help these kids get where they want to be.” If the boys are seeking a template for success, they don’t have to look far. The Lady Ducks, which began in 2000 under the direction of Kathy McGarrigle, have advanced 40 girls to college hockey, with seven more verbally committed for next season (a number that will grow). In addition, the LDs have fared well at USA Hockey national tournaments, winning one title, takings second once and third seven times.
And two former Lady Ducks -
forward Anne Pankowski (Laguna Hills) and defenseman Kaliya Johnson - represented Team USA at the 18U Women’s World Championship in the Czech Republic earlier this month.
“We have one of the top female programs in the country,” Trottier said.
When McGarrigle, who is the LDs’ director and head coach, started the
The LDs have grown to the point where all of their teams have full rosters for the first time, and because of the influx of younger girls (6-11) learning to play, the future looks especially bright, McGarrigle added. The presence of the NHL’s Ducks not only has lent name recognition, but it’s helped supply capable and passionate former pros to coach Jr. Ducks teams. Todd and Caroline Marchant help coach multiple Lady Ducks teams as well as a boys Squirt team. Jason Marshall helps coach Orange Lutheran’s JV high school team and a Mite team, while Johnson coaches a Bantam team and is assisted by Scott Niedermayer on the Firstars. Niedermayer also helps with a Mite team.
“All of these coaches, especially Craig, Caroline, Todd and Jason, are very hands-on within the organization,” said Cindi Palomarez, who heads up the Jr. Ducks’ marketing efforts. “They aren’t just coaches or assistant coaches in name only.” One of many ways the footprint is
spreading.
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