A Storm is brewing for junior women's hockey in the Foothills.
The Foothills Storm had its application to join the Alberta Junior Female Hockey League (AJFHL) officially accepted last week and now it’s a matter of crossing off a number of items on the to-do-list for the expansion franchise.
“Now the biggest challenge for us is just getting the word out there to the community and the area,” said Foothills Storm president Darcy Williams. “That this is happening and we’re going to need some support.”
Williams said the team is hoping to tap into the community with different fundraising ventures and secure sponsorship opportunities before the puck drops on the 2023-24 season in October.
“This is a long-term process, this is not a sprint, it’s a marathon where we’ve got a multi-year plan to build this program up,” he said. “I’m hoping that it opens the doors for a number of young ladies that are up-and-coming and were contemplating maybe going away to play hockey.
“This is another option for them to stay at home, go to school close to home and still continue to play a competitive style.”
Due to one of the existing teams folding, the Calgary Jags, the Foothills roster was able to add an experienced face behind the bench with Rob Nelson brought on as head coach of the Storm.
The bench boss will have some of his former Jags players making the switch to Foothills as well, along with former players helping out in coaching, equipment management, web design and social media roles. Kurt Weber and Williams will be assistant coaches as well.
“(Rob) is also the league vice-president and someone that I had been dealing with and, in talking with him over the weeks, I liked what he had to say,” Williams said. “He’s been in the league for a number of years as an assistant and head coach.
“I jumped on that opportunity right away and that, in turn, led to a number of free agents becoming available from that team that wanted to continue playing.”
The roster, which is about 20-strong, is going to be a good mix of local graduating minor hockey players with a number of new additions from the Jags, a number of whom are from out of province and go to post-secondary in the region.
“And they’re all excited about this opportunity,” Williams said. “Because I think from a period of 72 hours they went from having the rug pulled out from underneath them and being told they don’t have a team anymore to here’s an opportunity to come play a little bit further south.”
Williams said there will be a tryout with the expectation of having 20 full-time players and another four or so red-shirting to help the team navigate injuries and absences.
Next to filling the roster, the biggest challenge was securing ice time in the hockey-mad region, Williams added.
Hard work behind the scenes from Deanna Misana has ensured the team has a couple of home ice sheets for its inaugural season with Saturday games at the Blackie Arena and Sunday contests at the Oilfields Arena in Diamond Valley.
The team is now in the process of picking out jersey and logo designs with the expectation of having a navy blue with black, grey and white trim colour scheme.
“It’s a fun time,” Williams said. “Bringing in that process and letting them be part of that is kind of special, not many players get to pick a jersey they want to wear.”
The season is expected to start in October with the home opener on Oct. 7. The exhibition season will also feature a pre-season tournament hosted by the Cochrane Chaos.
For more information, contact Williams at Foothillsfemalejrhockey@gmail.com and go to ajfhl.ca.
