By Mitch Bach

Sledge hockey team ready for first games

Jan 27, 2017 | 1:08 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — After years of practice, Medicine Hat will ice its first-ever sledge hockey team this weekend.

The team, organized by the Medicine Hat Adaptive Sports Society, will play its first games this weekend, hosting the Edmonton Paralympic Sports Association at the Family Leisure Centre at 8:30 p.m. Saturday and on Sunday at 9 a.m. in Ralston.

Tara Chisholm, one of the players on the team, says although the games are exhibitions, this weekend will show how the team can handle a competitive game situation.

“This is a stepping stone to see if we can handle the games and see if we’re up to snuff,”she said.

Chisholm adds Medicine Hat is hoping to become a member of the Alberta Sledge Hockey League next year.

HERE'S WHAT TO KNOW

Summer pool hours extended and discounts applied as Big Marble Go Centre upgrades start

Apr 18, 2024

Medicine Hat company drawing in clients with witty signage

Apr 16, 2024

Medicine Hat College holding event for missing and murdered Indigenous women awareness day

Apr 16, 2024

Chisholm says the Medicine Hat team has been around for three years, and has attracted more than 20 players to the team for the games this weekend.

“We have half our team with disabilities, and half without, so people are realizing that it’s not just a sport for people with disabilities,” she said. “I play, and a lot of my friends play the game, and it’s hard work. It’s a sport, with or without disabilities, that’s a lot of hard work.”

Chisholm says the team is getting better at skating and the team’s recent practices have been focused on hockey strategy.

“We’re teaching them about where to be on the ice, and how to break out, and all of the different intricacies about hockey,” she said.

For some of the players, this is the first team sport they’ve ever been a part of, and Chisholm says there is excitement in the locker room.

“Even things like getting a team hoodie with their name and number on it, they’ve never had that before,” she said. “It’s interesting, as someone who grew up in sports, to see someone experience it for the first time. It’s pretty neat.”