Congratulations to the Riverview Royals Peewee A Female team who won the NB Championship in Saint John!
It's been a great year for Girls hockey this year in Riverview!
Front Row: Morgan Fayle (MVP championship game). Second Row left to right: Mykkaela Lutes, Brooke MacFadyen, Taylor Flewelling, Ashley Bent, Christina Burgoyne, Erika Fullerton, Courtney Strugnell. Third Row left to right: Julie Christie, Glenn MacFadyen (coach), Morgan Dimock, Taylor Marney, Katie Vautour, Grayce Nicolle-Glover, Derek Bent (coach), Madelyn Wheaton, Grace Anderson, Gregg Strugnell (coach).
Front row, left to right: Olivia Hebb, Thomas Lipton, Matthew Lecocq, Devan Fayle, Kaitlyn Landry, Pia Massaro, Mia Cameron. Middle row: Dawson MacDonald, Jayden MacFadyen, Denika Diotte, Aiken Bloedow, Brianna Babineau, Alyssa Rawline, Isaac Kielly. Back row: Head coach Steve Cameron, asst. coach Glenn MacFadyen, asst. coach Jeremy Babineau, manager Derrick Hebb, asst. coach Neil Kielly. Photo by Sam Cormier.
Can a warm, supportive team focused on gender equality and fair play make it in hockey?
Read on...
You could say the Riverview Icewolves played like a bunch of little girls this year, and you wouldn't be wrong, since the majority of the atom team's players were, in fact, nine and 10-year-old girls.
You could also say the Riverview Icewolves played like a bunch of little boys this year, because, in fact, a significant minority on the team were little boys.
But if you really wanted to get it right, you'd say the Icewolves neither played like a bunch of little girls or boys.
They played like a team.
In fact, the team's name comes from the kids, one of whom learned in school that wolves have both an alpha male and an alpha female, an image of gender equality they kind of liked.
And the story of this one little team in one little town in one little corner of one little province transcends sport.
Or perhaps more correctly, it validates sport at a time when sport, and especially minor hockey, could really use the boost.
Most will tell you the atmosphere in arenas has actually improved over the years, thanks to public awareness campaigns and efforts from within. However, it only takes one 13-year-old referee having to call for police protection from a rowdy parent in Saint John or one coach in British Columbia tripping a kid and breaking his wrist during the end-of-game friendly handshake of all things, and it feels like all the work hockey organizations have done has been for naught.
There are times when a concerned parent or a thoughtful coach might even be tempted to give up on hockey.
The problem is, you can't give up on kids. You give up on them if you walk away from the sport, but you also give up on them when you don't stand up and challenge the things that are wrong with the nation's great game and embrace the things that are right.
The den mothers and fathers of the cubs in the Icewolves' pack seem to agree coach Steve Cameron, whose daughter Mia was an Icewolf, was one of those volunteers who consistently stood up for their kids' right to have hockey be fun.
And the way to make it fun, and to be successful too, is to teach the kids to be a real team, not just the grouping of players of varying abilities that every minor hockey team is in October.
'Steve deserves the credit for teaching that,' said Andrew Diotte, whose daughter Denika was on the team.
If good coaches steal good ideas from other coaches, this article steals its core idea from coach Steve.
'The lesson … was this is a hockey team. You aren't boys and girls. You're hockey players,' he said this week.
Coach Steve, who had a whole stable of other dads helping behind the bench, rejected the talk that he deserves the bulk of the credit for the year they had.
He also rejected the idea it was just the dads behind the bench.
'It takes a whole village to raise a child,' he said, citing the Ethiopian proverb and saying everyone - players, coaches and parents - must work together to make a team work.
The support was there throughout the rink. As hockey mom Alesha Fayle recalled, 'the parents were cheering more for the good plays than the scores.' At the start of the year, there was a conscious experiment to make the team all girls, even amid a lot of concern they would be 'too weak' to compete with the boys.
In the end the Icewolves had eight girls and six boys donning jerseys. It was not because the girls needed a few male ringers to get them on the scoreboard. It was that the hockey daughter demographic in atom house league was just too small.
Hockey dad Marc LeCocq was man enough to admit this week he was initially one of the naysayers.
'I didn't like the idea at first. I wasn't too sure how this would work out,' he said.
Mostly, he wondered how his son Matthew would react to being in the minority and how he would react if the season went sour.
