Fun, competition, and great teammates make up the hat trick some hockey players seek when they play the much-loved sport.
Those three elements were what Rianne Lee enjoyed the most about her time spent at the Rotary Place this weekend playing in the Atom House League division of the 24th annual Orillia Hawks Tournament.
Seventy teams participated in the weekend tournament, playing games at Orillia's Rotary Place, Brian Orser Arena, the Gravenhurst Centennial Centre, and Mnjikaning Arena Sports Ki in Rama.
Lee, a nine-year-old Oakville Hornets Thunderbolts team member, was happy her team won its Saturday morning game, 5-2.
“We say 'Good game' to the other team,” said Lee. “We don’t give them any bad comments about them losing.”
And when her own team loses, she said, “We say at least we scored and did out best and had fun.”
Quitting is never an option, said Olivia Silver of the Aurora Panthers.
“I lost, but I won’t want to quit,” said the nine-year-old, whose morning Atom House League game didn’t quite go according to plan. “This is my favourite game. And we could try harder and might win the next one.”
Her friend, Ryan Hankinson, said it’s more about having fun on the ice than anything else.
“The coaches tell us we always try really hard and it’s OK if we lose,” said the nine-year-old student of Lester B. Pearson Public School in Aurora. “All that matters is we have fun.”
Seeing players from so many different teams from around the province is great, said Hankinson.
“I feel like it’ll be fun to play them,” she said. “And I hope we get to play them all.”
Hankinson and Silver said while they’re having fun on the ice, they also try and learn some tricks from the other teams.
That is also something Claire Charpentier, a goalie for the Georgina Golden Hawks, sometimes does.
“Sometimes I might recognize something the other goalie is doing better than me, so I try to match it or do it better than they do it,” said the 11-year-old.
Charpentier said she’s been playing playing since she was four years old, and each year, she gets better.
“It was pretty tough when I first started playing,” she said. “It’s pretty easy now. My body has gotten used to how a goalie moves: pretty quickly.”
Charpentier said she likes to prepare for a game by putting on some gear and practising catching a ball by hitting it against a wall.
“It helps a lot,” she said.
Sometimes, winning one game helps prepare for the next one, said Caitlin Shaver, captain of the Orillia Hawks Bantam B team.
“It puts a good vibe in the girls for the next games,” said the 14-year-old.
While on the ice, she said, she tries to keep up her teammates’ morale by constantly encouraging them to play their best, adding if they lose, they have to remember, “It’s just not all our fault and we have to leave it behind and keep going.”
That’s not usually a problem, she said. And it helps in dealing with comments from the other team.
“Usually, we’re higher on the scoreboard, so when someone from the other team says something, we just say, ‘Look at the scoreboard,’” said Shaver.
It’s all a learning experience, she said.
“Every game comes with something new and you learn something new about yourself in every game,” said Shaver.
Angela Whitten, tournament director of the long-running popular tournament, said the event has been a success for almost a quarter of a century because of what it offers: a good tournament.
“We see teams returning year after year, with increased numbers of other teams from their associations,” she said.
For some, such as the Oakville Hornets Thunderbolts, it was the first time visiting Orillia for a girls' hockey tournament.
“It seemed to be a good mid-size tournament,” said coach Mike Kerwin. “It’s got a strong track record in the area. It’s got nice venues for us to enjoy.”
And if they plan ahead, he said, they can also check out local attractions.
“We are a large group of people so we have to be cognizant of where can all go,” said Kerwin, whose team and volunteers are staying at Casino Rama. “We will try to go to Mariposa Market tomorrow.”
Whitten said, with 1,200 to 1,300 players and their family members coming to town, the tournament is a boon to local businesses.
“I know hotels are completely sold out for the weekend,” she said. “I know a lot of families make a mini vacation of the tournament by staying at the Carriage Ridge Resort and Horseshoe Valley Resort.”
Currently, there are 10 teams in the Orillia Girls Hockey Association, said Whitten. Despite the popularity of the sport in Orillia, an expansion in the number of association teams isn’t possible.
“All associations within Orillia have always stressed that we need more ice,” she said. “It benefits the tournament if we have more ice and it will also allow us to expand.”
