PRINCE GEORGE – They gathered in the Kin Centre this morning, suiting up to hit the ice: A motley crue of young women from DP Todd.
“I don’t skate. I’m terrible at it, but I thought I played many other sports, so I might as well try something out and get better at skating before I graduate,” said Grade 11 Student Nevaeh Horsley.
She joins twenty-four other girls as part of a program put on by the Hockey 4 Youth Foundation, many of whom have never worn a pair of skates in their lives. This event aims to introduce young women an opportunity.
“One in three [girls] are actually dropping out of sport at the age of 13 versus one in ten boys,” says Moezine Hasham, Founder of the Hockey 4 Youth Foundation. “So if you have one in three girls dropping out of a sport at the age of 13, that spells challenges for them as they grow older, as they go through their high school experience.”
And there was celebrity on the ice. Kirk McLean donned the gear to stand in net, not just as a net-minder, but an ambassador for the Vancouver Canucks.
“It’s grassroots hockey, right? We all experienced this type of thing, at one point,” said McLean. “We didn’t have any of these kinds of resources back in the day. And to be able to get out here and have specifically today young females, some that have a little bit of experience and some that won’t have any getting on the ice and try and hockey out.”
Women’s hockey is making gains in the professional world and that’s a good thing.
“We have a women’s professional hockey league now,” said McLean. “How cool is that? And I truly believe at some point, you know, I don’t know when down the line in the future that there could be the first-ever female hockey player in the NHL.”
And they hit the ice some better than others. With all the girls gearing up, they hit the ice – some better than others. But it is traditionally a challenging sport for many to get into.
“Growing up as a kid, it was always a blue-collar sport. It was it was still fairly expensive, depending on what your parent’s income was. And I can remember my dad, you know, it broke the bank for $20 only. Stay there, what, 350, you know, for a stick!”
And that’s where the Foundation steps in.
“We remove those barriers, we get them their ice time, their coaching, their equipment,” said Hasham. “Everything is free for them.”
But the question remains, will this venture keep Nevaeh on the ice? “I’ve always kind of been interested in hockey, never really went for it. I’m not quite sure if it’s something I take through to college and university, but probably keep it around and play a little bit every once in a while.”
And maybe one day we’ll see her playing for Team Canada. Women’s Team Canada.