His son, however, wasn't concerned at all, and that made a difference.
Of course, if Marc had thought to ask Devan Fayle, the girl who eventually became the Icewolves' stellar goalie, she would have set him straight.
'I think girls are just as good as boys,' she said yesterday, adding, 'I really want to play all my life.' Devan was better than many boys this year.
During the Sidney Crosby shootout competition, sponsored by you-know-who in his hometown of Cole Harbour each year, Devan was one of 16 goalies. She was the only girl and she won the whole shooting match, stopping 44 of 48 shots.
While she took home top goalie honours, her teammate Thomas Lipton scored the most goals and won the whole thing for offensive players, setting the new record in the event.
'I have this move that I use every single time,' he explained yesterday.
Only once did he fail to score, and that one hit the post.
Whether or not Thomas is a young star in the making, what he said of his year this week was 'it was more about teamwork than winning.' The Crosby competition was a good example.
An event completely separate from the tournament the Icewolves were playing, Thomas and Devan nevertheless had their whole team and all the parents in the rink to support them, even as the many lovely distractions of the Halifax Regional Municipality beckoned outside the arena doors.
Steve said the ultimate measure of the team was obvious when a little girl on the Icewolves came up to him after Devan and Thomas's amazing individual achievements and said, 'I can't believe WE won the shootout!' In the end the team people feared would be weak had a record of 38 wins, six losses and two ties. They won two tournaments, lost in the final of another and to top it off won the A division of the Southeast Hockey League.
'Our goal was to teach the life lessons, but the fallout is we ended up winning,' Steve said.
The way the season played out, their last game of the year didn't count.
It was a game against a Dieppe team, and if you haven't been to a rink in a while, there has occasionally been a bit of bad blood between Acadia's largest city and Albert County's biggest town.
With the referee's approval, the two coaches played a shortened official game, and then swapped players around for another game where each team was half Riverview, half Dieppe. Who won that game? Hockey.
Summing up the whole year, Andrew Diotte said, 'I don't think the kids even realize yet how great a team they were.' Years from now, even when the kids on the team are adults and have become hockey parents themselves, maybe especially when they become hockey parents, they are going to, as coach Steve hopes, 'remember the Icewolves.'
Often times in all the running around from rink to rink and with the stress that sometimes accompanies minor hockey life today, we often forget what it's supposed to be all about; Fun, friendship, teamwork, hard work, determination, and most of all respect.
Here's a heart-warming video from SHI Kitchener that brings things all back into persepective in a very nice way...
Riverview Minor Hockey Club has operated in the community of Riverview NB since 1966. Over that period an average of 600 players per year have participated from September to April each year in Canada’s favourite game. In total, over 4000 player alumni have graduated from RMHC’s program and a similar number of 4000 Club volunteers have participated in the delivery of the programs.
This scholarship is in honour of those deceased players, volunteers and club members who have participated and dedicated time and effort toward the development of minor hockey in the Riverview Minor Hockey Club.
This award provides the selected recipient with a one time $500 scholarship to be used toward post secondary education in a field of their choice.
Eligibility
The RMHC Alumni Memorial Scholarship is intended for students who meet the following mandatory eligibility criteria;
A student of Riverview High School.
Enrolled in grade 12 and graduating in the current year of application.
Will be enrolling in post secondary education upon graduation.
A member of the Riverview Minor Hockey Club for a minimum of four (4) years.
Played hockey in the current season for RMHC, RHS or district AAA team.
Criteria & Submission Requirements
The applicant must provide documented proof that they meet the eligibility criteria. They must provide academic performance reports with their submission. They may also provide letters of reference, letters from parents, and any other additional supporting material to support their application as to why they deserve this scholarship. The information will be reviewed by the RMHC Executive Committee.
The criteria for review will include but may not be limited to;
Eligibility, including a commitment to post secondary education
Club and Community Volunteer Contribution
Academic & Athletic Performance
Future Education Plans and Goals
Amount $500
Please send your submission to:
RMHC Alumni Memorial Scholarship
P.O. Box 7028
Riverview, NB
E1B 4T8
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Deadline for submission is April 30th, 2013
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Congratulations to all our past RMHC Bursary Winners
We're happy to announce that we have two winners this year from RMHC in the annual Hockey New Brunswick fundraising campaign.
