Besides its unofficial title as Canada's official sport, ice hockey holds a special place in the hearts of many in the region.
Carlyle Minor Hockey Association celebrated the game and the youth who dedicate their time and efforts to it with the annual Carlyle Minor Hockey Day, on Saturday, Jan. 15.
More than 100 youth came out to take part in the many matches that were featured throughout the day.
The annual event sees Carlyle teams, as well as some youth teams from other communities, pit their skills against each other on the ice in the Carlyle Sports Arena.
This year, first year minor hockey president Todd Magotiaux expects things to continue on in tradition of hockey excellence the organization has built a reputation for.
"Things have been fairly steady in terms of numbers of kids this year," Magotiaux said. "We have also been coordinating with Arcola on some things."
Magotiaux, who has been with minor hockey for years in the capacity of coach said his new position, while a bit more work, has nonetheless been satisfying.
"It's been really fun so far," Magotiaux said. "I had been coaching kids for a long time, and it is really great when the kids always seem to have a blast."
Continuing improvement at the Carlyle Sports Arena have also had a spill-over affect on the continuing success of the hockey programs.
"The laws now are such that we needed to have a separate changing and shower area for the girls," explained Brent Stillwell, the facility maintenance supervisor at the rink. "So we have done some rearranging of the space in the change rooms to accommodate that."
More than accommodate, the arena has surpassed expectations, thanks to some intelligent redesign of the existing space, as well as a little construction.
"We've managed to fit in a girls changing and shower area," Stillwell said. "Also, we have a changing area for our referees now."
"We cut away a stair from the south side of the building to help expand a new storage space for uniforms, and other hockey equipment," Stillwell continued. "And we are just putting the finishing touches on a special room for figure skating as well."
Carlyle minor hockey continues to grow thanks to its wide appeal in the region.
"We have players who come out from Wawota, White Bear, Manor, Arcola, and Kisbey," Magotiaux said. "Teams from a number of surrounding communities come out to play on a regular basis as well."
At present, Carlyle minor hockey consists of one six-and-under team, an eight-and-under team, two 10-and-under teams, and one each of 12-and-under and 14-and-under.
"For this coming year, our goal is to continue keeping up with the regular schedule of games and so forth," Magotiaux said. "I guess our one big thing though is we want to start improving the website, in terms of what is available on it."
Carlyle minor hockey's website can be found at www.carlyleminorhockey.com