Carole Daigle won 2nd prize - a $5,000 Travel Credit and the Riverview Peewee AA Blues won one of the four Team Party Packs awarded across the province!
The following is a Press Release sent out recently to all associations from Hockey New Brunswick. We encourage all RMHC players, coaches and parents to read and abide by this by-law and use good judgement and common sense when using social networks like Facebook and Twitter. We have been informed that failure to comply can result in sanctions against any member.
Important notice to all HNB members
**** For immediate release ****
(Fredericton, N.B.) For teams and individuals using social media sites, section 17.3 in the HNB constitution under Code of Ethics states, "It shall be considered unethical for any member or any person associated with a member in HNB to make direct derogatory or disparaging remarks to the media or public domain about any other person, member or affiliate of HNB." (see page 35)
Wouldn't it be great to take some of the planning and cost out of your team's end-of-year party?
Activate your Club Hockey Canada Card and your team could win an HNB Team Party Pack!
Hockey New Brunswick is awarding 4 HNB Team Party Packs (one per the following regions - Zone A (West), Zone B (South), Zone C (East) and Zone D (North)
Prize will include:
1. Gift pack for all players and coaches (limit 24)
2. Pizza and soft-drinks for your end-of-year party
All you have to do is have each member of your team (players and staff) activate their Club Hockey Canada card (www.c1ubhockeycanada.ca) and submit your team name and contact information to:
Amanda Tidd at the HNB office -
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
by February 1st, 2013.
Following the February 1st deadline, HNB will draw one team from each of the four above regions to win this great prize!
*HNB will verify that each team has indeedfully activated their cards before making the draw and announcing the winners.
RMHC would like to thank all the teams that attended our 39th Annual Subway RMHC Christmas Tournament.
Unfortunately, due to a major snowstorm that weekend, some semifinal and final games had to be cancelled.
With limited ice availability and other logistical factors, we were unable to reschedule these games, therefore banners were awarded to the teams that finished 1st place in the round-robin for the Bantam and Midget divisions.
We appreciate your support and hope to see everyone again next year!
List of Winners:
Atom A: 1. Riverview 1 2. Kent Center
Atom B: 1. Sussex 2. Riverview 2
Atom C: 1. Fredericton 2. Shediac
PeeWee A: 1. Moncton 2. Sussex
PeeWee AA: 1. Moncton 2. Riverview
Bantam A: 1. Moncton Hawks 2. Kent Center Bears
Bantam AA: 1. Riverview Blues 2. Cumberland Ramblers
Midget A: 1. Shediac / Cap Pele 2. Riverview Blues
Kraft Hockeyville 2013 cancelled due to NHL Lockout
TORONTO,Nov. 20, 2012/CNW/ - Due to the on-going NHL lockout, KraftCanadais cancelling its 2013 Kraft Hockeyville program and investing in a new program calledKraftHockey Goes On. The program will award$1 millionto HockeyCanadaaffiliated minor hockey associations across the country.
"Through our many years of involvement in community hockey, we realize there are countless unrecognized hockey volunteers and it's because of them that our favourite sport goes on," saidJack Hewitt, Vice President of Marketing Insight & Services, KraftCanada. "There are over four million volunteers who dedicate themselves to ensure the game is played from coast to coast. This year, we're celebrating these heroes of the game."
Kraft Hockey Goes Onis celebrating and recognizing local hockey volunteers and providing them with a way to give back within their community. Through the program over$1 millionwill be given to HockeyCanadaaffiliated minor hockey associations across the country.KraftHockey Goes Onwill:
·recognize the top 5 volunteers and award his or her local hockey association with$100,000
·recognize an additional 20 volunteers and award his or her local hockey association with$20,000
·provide$100,000to HockeyCanadato distribute to Learn to Skate programs at the local level.
"There are many things that help set up a game of hockey but the magic of the sport is the people who make it happen," saidBob Nicholson, President and CEO, HockeyCanada. "It's the spirit of the Canadian communities that makes this sport so special. You feel it when you catch a game at a local arena. That's what hockey is about."
A new survey reveals that 77 percent of Canadians say that local and community hockey could not survive without the efforts of dedicated volunteers in communities acrossCanada.
Communities can nominate local hockey volunteers by going to KraftHockeyGoesOn.ca fromJanuary 21, 2013until March 8, 2013. A panel will determine the top 100 individuals. Canadians can vote for their local hockey volunteer startingMarch 23, 2013. The top 5 winning communities will be announcedMarch 30, 2013.
About Kraft Foods Group Kraft Foods Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: KRFT) is North America's fourth largest consumer packaged food and beverage company, with revenues of approximately$19 billionin 2011. Launched as a public and independent company onOct. 1, 2012, the new Kraft has the spirit of a startup and the soul of a powerhouse. The company has an unrivaled portfolio of products in the beverages, cheese, convenient meals and grocery categories. Its iconic brands includeKraft,Maxwell House,Oscar Mayer,PlantersandJELL-O.Kraft's 25,000 employees in the U.S. andCanadahave a passion for making the foods and beverages people love. Kraft Foods Group is a member of the Standard & Poor's 500 index. For more information, visitwww.kraft.comandwww.facebook.com/kraft
About the Survey Innovative Research Group (INNOVATIVE) conducted an online poll on behalf of KraftCanadafromNovember 17-November 19, 2012. A representative sample of 1,259 adult Canadians was conducted on INNOVATIVE'sCanada20/20 national research panel. Online studies are based on representative samples rather than probability samples so margins of error do not apply. An unweighted probability sample of the same size has a margin of error of + or - 2.76%, 19 times out of 20.
TORONTO, Ont. – Hockey Canada launched free concussion awareness apps for smartphones and tablets on Thursday, with the endorsement and support of Team Canada alumnus Sidney Crosby.
The Hockey Canada Concussion Awreness apps are available in both English and French, with versions for adults and kids. The apps include a variety of resources and information on concussions, focusing on prevention, respect, rules, symptoms and return to play protocol. All these apps are available for Blackberry, iOS and Android devices and can be downloaded free on several websites and platforms including www.HockeyCanada.ca, Blackberry’s App World, iTunes and Google Play Store.
“This app has a variety of very useful information on concussions for parents, players, officials and volunteers,” said Hockey Canada president and CEO Bob Nicholson. “Download this app to your phone or tablet today, and you will have concussion information on prevention, rules, symptoms and ‘return to play’ protocol at your fingertips.”
“I feel very fortunate that hockey has been part of my life since I was very young and admire Hockey Canada’s commitment to educating families and players about all aspects of the game,” said Crosby. “It is important to always give your best effort and yet always be respectful of everyone on the ice. Be smart, stay safe and have fun.”
One version of the Hockey Canada concussion awareness app was developed for kids, and is a great tool to teach children how to prevent concussions through respect and playing by the rules. The app also puts important concussion information into easy to follow information for young players. It also contains an interactive game that features Hockey Canada's mascot, Puckster.
This Hockey Canada initiative is part of a national project bringing together Hockey Canada, ThinkFirst Pensez d’Abord Canada (TFC), a program of Parachute, leaders in injury prevention, the Canadian Centre for Ethics and Sport (CCES) and the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC). The project is aimed at reducing brain injuries in team sports in Canada and is funded in part by the federal government through its Active and Safe Initiative.
The project partners envision a country where all Canadian children and youth have access to safe team sport activities. It is expected that in collaboration with Canadian governments and their community partners, they can accomplish much over the next few years by focusing its collective efforts.
For more information on Hockey Canada, its programs and concussion awareness, please visit www.hockeycanada.ca/apps
Hockey Canada is aiming at making the sport safer and more affordable for Canadian families with a new program it is unveiling this season.
The “Club Hockey Canada” card will enable nearly 1.5 million amateur registered players across the country to obtain discounts from Hockey Canada sponsors and help offset the cost of playing the game.
The new card taps Hockey Canada sponsors like Esso, Boston Pizza, Lowe’s, Bauer and Nestle, and passes discounts on to the cardholders.
Some 450,000 households across Canada — more than 1.4 million players — are in the process of receiving the cards, which are aimed at reducing prices for equipment, gas, and food, involved with having boys and girls play hockey and travel to tournaments.
When you get yours in the mail, go to the Club Hockey Canada website to activate it.
As you all make your way back to the rink for the first time this year, please be advised that the town has installed new 30 km/h speed limit signs and a new 4-way stop sign at the intersection right before the rink.
Be careful on your way down the hill as this is something that we will all have to get used to.
